THE IMPOSSIBLE Reading Oscar Potential: This movie tells the true story of a family torn apart when the 2004 tsunami struck during their family vacation to Thailand and how they found each other again It's a tearjerker with an impressive backstory, and director Bayona could pull out a nomination, but the more likely recipients of Oscar nods would be the two stars—particularly Watts, playing the mother whose quest made The Impossible possible and on whose survival the story hinges The special effects that bring the tsunami to life, creating a wall of water and debris that batters the characters, may also be found worthy of recognition Vocabulary Strong recollections(exp) livelihoods(noun) lamented(verb) impressive(adj) critics(noun) batters(verb) struck(verb) appease (verb) a tearjerker(noun) to hinge on(verb) plight(noun) sensitivity(noun) back-story(noun) debris(noun) recognition(noun) Listening The Impossible combines elements of _, and the emotional drama which destroyed lives and _ Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts play a couple whose Christmas holiday is _ by a giant wave Ewan McGregor says "after I read the script, I was left _ that it was a proper , Scenes recreating the powerful _ were filmed on location in The two women were on the red carpet in London Maria Belon said that they been through a Tsunami of _& Questions Who is Maria Belon? What did the critics complain about? What did the filmmakers to appease the critics? Discussion Have you been near or had someone involved in a disaster? What would peoples' reactions be at the time the disaster strikes? What emotions you think they would be feeling?