More exciting than expected

Rating: 8/10 (2 December 2013)

This is the true story of Captain Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks) and his ship MV Maersk Alabama captured by Somali pirates in 2009. Director Paul Greengrass has used his realism style like 'United 93' (2006) to good use. There is real excitement in this thriller even though we all know what the outcome will be.
The movie starts off slowly. Tom Hanks getting ready to captain a cargo ship is about as exciting as Tom Hanks getting ready to captain a cargo ship. It lasts for about 15 minutes with some interruptions by the slightly more interesting Somali story.
This is more compelling than one might expect. It doesn't try to whitewash the captain ignoring warnings. And the Somalis get as much screen time as anybody else. The leader is played by Barkhad Abdi who does a forceful job. He's more than a match for Tom Hanks. When he says "I've come too far. I can't give up.", you can see his desperation. The movie is more than docudrama. It is a big time thriller.