A Gut-Wrenching, Emotional, Unpredictable Thriller

Rating: 9/10 (20 October 2013)

Reviewed by: Dare Devil Kid (DDK) Rating: 4.1/5 stars
An edge-of-the-seat thriller in the truest sense of the term. You'll keep guessing right till the end and will never be able to see the shocking plot twists coming. Credit needs to be bestowed upon the Director and script writer. Supplementing their vision to great effect are the superlative skills amply displayed by the editor and cinematographer. What we get is a tense, somber, atmosphere with palpable tension and despair.
And finally down to the performances. "Prisoners" boasts of an ensemble cast and boy do they deliver the goods. Viola Davis and Terrence Howard bring a sense of grit and fortitude to the hopelessness they face in their concise roles, while Maria Bello is a picture of grief in her limited screen time. Paul Dano is a past master at playing complex characters and he pulls of yet another winner. Melissa Leo was all but unrecognizable until you realize it was her once the credits start rolling. Jake Gyllenhaal delivers a sound and assured performance meriting an Oscar nomination in the supporting category.
But it's Hugh Jackman who acts the hell out of his portrayal of a desperate father driven to a frantic edge. It is without question the best performance of his career and so far the performance of the year too. I think the best accolade that can be give to this fine actor is that his act in "Prisoners" literally makes us forget his iconic role of "Wolverine" in the "X-Men" series and spin-offs.
Along with being a nail-biting ride from start to finish, "Prisoners" also succeeds in being an emotional roller-coaster and even involves the viewers by making us relate to the moral ambiguity of the protagonists, and the lengths to which they are willing to go to save a loved one.