Captain Phillips

Captain Phillips is a film that tells the true story of the high-jacking of an American container ship, the Maersk Alabama, off the coast of Somalia, the title referring to Captain Richard Phillips, who was in command of the vessel and who was subsequently taken hostage by Somali pirates. And it is brilliant. Full stop. Superbly acted, fantastically produced and directed, greatly scored; all leading to a film that creates all the right amounts of tension, thrills, and emotion.

Directed by Paul Greengrass of the Bourne franchise fame, Captain Phillips portrays in wonderfully visceral, clear cut, raw and at times harrowing detail, the epic tale of Richard Phillips and his crew, and the four Somali pirates who hijacked their vessel. The film, and it's subsequent great reception, hinges upon the two main stars. We have Tom Hanks, who is pretty much universally established as a superb actor and an all time great Hollywood star, as the titular character. This he does with seemingly effortless ease, yet also showcasing great skill; we truly do see the whole process of his journey unfold piece by piece in front of our very eyes. Secondly opposite Hanks, we have complete newcomer Barkhad Abdi, who plays the pirate leader Abduwali Muse. Like Tom Hanks, he is receiving massive acclaim, including an Academy Award nomination, for this truly remarkable breakout performance. And rightly so indeed. Like Phillips, Muse has a journey throughout the film, and it too is portrayed wonderfully and uniquely in such an individual manner by Barkhad Abdi. We get the slight impression that his character is/becomes conflicted as events unfold, and maybe that was the idea. Yet to me, 9 times out of 10 Abdi channels such energy in his expressions, voice and mannerisms, that he is pretty much a total embodiment of a ruthless, desperate and evil pirate. Chillingly and perhaps disturbingly so, his performance is superb; easily matched to Tom Hanks'.

Faults? Well, apart from the ever-so-slightly mixed messaging in Abdi's internal character, the scenes involving the US Navy, whilst integral and gripping, could be said to go on a bit too much potentially. Yet this is really a case of me being picky. My one major gripe, this being Oscar season, is that Hanks' performance (culminating beautifully at the film's end) did not earn him a nomination for Best Actor, as I feel it is surely deserved. Yet even this does not take away from the fact that Captain Phillips is a wonderfully acted, superbly produced, uniquely thrilling, future classic of a film in my view.