When I was a kid, I spent an inordinate amount of time in my weird salt and pepper carpeted room. I would play with my action figures all day, narrating their battles, recreating scenes from comic books, cartoons and movies in glorious mash-up fashion, throwing them to and from the room and at the walls, to simulate the gritty reality of “war.”

I was painfully shy, and my Room was the only place I could be unequivocally myself, sheltered from the rest of the world. I miss it.

But I can’t even imagine if Room was my world, and the only thing I knew. That’s what his Ma’s (Brie Larson) garden shed prison is to Jack (Jacob Tremblay), a four year old boy who has grown up knowing only the insides of Room.

For a kid, even a Room can seem like an entire world.

And in Room, the transformative must-see film based on Emma Donaghue’s acclaimed novel and adapted by her own hand, it’s a fascinating one. Yes, the tragic, uncomfortable circumstances make your skin crawl, but Jack has no idea of the circumstances surrounding his birth, and this story is from his fascinating perspective, and director Lenny Abrahamson (Frank) renders many unimaginable situations to (painful) reality.

Jack just knows Ma, Room and the fuzzy feed of Dora the Explorer that they receive. Sure, he knows about Old Nick (Sean Bridgers), but he’s not allowed to see him, and goes to bed before he comes over. Jack doesn’t know that Ma was kidnapped by Old Nick seven years previous, and that he’s raped her nearly every day since, and that Jack himself was conceived from one of these unspeakable deeds.

He loves Room and Ma. He doesn’t know that the trees, birds and people he sees on TV are real, that anything exists out of Room.

It’s hard not to be frustrated, angry with Jack, but of course, none of this is his fault, and you can hardly blame Ma for how he’s sheltered him. But eventually, Jack’s blissful ignorance becomes too much for Ma, who finally stops lying to him, revealing to him that there is a world beyond Room.

Those scenes between Larson and Tremblay are the best in the film. Ma has carried this truth for so long, and needs someone to understand, and Jack doesn’t, at least not at first, decrying this new reality as make-believe. “That’s a boring story. That’s not the story I want,” he yells, tantrum at the ready. And who can blame him? This movie captures the mind, soul and stunning adaptability of a child perfectly, thanks to Tremblay’s performance and a mindblowingly empathic perspective from Abrahamson and Donaghue.

In the sometimes overwrought, but always necessary, narration, Jack comes to grips with the truth: “I’m four and I knew nothing. I’m 5 and I know everything.”

You’ve never rooted for characters to escape from their circumstances MORE than in Room, but when we get what you want, it feels just as weird and uncomfortable for the audience as it does for Jack and Ma, a truly mind-boggling achievement by Abrahamson.

Room highlights the incredible adaptability and intelligence of children, and how adults just don’t have the same capacity. Ma never expected to leave, to make it back home, to return to her life, and see her parents again. Larson’s Ma would’ve given up long ago if it weren’t for Jack; she’s been broken for so long that she might never be repaired. It’s an unreal performance from Larson, summoning untold depths of sorrow and compassion. She’s so good it almost demeans it all by suggesting an Oscar statuette; this is an achievement all on its own, and is the kind of performance that cements her place as one of the finest in the industry.

Room is incredible, a story of survival, adaptation, perseverance and love, one where Larson, Tremblay and Abrahamson prove irreplaceable as a cinematic family all their own.

Room opens in New York and Los Angeles October 16, and expands nationwide November 6.

There aren’t many people easier to root for than Clark Gregg. He’s been in the film industry since the late 1980’s, but it wasn’t until turning a minor, nigh throwaway character in the first IRON MAN into a fan favorite that he’s hit it big-time, joining the Whedonverse (MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING), the Marvel Cinematic Universe (as Agent Phil Coulson), and showing up in various other fun comedies. Now he’s the lead in ABC’s AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D., and with TRUST ME, has written, directed and starred in his second feature film.

He’s brought along with him a brilliant cast, in a personal and inside baseball look at Hollywood and the stomach churning wheeling and dealing that takes place behind the scenes.

It opens with a voiceover from Clark Gregg, asking the audience, if you ever “think you’re someone else? Reborn as something new?” Considering the troubled history of Phil Coulson, I considered the possibility of TRUST ME being within MCU continuity. That soon dissipates…sort of.

Clark Gregg is Howard Holloway, a hapless agent for child actors, and a former child star himself. He still clings to a broken blue tooth in his ear, a stud in his other, while driving around in a crappy car, making deals with no one in particular. But, as he gives a pep talk to Phillip (Griffin Gluck, name o’ the week nominee), a young kid going in for an audition, it’s clear he’s good with his clients, because he’s been there, and that he’s one of the few honest, good people in Hollywood. This is exactly why he finds himself repeatedly trounced by the unbelievably smarmy and “slick” Aldo (Sam Rockwell), who always snipes his clients. After Howard gets carried away by negotiating for more money and “points” for Phillip, the kid is swapped out for Lindsay Lohan’s brother, and Phillip’s over bearing and pitch perfect mother Janice (SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE’s Molly Shannon) fires Howard.

The break up gets messy…and Lydia (TOUCH’s Saxon Sharbino, who will also star in the forthcoming POLTERGEIST remake) witnesses it all. Lydia’s thirteen years old, but wise beyond her years, and the moment we’re introduced to her, it’s clear she’s a tween star waiting to happen. Lydia has representation back home, but needs an LA agent, and sees a kindred spirit in Howard. Her drunk, idiotic and overprotective (and maybe abusive?) father Ray (MUD and BOARDWALK EMPIRE’s Paul Sparks) father isn’t the only one standing in the way. Aldo smells her talent, and when Lydia finds herself as Ang Lee’s top choice for the newest, next massive vampire-y YA novel movie adaptation, Howard must pull out all the stops to keep his client, juggle hard ass casting directors and producers (Allison Janney and Felicity Huffman, respectively, both impeccably cast) and most importantly, do what’s right for Lydia. Or so we hope, without blowing it, and his likely last chance to make it in Hollywood.

The result is a dramedy with a MATCHSTICK MEN vibe (another great Sam Rockwell joint). Lydia and Howard immediately connect, but is Lydia as wonderful as she seems, or is she conning Howard, Ray and the whole lot of them? Is Ray as despicable as he seems, or is he the mastermind? Or a mere pawn? Is Howard even the adorable schmuck he would have you believe? What’s Aldo’s play? Can you trust anybody? If you’ve been to Hollywood, you know the answer to that question, and you might be a little bit more prepared for the bizarre, $%#@ed up and tragic ending. I’m still not sure if it all works, but at least Clark Gregg doesn’t hold anything back.

We soon learn that Lydia has a dark secret, which explains her ability to mine great depths in her acting, and might explain why she’s so believable as the next big thing. It also throws everything into flux, and could keep Howard, Lydia and Ray from the big time.

Thrust in the middle of all this is a love story with single mother and former singer Marcy (THE GOOD WIFE’s Amanda Peet). It’s almost too much, but Howard needs an ally outside of the industry, and their relationship is one of the cuter and funnier subplots of the film. Plus, Amanda Peet.

The big draw is the relationship between Howard and Lydia, which is what the movie hinges upon. Saxon Sharbino is so great as a budding starlet, that I’d be shocked if she doesn’t become one. It was way too easy to believe Lydia was too good to be true, precisely the point. Throw in a few more cameos, like William H. Macy as a greasy car dealer (who’s contractually obliged to appear, since his wife is involved, and they both produce the film), and you have a promising and interesting film on your hands. This isn’t the last we’ve seen of Clark Gregg’s behind the camera work. Trust me.

TRUST ME comes to Video on Demand on May 6^th, 2014, and arrives in theaters on June 6th.