Captain Phillips Drowns in its Pace

Rating: 7/10 (13 October 2013)

Paul Greengrass is the creator of one of the most exhilarating and outright brilliant action trilogies out there (The Bourne Trilogy), and now, he has taken the helm behind a production, centering on a shocking true story in which an American cargo ship was captured by Somali pirates in 2009. I'll reveal nothing more because the whole thrill is not having any knowledge of what lies ahead. Now, I'll be real straightforward this time around, and it really pains me to say this, but I just was really disappointed with the film altogether. Yes, I'll give the film its props for the splendid technical aspect of it all, and I guess I'll delve into that area first before I proceed with a more negative tone.
As usual, Greengrass's filmmaking techniques are in a league of their own as he prefers to cut the theatrical and cinematic appearance to a minimum and immerse us in a perilous setting by engaging in fast-paced, fairly shaky camera-work. Some might complain about this method, but I find it excellently unique and applaud him on that note because it essentially is what keeps the film so tense. Vividly displaying shots of various sceneries and movements, coupled with intense music, strongly contribute to the picture's finest moments. In addition, you have the quick-cut, frenetic editing- again, at the top of its game. Greengrass has basically perfected all of these elements already in his past projects, so it's no surprise that Captain Phillips fully delivers in that department this time around as well. The production, overall, is a very wild one since the director famously casts real individuals (in whatever job positions he desires to implement into the story). You'll see actual navy officers and army nurses throughout the story, and unlike previous movies with such gimmicks, these people feel utterly convincing in their roles.
Then, there's Tom Hanks whom everyone knows and loves. He's definitely one of the greatest actors of our time, and his incredibly impressive resume unquestionably backs that claim up. Tom Hanks takes on the role of the captain (Captain Phillips!), hoping to lead this cargo ship to its destination until it unfortunately encounters terribly aggressive conflict. In the last ten minute alone, there's no doubt in my mind when I say that he absolutely delivers one of the best male performances of the year, and I'm excited to see him receive a lot of credit once everything is said and done this year. On top of that, we have the Somali pirates with their own captain, Muse(played by Barkhad Abdi), who also provides us with an exceptional performance, which I'm definitely not going to forget once I start considering the best supporting actor of this year. There's that abundance of menace and unpredictability in his eyes the entire time, but at the same time, we feel some form of pity and sadness towards him due to these circumstances and background that force him into this predicament and pit him against the best of the best.
Judging from the trailers, you feel this unimaginable detest towards the villains already, right? But seeing the film- for those who consider philosophical theories like Cultural Relativism- you suddenly and unexpectedly find yourself slightly sympathizing with some of these generally despicable and horrendous human beings (if you can call them that), but then again, you'll always be rooting for Tom Hanks' character and all those aboard the MV Maersk Alabama. The villains' objectives and determined actions, however, bring up a decently relevant point: if people have the opportunity, they'll always want more and more money in the end- that greed that unfortunately has consumed most of mankind. With that being said, all the actors involved for that matter, no matter how small their screen time, succeed in building the intensity and believability of the disastrous situation. The soundtrack, itself, is another excellent attachment, fueling the pumping suspense with that Bourne-like flavor. Whenever you want one of your scenes to completely pack a large punch, the easiest way to do so is include thunderous and beating music, which is what ultimately compliments the film's shining sequences.
Aside from that though , there are certain flaws of Captain Phillips that really detracted from the experience and left a bad taste in my mouth- actually a taste that truly saddened me in that I wished I would've enjoyed the film so much more like many apparently did. All in all, the feature doubtlessly suffers from pacing issues. Honestly, I can't understand how such a great amount of people found films like Gravity and Captain Phillips tense. Yes, there were particular segments that felt remarkably tense, but contrary to popular opinion, the film did not keep me on the edge of my seat the entire time, but I guess I must have ADD problems, right? Because I found myself zoning out plenty of times, and that's clearly not good in the slightest. The film didn't capture my attention the way some of my favorites this fall season have: Rush and Don Jon, specifically. I know, I know. Some will blast me for preferring those two over Captain Phillips, but I stand by my statement; the film feels dragged out, and it's simple as that- the latter half especially. And in it being stretched out is the reason why I felt it wasn't nearly as tense as many considered it to be (my bad). Some films (over 2-3 hours) pass by like no tomorrow, but this one's length certainly seemed obvious. There were some minor issues I had with the film such as the presence of some scenes being a little exaggerated in their dramatic delivery (an overly, exhausting amount of screaming and yelling) for the fullest Hollywood effect, but it's the undeniably noticeable pacing that remains the greatest trouble for the film and what sadly restrains Captain Phillips from the potential heights it could've reached when I announce my own picks and movie awards.