K-SCORE: 86
Director: Paul Greengrass
Based on: A Captain’s Duty by Richard Phillips
“a well-chosen real life narrative”
Starring: Tom Hanks
Spoiler Level: Minor
I got to say, I was surprised how much I liked this Tom Hanks - Somali pirates, inspired-by-a-true-story film. At first my instinct was that it was too long, but I grew to appreciate the length because forcing the viewer to endure literal hours of the grueling pirate conflict matches the content and emotional state associated with Phillips himself in this horrible situation.
The story is compelling, a well-chosen real life narrative, and deftly handled. At no point did I suspect that the true story was being excessively exaggerated, taken in an alternate direction, or misrepresenting the parties and subcultures involved. It's interesting that these, by most reasonable evaluations, terrifying pirates also drum up sympathy. The level of ignorance, poverty, and the necessity of crime in the region is really beyond my ability to comprehend, and I'd guess most Americans are no different. So you feel sorry for the men with the guns, not for the choices they make but for the world they were born into. Captain Phillips is also looking at the issue through a unique lens; I can't think of a film like it.
Hanks is excellent, as people have come to expect. He captures a character that is level-headed, unremarkable by Hollywood film standards, yet also very deep. The actors who play the Somalis are effective as well; clearly the director went for authenticity when selecting them. The Navy response is intense and does a great job of highlighting their service men and women as top-of-the-line experts in their fields. And the seafaring content is well-researched.
Captain Phillips is really just a good one, carefully made by people who knew and cared about their story and presented it very well to those interested in seeing it.
