Hardly a week after its release Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is already nominated for Best Picture at the 2012 Oscars. The film was based off of the novel of the same name by Jonathan Safran Foer and revolves around a young boy about 11 years old named Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn) diagnosed with Aspergers Syndrome. Oskar is searching for a message his father left for him to find somewhere in New York City.

He lives with his mother (Sandra Bullock) and father Thomas Schell (Tom Hanks) in New York City.  As the movie rolls along, you can see that the relationship between Oskar and his father is “incredibly close.” Thomas delights little Oskar with the story about a sixth borough in New York that had mysteriously disappeared and was never heard of again. And Oskar, being gifted with a very intelligent brain, is infused with searching for this borough, which may not even exist, and is seen constantly asking his father if there really is one. Thomas answers with a shrug, and tells him “Don’t stop looking.” Of course these are just mind games that connect those two together because Thomas understands that Oskar has a very complex mind for a child. 

The plot takes a turn for the worst on Sept.11. Thomas is trapped in the World Trade Center, in the midst of a meeting, and obviously traumatizing Oskar. Throughout the movie, viewers follow Oskar on his quest through New York City to find the secret behind a key mysteriously found in a blue vase in Thomas’s closet. Oskar believes the key will bring him closer to his father.

Although the plot seems intriguing, to get down to it, you are spending approximately two hours with a very obnoxious and complex child. The movie contains mild humor, but the majority of the time is spent inside Oskar’s head, who is constantly pondering the meaning behind this key. Oskar searches constantly for the borough and his persistence becomes tiresome for viewers. 

Bullock’s role wasn’t expanded very much, although she did do a very well during the emotional scenes. At times, some tend to be more disturbing than sympathetic; more specifically the ones where Oskar is screaming or speaking so fast his words are incomprehensible. Horn portrayed the role incredibly well despite this being his debut. Horn definitely will have a bright future as far as acting goes. 

In the end, the film is about recognizing the lives impacted by the attacks from Sept. 11, more importantly, from the perspective of the most unexpected person, a child.