True Tale of Pirates

Rating: Null/10 (19 April 2017)

The 2013 film, Captain Phillips by Paul Greengrass is an overwhelming thriller that you can hardly believe is based on a true story. Tom Hanks is an amazing fit for the real man, Captain Richard Phillips. And Barkhad Abdi, in his debut acting gig couldn't have been more perfect for the role. In its opening weekend the film made over $25 million, and is still a major hit today. Tom Hanks has been in over 70 films, but he says that this is the most petrifying film he has ever filmed, this quotation explains it all. "We literally went through the same thing the real crew went through. We heard them coming and getting closer and when they finally arrived they burst onto the bridge and we saw these incredibly skinny, living, breathing guys for the first time. They are the thinnest human beings you've ever seen and they're incredibly scary because their heads are huge, their teeth are really bad and they're waving automatic weapons in our faces and screaming at us. I can tell you it raised the hair on the back of all our necks. We were truly petrified." The director kept the actors portraying the pirates away from the set so it was a shock to the actors, and their natural fear would come across on camera. A tactic most directors are afraid to use.
Captain Phillips is based on the 2009 hijacking of the MV Maersk Alabama, which was the first American cargo ship to be hijacked in 200 years. The pirates invade the ship in a shocking way, and once on the suspense builds to no end. From being shot at, to hit, to screamed at in a foreign language, the experience was nothing but terrifying from the beginning. After the pirates decide they are going to take Captain Phillips until they get what they want, the movie hits a point of no return. After being loaded into a lifeboat with pirates, and ejected into sea, there are many twists and turns with an ending that shocks the viewers.
Tom Hanks couldn't have portrayed Captain Phillips better. After visiting him in real life, he took in his advice, his strength and his realness and made the portrayal real. But the star of this show is the acting by Barkhad Abdi. For his first acting job, he portrays the power, the intensity, and he brings the fear to the film. He has been nominated for many awards for this part, which is amazing because it was his first ever acting position.
The filming techniques used for this film were very real. The scenes that are most intense are filmed in the most intimate areas. The lifeboat scenes were genuinely filmed in a lifeboat, in the middle of the ocean. This real aspect brings the truth to this story that everyone appreciates. The panning of the camera allows for the viewer to see everything happening, which is crucial to this film because there are so many things happening with each character and setting. If you haven't seen this film, stop what you're doing and go and watch it.