by Joseph Rossi
In the last few weeks we’ve seen Prisoners, Rush and Gravity. How could anyone complain about a lack of content in the cinema these days? This week comes the new film Captain Phillips by director Paul Greengrass and starring Tom Hanks. This is the real deal. A taut, tense and emotional experience worthy of all the praise that will be heaped upon it.
Based on the real account of Richard Phillips, captain of the Maersk Alabama, and his ordeal as a hostage during a Somali raid off the coast of Africa, Greengrass uses his gift for staging real life drama with visceral cinema and puts us in the middle of the action.
The ever-reliable Tom Hanks is in top form here. It is said that we relate to his everyman quality and in this case it is true. In other action pictures, the hero would Die Hard his way off the ship. Here, Hanks watches the events unfold in silence, using his wits over his muscle to evade death.
The actors cast as the Somali hijackers do effective work for novice performers. Actor Barkhad Abdi plays their leader called Muse and he brings his own Somali past into his performance. He is equal parts desperation, fear and anger and is terrifyingly convincing. Screenwriter Billy Ray makes the pirates’ mission one of economical necessity and we feel some sympathy for their cause, piracy notwithstanding.
This is one of the years great films. It’s a powerful experience and is not to be missed.
