Notice! This post contains minor spoilers for La Palma and The Impossible.
Netflix's popular new miniseries La Palma is a perfect reminder to watch Ewan McGregor and Tom Holland's 2012 disaster film The Impossible. La Palma was just released on Netflix on December 12, 2024, and is already among the platform's best-performing recent additions. The cast of La Palma features a number of Norwegian actors, some experienced and some new, and the miniseries is therefore dubbed in English.
The story mainly revolves around a family on vacation on the island of La Palma, one of the Canary Islands, which is (both in the series and in real life) in Spain. During what would otherwise be an idyllic vacation, a volcano on the island erupts, sending a massive 80-foot-high tsunami toward the island. La Palma therefore, it joins the ranks of countless disaster films and shows – among them a 12 year old film that also features a devastating tsunami starring Tom Holland and Ewan McGregor.
Tom Holland and Ewan McGregor's The Impossible is another tsunami disaster drama film about a family on vacation
This 2012 film has a lot in common with La Palma
As La Palma, The Impossible It starts with a family going on vacation in a beautiful location. In The ImpossibleThis is Khao Lak, Thailand. The cast is made up of Henry (Ewan McGregor), the father, and Maria (Naomi Watts), the mother, alongside their three children, Lucas (Tom Holland), Thomas (Samuel Joslin) and Simon (Oaklee Pendergast).
The Impossible also shares similar beats to La Palmawith the family enjoying the holidays completely unaware of what's to come when things suddenly take a very dark turn. This is a little different in La Palma because although the family has no idea they are about to suffer a tsunami, the evidence has been mounting for those around them. In The Impossiblethe giant wave appears entirely out of nowhere, giving them no chance to escape.
This does The Impossible a perfect next viewing for viewers who loved it La Palma.
This does The Impossible a perfect next viewing for viewers who loved it La Palma. In fact, without a doubt, The Impossible It's even more exciting because there isn't as much preparation for the disaster event – ​​viewers are caught off guard at the same time as the characters. The film also shows the consequences of this terrible incident in much more detail.
How La Palma's Natural Disaster Emergency Accuracy Compares to Impossible
The Impossible is based on a true story, while La Palma is not
Incredibly, The Impossible is based on the true story of a family who experienced the real-life tsunami that hit Thailand in 2004.. In fact, the family even played a role in the film's creation, adding to its sense of authenticity. This is another big difference between the two disaster stories, as La Palma It is not based on a true story.
La Palma is not fully manufactured, although. As mentioned, La Palma is a real location in the Canary Islands, and the island has suffered volcanic eruptions in the past. As the introduction to each episode of La Palma notes that since its last eruption, La Palma has also been seen as a “time bomb” by some. Specifically, there has been scientific research into the University of California Santa Cruz suggesting that a disaster could occur if there was a landslide, similar to that seen in the miniseries.
As with the disaster movie/show genre in general, both La Palma and The Impossible taking liberties in terms of realistic depictions of natural disasters.
Of course, as with the disaster movie/show genre in general, both La Palma and The Impossible taking liberties in terms of realistic depictions of natural disasters. La Palma especially received some backlash for this, especially with the series' conclusion, which sees some logic-defying survivals. However, that is part of the appeal of disaster stories for many, and for viewers who loved La Palma should therefore absolutely give The Impossible a watch.