Superb

Rating: 8/10 (17 October 2013)

The endless Ocean. On the one hand the Somali street fighters trying to make a living and on the other an American commercial vessel transporting cargo. To the young Somali's, hijacking a ship is just another day's work but the company who owns the vessel will go a long way to protect it.
These worlds will collide on our big screen although every effort was made by the ship's crew for this encounter to not take place. However, sophisticated western systems of protection will constantly be challenged by the street smart attitude of the pirates, something that will be a constant theme throughout the film.
From the moment their paths meet, the film enters a stage where tension is ever present all the way to the final scenes. Paul Greengrass does a fine job in keeping us stimulated without the usual Hollywood sensationalism. At any moment, there is a worry that anything could go terribly wrong: from pirates losing their cool or accidentally pulling the trigger or the hostage totally reach a stage where he doesn't care whether he lives or dies.
Captain Phillips made every effort to protect his crew and took charge of the situation from the onset of the crisis and try to buy time whilst the invaders aimed to earn the most before any assistance arrived.
With the help not arriving in time, the captive captain is on his way to Somalia and the climax turns out as an outsmart battle between the American navy and three pirates.
Finely performed, emotive and intense this is one big maritime adventure of a movie.