CAPTAIN PHILLIPS (A)

Bottom Line: Making way for yet another work of exceptional intensity, Hollywood launches CAPTAIN PHILLIPS and continues it's three-week reign of highly recommendable cinema.  This riveting biopic thriller – exploring the events of the 2009 hijacking of a U.S. cargo ship by Somali pirates – serves as a master class in the art of superb filmmaking.  It’s an intelligently gripping procedural drama that explores the worlds of disparity, vulnerability, fortitude, globalization, human nature and the fight for self preservation.  Even if you're aware of how this story pans out, director Paul Greengrass (UNITED 93, THE BOURNE SUPREMACY/ULTIMATUM) is at the helm and there to ensure you'll be witness to a confident whirligig of frenzied action and desperate emotion – so much so in fact, you may find yourself second guessing what you already know to be true…  Oh, and Tom Hanks, as probably excepted, delivers another brilliant performance – this time forged of stoicism, calmness, shock, fear and a whoooooole lot of uncertainty.  I can't fathom it not being in the Oscar hunt with nominations for (at least) Best Picture, Actor and Director...  Anchored by gut-wrenching action, soul-searching depth and brilliant filmmaking on almost every single level, this mesmerizing CAPTAIN is sure to have command of audiences worldwide!

Starring: Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi

Directed by: Paul Greengrass (UNITED 93, THE BOURNE SUPREMACY and THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM)

Rated: PG-13

Running time: 134 minutes

Story: Captain Phillips is a multi-layered examination of the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. container ship Maersk Alabama by a crew of Somali pirates. The film focuses on the relationship between the Alabama's commanding officer, Captain Richard Phillips (two time Academy Award (R)-winner Tom Hanks), and the Somali pirate captain, Muse (Barkhad Abdi), who takes him hostage. Phillips and Muse are set on an unstoppable collision course when Muse and his crew target Phillips' unarmed ship; in the ensuing standoff, 145 miles off the Somali coast, both men will find themselves at the mercy of forces beyond their control.(c) Sony

 

Trailer: www.captainphillipsmovie.com