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Captain Phillips (2013)
Captain Phillips (2013)
Captain Phillips is based on the true story of when a US flagged-cargo ship was hijacked by Somali pirates in 2009. This was the first time that this had happened to an American cargo ship in 200 years. Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks) was the captain of the ship.
Back in 2009 I had a warehouse job that enabled me to listen to the radio all day long during my shifts. I remember having my ears glued to the little radio that was set up in my work station as I listened intently for updates about what was happening with Captain Phillips, his crew, and the Somali hijackers.
It was already 4 years ago, but it feels like yesterday. I remember how America responded to this act of terrorism and that made me curious to see how the film would portray the situation. I figured if the movie followed the truth closely, than it might have the potential to be a quality film and an Oscar Contender.
The movie was directed by Paul Greengrass. Billy Ray wrote the screenplay, but Richard Phillips wrote the book that it is based on, “A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea.”
The noteworthy cast includes Tom Hanks, Catherine Keener, Michael Chernus, David Warshofsky, Chris Mulkey, Max Martini, Omar Berdouni, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman, Faysal Ahmed, and Mahat M. Ali.
Hanks has not had a great part for a while, until now. There was a time when he had one excellent movie after another. This will be the movie that puts him back into the spotlight (it already has). The role fit him like a glove and he wore it well. His performance should be worth an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and if he wins, it would be well deserved (another one to add to the collection). The film also deserves a Best Picture nomination.
The film does not follow the facts completely, but the few things that it does change only serve to make the movie more powerful, more entertaining, and more enjoyable. The things that were changed were done so tastefully. After all, with Tom Hanks in the driver’s seat, Hollywood has to dress the story up a little bit to turn it into a blockbuster.
Captain Phillips is an edge-of-your-seat suspenseful thriller that is one of the best movies of 2013. It is one of those films that hits home a little harder because it is based on a true story.
I rate this movie a 9 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Buy.
Now You See Me (2013)
Now You See Me (2013)
Now You See Me is a film about a group of 4 magicians brought together by an unknown person. They are convinced to become a team and eventually they land their own show in Las Vegas. When one of their tricks involves stealing a large amount of money, they become part of a cat and mouse chase with the FBI.
The film was directed by Louis Leterrier. The cast includes Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Mark Ruffalo, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher, Melanie Laurent, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Michael Kelly, Common, and David Warshofsky.
Now You See Me hypnotized me with its excitement. It was certain to amaze. The cast of characters were all clever and quite entertaining. For a while I was caught up in the illusion of the promise of something great. Eventually I was let down. The ride was a thrill. The destination however, was a disappointment.
I enjoyed seeing Eisenberg and Harrelson teamed up together again for the first time since Zombieland (2009).
This is the 4th time that Freeman and Caine have been in the same film. The previous 3 films were The Dark Knight Trilogy.
Now You See Me could be Dave Franco’s best performance to date.
It was nice to see Laurent in another American made movie. This is the first film that I have seen her in anything since Inglourious Basterds (2009).
The story was unfinished and sort of lacked a point. The movie became dependent on sleight of hand in order to entertain. You can only one-up a magic trick so many times before it starts to get a little worn out.
The ending of the film acted like it was a big grand conclusion when in reality it just fizzled. Don’t get me wrong, the movie was fun and amusing. It was worth seeing, just not in the theatre. The film is like any magic trick, once you know the secret behind it, it is no longer exciting.
I rate this movie a 7 on a scale of 1-10.
Buy, rent, or run? Rent.
Trailer for Captain Phillips (2013)
Captain Phillips (2013)
This film is based on the true story of when an American cargo ship was hijacked by Somali pirates in 2009. This was the first time that this had happened to an American cargo ship in 200 years.
Does anybody remember how America responded to this hijacking? Do you remember Captain Phillips?
It’s hard to believe that happened about 4 years ago.
If this movie follows the truth closely, I think that it might have the potential to be a quality film and an Oscar contender.
The film is directed by Paul Greengrass. Billy Ray wrote the screenplay, but Richard Phillips wrote the book “A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea” that it is all based off of.
The cast includes Tom Hanks, Catherine Keener, Max Martini, John Magaro, Chris Mulkey, Corey Johnson, David Warshofsky, Yul Vasquez, and Michael Chernus.
Hanks has not had a great part for a while. Could this be the movie that puts him back into the spotlight? I will have to be there when it releases to find out.
The film is set to release on 10/11/13.
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