Director Paul Greengrass is no stranger to exploring harrowing true stories on-screen. He is still probably best known to most audiences as the man who shot some gritty life into the Bourne franchise. But prior to that he gave us the gripping Bloody Sunday, which was based on the Irish civil rights protest in 1972, while his most challenging and rewarding work remains United 93, the gut-wrenching docudrama centered on one of the planes hijacked on 9/11.
His latest based on a true story drama comes in the form of Captain Phillips, which dramatises the story of a cargo vessel that was boarded by armed Somali pirates and its crew taken hostage for ransom. Tom Hanks stars as the eponymous Captain who tries his best to defend himself, the ship and the terrified crew.
Similarities to this year’s (arguably superior) Danish drama A Hijacking aside, Greengrass’ latest film is a tense nail-biter of a drama thriller, which does justice to a nerve-racking real life story. The choice to shoot and set 90% of the film on the open water on real ships – as opposed to the new norm of CGI green screen – lends the film a great deal of credibility and realism, while Greengrass’ rough sensibilities gives it a palpable sense of urgency. His sometimes unwelcome handheld directorial technique has rarely been used to better effect.
The heart of the film, however, and the thing that ultimately gives it its sense of emotional power and resonance is the central performance by Hanks. Although largely the selling point for audiences, this is far away from a cynical case of inserting a movie star into a film just for the big name’s sake. In what might just be one of his finest performances to date, Hanks handles the difficult role of Richard Phillips perfectly, capturing both the heroism and vulnerability of a man willing to put his life on the line for his crew, even facing the barrel of a gun. Few actors could pull off the sort of complexity of emotions the character goes through as the film progresses but Hanks does so with great aplomb.
As well as providing in-the-moment tension that reaches almost unbearable levels at times, Greengrass’ film serves as an interesting piece of geopolitical commentary. Along with showing us how they carry out their savage yet calculated plan, the film gives us a look at the other side of the coin with pre-attack scenes set on Somali beaches where we see how the men are chosen and the reasons, monetary and otherwise, why they are forced into taking such drastic measures. Although the screenplay by Billy Ray (The Hunger Games, State of Play) perhaps over oversimplifies that aspect a little, it nonetheless gives the villains more than just two dimensions and gives us an understanding, if not exactly sympathy, for their callous actions. Much of this is helped by the performance of newcomer Barkhad Abdi – playing Muse, the self-appointed leader of the pirates – whose raw intensity and often terrifying believability belies his inexperience as an actor. He and Hanks play off of one another very well, making for a hero-villain dynamic that’s as unpredictable as it is believable.
And that’s the key word here – believable. Greengrass’ skill as a director is in taking this terrible true story and making it cinematic without it being exploitative (something the aforementioned United 93 also did very effectively), while still retaining the sense of scary realism that makes it so compelling. It all culminates in a cathartic scene that hits you like a punch to the stomach, with Hanks continuing to earn his stripes as one of the finest actors working in Hollywood, summing up the ordeal as much for the character as for the audience.
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