Captain Phillips

 

Directed by Paul Greengrass

Written by Billy Ray, Based on the book” A Captain’s Duty:

Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea”

With:  Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Barhad Ahdirahman, Michael Chernus, Corey Johnson, Max Martini, and Catherine Keener

 

Captain Phillips delivers a nail-biting true tale of terror on the high seas.

In 2009, the container ship, Maersk Alabama, was hijacked by a group of ragtag Somali pirates off the coast of Africa. They held the captain hostage for five days. The event was a global headliner story. In the end, the U.S. Navy SEALS saved the day and Captain Phillips.

Director Peter Greengrass knows how a biopic should be done. The result is a taut, intelligent film as intense as any action film you’ve ever seen.

Captain Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks) is hauling tons of stuff, including World Food items to Africa. Meanwhile, in a dusty poverty-stricken Somali village, men are instructed by their warlords to hijack a ship. Director Greengrass has chosen to show the desperate conditions of their lives. They target Captain Phillips’ unarmed vessel.

The tension builds as a tiny boat with four heavily armed men approaches the Maersk Alabama, whose only protection is fire hoses. The four men scramble onto the ship. Their leader is the English speaking Muse (Barkhad Abdi). The focus now is the relationship between him and Phillips. 

Phillips’ demeanor is calm as he does everything he can to protect the crew hiding elsewhere on the ship. Things don’t go well and the pirates threaten to kill the crew one by one unless Captain Phillips comes up with an enormous sum of money.

The $30,000 in the ship’s safe doesn’t cut it. The four Somalis take Captain Phillips hostage in a tiny lifeboat. Demands are made for ransom. What happens in the tiny claustrophobic lifeboat is guaranteed to jangle your nerves. 

The tension builds and the Navy SEALS prepare to do their work. The Somalis continue to nervously jerk their weapons every which way.

Tom Hanks portrays a solid, principled man whose world has been turned upside down. He does this with total authenticity. Barkhad Abdi ( Muse) is an untrained Somali actor and he couldn’t be more believable as he faces off with Hanks.

Peter Greengrass has mastered the art of docudrama here. How the story ends is a foregone conclusion, but he puts you in the shoes of the characters.

Watching Captain Phillips is a harrowing experience. You are in for a ride aboard a roller coaster of emotion. It is immensely satisfying. Patriotism wells up in your gut as the SEALS arrive like the cavalry does in an old Western.