DVD Review: Captain Phillips

DVD Reviews, Reviews, Top Story

The ocean is a dangerous place, and that’s not just because of what lies in wait beneath the surface. Pirating has been around since people started taking to the seas; however, it’s rare that we see a film focus on the types of modern pirates that hold little resemblance to the rum drinking, sword fighting, treasure hunting types that usually grace the silver screen. But Captain Phillips does just that, focusing on the Somali pirates who attacked a US cargo ship in 2009 and took its captain hostage.

Now, I’m not an avid watcher of the news, and that, along with the fact that I live in Canada, made it so – much like director Paul Greengrass – I didn’t know too much about the story of the real Captain Phillips going into this film. I knew the story was about Somali pirates taking over a cargo vessel, and in a passing news story about ongoing lawsuits I learned that Captain Phillips escapes the ordeal. However, none of that tarnished the suspenseful atmosphere that lasts almost the entire 132-minute run time of the movie.

While the actual events took place over the course of five days, the film keeps a steady pace, moving from one intense situation to another over the course of what seems like less than a day. While things likely could’ve been dragged out to show the wear and tear the situation took on both Phillips and his captors, keeping the tempo constantly moving really helps raise the intensity of everything going down, always keeping the stakes high.

The script by Billy Ray is based on the book A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy Seals, and Dangerous Days at Sea by Richard Phillips with Stephan Talty, though Ray spends just as much time introducing the Somali characters as he does the ship’s crew. The lead pirate Muse (Barkhad Abdi) gets most of the focus – much like Phillips does on the other side of the fence – but it really helps to see why it is they’re doing what they’re doing, and the world they’re coming from, over just having them show up already in the water on the hunt.

What this also does is make it so that the story isn’t completely black and white. The Somali pirates aren’t just these bloodthirsty, greedy bad guys who are out to get rich and leave bodies in their wake. No, they’re real people placed in a position where viewers will actually empathize with them on some level. This takes the movie to another level entirely; giving everyone involved in the story an emotional presence that constantly fluctuate as the situations around them continuously change.

Greengrass’s style puts the viewer right into the action and really is best suited for this type of emotionally driven, white knuckle storytelling. The movie was filmed on the ocean, and it really makes all the difference, as there’s just this realism to the scenes where the pirates are chasing down the cargo ship that wouldn’t be there had it been shot in any other manner. While the camera does move quite a bit, it does so smoothly, which should help viewers refrain from getting seasick during this voyage.

On the acting front, Hanks is amazing as usual. He brings a quality to the film that leaves an uncertainty with the viewer as to whether or not Phillips will actually make it out of the situation alive – even with the outcome being known to many before the film even begins. He just has an everyman aura about him that helps make people relate with the characters he plays, which is something that some stars of his caliber just can’t do, simply because of how we perceive them. If Bruce Willis had played Phillips, well, it’d be more of a waiting game of just how he’ll escape over whether or not he will.

On the supporting front, Abdi really shines as the leader of the Somali pirates who infiltrate the ship. So much so that he was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance. Not bad for his first time in front of the camera. While his appearance may have played a very minor part in him landing the role (he bears an uncanny resemblance to the actual man who hijacked the ship), it was likely only a bonus to the filmmakers, as he really holds his own up against a veteran such as Hanks.

Interestingly enough, Greengrass kept the different band of actors away from one another until the scene where they first come face to face when the pirates take the bridge. It’s a fun little tidbit that’s revealed during the special features, and it’s clear that it really helped make the hijacking feel that much more real to those involved.

Captain Phillips is definitely worth checking out, regardless of whether or not you know the whole story. The action is intense, the suspense doesn’t let up, and the acting is strong all around. If you’re looking for an engrossing movie to escape into for a couple of hours, climb aboard and enjoy the ride.

The sound mix on Captain Phillips is superb, with the dialogue coming through cleanly at all times. The effects and overall sound design does a fantastic job of placing the viewer on the boat and bringing the atmosphere around the characters to life. The DVD picture transfer is strong for the most part, with only a few grainy scenes that don’t really last long enough to take you out of the film.

The special features front is somewhat sparse in terms of quantity, but it delivers most of what you could hope for in terms of quality!

Commentary with Director Paul Greengrass – While it’s always nice to have a variety of voices keeping things lively during a commentary session, you really can never go wrong with just having the director’s perspective.

Capturing Captain Phillips This is an in-depth behind-the-scenes feature that’s really worth watching. It’s an hour in length, and it’s filled with interviews including Hanks, Greengrass, other cast and crew, as well as Richard Phillips himself. They talk about shooting on the sister ship to the MV Maersk Alabama while on the ocean, the hardships of shooting at sea, and Greengrass’s shooting style. There’s also a lot of fun commentary about a chief engineer named Kurt that they brought on board to make sure things were being done by the crew like they would be on a real cargo run. Finally, there’s an interesting story about the final scene of the film, and how it was added on the spot by Greengrass, which involved the actual infirmary crew of the ship they shot on. All in all, it’s definitely worth the time to watch!

Columbia Pictures Presents Captain Phillips. Directed by: Paul Greengrass. Written by: Billy Ray. Starring: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi. Running time: 132 minutes. Rating: PG-13. Released: January 21, 2014.

Brendan Campbell was here when Inside Pulse Movies began, and he’ll be here when it finishes - in 2012, when a cataclysmic event wipes out the servers, as well as everyone else on the planet other than John Cusack and those close to him. Brendan’s the #1 supporter of Keanu Reeves, a huge fan of popcorn flicks and a firm believer that sheer entertainment can take a film a long way. He currently resides in Canada, where, for reasons stated above, he’s attempting to get closer to John Cusack.