Movie Review: Captain Phillips
Captain Phillips is a movie full of high stakes, real consequences and suspense.
We all know the story of Captain Richard Phillips, who was taken hostage by Somali pirates in 2009 and saved a few days later after being saved by the Navy and a group of Navy SEALs.
However, the movie, directed by Paul Greengrass and starring Tom Hanks looks to expand upon what you know and give you a much greater sense of what happened to Phillips and a back story for the Somali pirates.
While the film is sure to collect a lot of buzz and is an early Oscar contender, there are parts of the movie that do not deliver.
From when you first meet Phillips up until the Somali pirates come onto to Phillips’ boat drags on just a bit, though meeting the pirates was certainly an interesting segment.
The suspense does ramp up once Phillips becomes a hostage and is then trapped on a lifeboat with the four pirates as they want to keep Phillips as a hostage until emotions reach a fever pitch and they decide to torture and beat the captain.
It is during this part that Hanks shows just how great an actor he is by ranging his emotions ranging from fear and shock, to exhaustion and nervousness. The way you watch him struggle with speaking while coping with post-traumatic stress after being saved from the pirates is simply astounding.
While not the best film so far this Oscar season, there is enough here to validate a viewing, though beware the drag of the first half of the film.
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