'It was supposed to be easy. I take ship...ransom...nobody get hurt.'

Rating: 10/10 (26 January 2014)

Though based on Richard Phillips' book 'A Captain's Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea' which is the true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama, the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in two hundred years, the screenplay by Billy Ray (The Hunger Games, State of Play, Color of Night) is so brilliantly written that the 134 minutes of this 'docu- drama' tear through the mind at terrifying speed and there is not a moment when the audience can breathe without fear of missing the action. Of course, much of that is due to the impeccable direction by Paul Greengrass (The Bourne series, United 93, Green Zone, etc), but the kudos land directly for the extraordinary performance by Tom Hanks, in what many of us believe is his finest performance on film, along with 'Philadelphia'.
Because it is history, everyone knows the story: a multi-layered examination of the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. container ship Maersk Alabama by a crew of Somali pirates. The film focuses on the relationship between the Alabama's commanding officer, Captain Richard Phillips (Hanks), and the Somali pirate captain, Muse (Barkhad Abdi), who takes him hostage. Phillips and Muse are set on a predestined collision course when Muse and his crew target Phillips' unarmed ship. In the breathtaking standoff, 145 miles off the Somali coast, both men find themselves at the mercy of forces beyond their control.
Greengrass had the right idea in casting completely unknown non-actors as the Somali pirate crew: Barkhad Abdi (born in Somalia but living in the US and serving as a chauffeur when he was cast with no acting experience at all), Barkhad Abdirahman, Faysal Ahmed, and Mahat M. Ali – each is wholly credible in the tense drama both on the big ship and in the claustrophobic life boat where they hold Captain Phillips hostage. The entire cast is very well enacted, keeping the tension and the sense of terror at facing a battle for which they have never been trained.
This is a superb piece of filmmaking and why it was snubbed by the Oscar nominations is a conundrum. Grady Harp, January 14