My Review: Captain Phillips (9/10)

"You're not just a fisherman! You're not just a fisherman!"

Captain Phillips is a thriller that had me at the edge of my seat for most of the film. However, this isn't your usual hostage film as it follows a very different formula thanks to Paul Greengrass's multilayered direction. I've spoken to different people about what they thought of the film and everyone seems to have a different interpretation or a different vision of the film. That is what a great film does: it speaks to us in different ways and somehow everyone takes something out of it. For example that line where Hanks's character confronts one of the pirates telling him he's not just a fisherman: for some what he was saying is that he can't just justify his actions and that he was just a purely evil man, but others (and I find myself on this side) tend to think that what he was really telling the pirate is that he has so much potential as a leader and he shouldn't just settle to following orders. He could be so much more than a fisherman or a pirate, and that he shouldn't let his surroundings influence him in such a negative way. After all, Greengrass is sending an underlying message about the effects of globalization. Captain Phillips strength lies in this struggle for control between Hanks and his captor, and the dynamics between these two is what makes the movie standout. Despite all this, the greatest moment for me were the final 15 minutes of the film where Greengrass lets Tom Hanks deliver one of his best performances in years. That last scene is what makes this film stand out and breaks the classic formula we've seen before in other hostage films. I don't want to give it away so I will just say that it was a very powerful and emotional moment and one that you never see in these hostage thrillers. My only complaint about this film, and the reason it won't get a full 5 stars from me, is that the first 10 minutes felt awkward and completely unnecessary with some poor dialogues, but from there on the film really picks up and had me completely engaged for the remainder of the movie despite a few minor pacing issues here or there. I had no issues with the shaky handheld camera which Greengrass has used in all his films (The Bourne Ultimatum, United 93, and Green Zone), and I thought it actually contributed to the sense of claustrophobia during the lifeboat scenes. This is an intense and smart biopic about a recent event that many people were already familiar with, but once again Greengrass managed to deliver the suspense and tension throughout.

The screenplay was adapted by Billy Ray (Breach, State of Play, and The Hunger Games) from Ryan Phillips's autobiographical book about the events that took place in 2009 when his container ship was hijacked by some Somali pirates. Captain Phillips (Tom Hanks) was on board the Maersk Alabama container ship along with his crew when all of a sudden a group of somali pirates, led by Muse (Barkhad Abdi) take him hostage. Phillips buys enough time for his crew to hide in the Engine room while Muse and his three men: Bilal (Barkhad Abdirahman), Najee (Faysal Ahmed), and Elmi (Mahat M. Ali) try to take control of the situation. Muse tells Phillips that from now on he is the captain of the ship and if they do what he says no one will get hurt. While the crew remains hidden some unexpected situations take place putting everyone's life in danger. Among the crew members in the Maersk Alabama are Shane (Michael Chernus), Mike (David Warshofsky), John (Chris Mulkey), and Ken (Corey Johnson) who try to keep everyone in safety by following protocol.

The Somali pirates were actually played by first time Somali actors who really did a great job, especially Barkhad Abdi who plays off of Tom Hanks really well. The struggle for power over the control of the vessel between these two men is one of the highlights of the film. I would go as far as to say that Abdi's performance was more impressive than Hanks's, but in the last 15 minutes Hanks proves why he is one of the best actors in the world with a remarkable performance. I think he was downplaying his dramatic role throughout the entire film so that when that moment came it would be even more powerful. I liked the way he was portrayed as an ordinary guy (and we really didn't need that opening scene to establish that because the way he related to his crew members was sufficient enough to see it) who tried to do his best to survive in such a dangerous situation and avoid putting the lives of his men at risk. He makes some mistakes like any other human might make in this situation and his life is ultimately dependent on others (in this case the Navy SEALS). Everything gets out of control and these men who struggled for power and control for so long end up depending on the actions of others. I also liked the way that Greengrass portrayed the pirates here not demonizing them, but not making them look like victims either. This is a real life story and pirate activity in Somalia exists because it is an apparently easy way of making money and in the opinions of a few the only way. That is sort of the political parable I got from this intelligent thriller that is still a great film even though you don't get the underlying message or any interpretation whatsoever. You can enjoy this film as simply an entertaining and tense thriller or you can also try to read the different messages Greengrass is laying out there for the audience to interpret. For me it stands out basically because of Tom Hanks dramatic and perfect performance. His last scene is one of the best performances I've seen.

My Review: Green Zone (7/10)

¨Your government wanted to hear the lie Mr. Miller. They wanted Saddam out and they did exactly what they had to do. This is why you are here.¨

Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon have teamed up in the past before delivering the two blockbuster Bourne sequels which received a lot of critical acclaim and were box office hits. Greengrass was also nominated for an Oscar for his film United 93. Green Zone is his latest film, which isn`t as good as some of his previous work, but it is still a very solid political thriller with a good performance from the always reliable Matt Damon. The problem with Green Zone is that it came out a little too late because we have been bombarded with these Iraq War movies and audiences have grown weary of them. The Messenger and The Hurt Locker were exceptions because they focused more on the psychological impact of the war and stayed away from the political part, but Green Zone is a heavy political thriller. The movie never claims to be based on a true story so audiences have to understand that Greengrass is directing a fictional thriller which could be based on some solid conspiracy theories. From the many Hollywood movies that I have seen that claim to be based on true stories, I think this one could have said the same thing because it probably has some valid points, but you got to give credit to Greengrass who never claims such a thing and lets the audience decide whether they want to see it as a mere piece of fiction and enjoy the thriller or if they want to take into account the conspiracy theory. The movie was written by Brian Helgelund (who also wrote the screenplays for Robin Hood, Mystic River and Man on Fire) and it`s based on the book by Rajiv Chandrasekaran entitled Imperial Life in the Emerald City.

The story takes place in 2003 right after the Americans have invaded Iraq. Chief Miller (Matt Damon) and his men are in charge of finding the weapons of mass destruction (WMD). The problem is that every site they arrive at that supposedly hides the wmd`s are either empty or are old abandoned toilet factories. Chief Miller begins to suspect that the Intel that has been given to them is false and wants to know who the source of the information is. The man in charge of the military in Baghdad is Clark Poundstone (Greg Kinnear) who tells Miller that the source is trustworthy and that he just do his job without questioning him. When Miller hears CIA agent, Martin Brown`s (Brendan Gleeson) theory that there are actually no wmd`s in Iraq he begins to take his side on this and does some investigating of his own. He meets a NY Times reporter named Lawrie Dayne (Amy Ryan) who wrote some articles about a meeting between a high US official and a man code-named Magellan who is supposed to be the source of all the Intel. The problem is that Lawrie actually never met this man and only received the information from Poundstone and now that the weapons can`t be found she begins to question him. Miller realizes that all this could have been just an excuse for an invasion of Iraq and decides to investigate with the help of a local named Freddy (Khalid Abdalla from The Kite Runner) who serves as a translator and wants the best for his country. Together they begin uncovering some crucial information as the plot thickens.

Green Zone is a good movie, but Greengrass has set the bar too high with his previous films so I expected more from this. Matt Damon does a great job as the lead character and he is always a sure bet in an action film. Brendan Gleeson also gives a terrific performance as a supporting character and he is always good in these kinds of roles. Green Zone is a smart political thriller which can only be taken as a work of fiction, but actually opens your eyes and makes you question a lot of things that went on in Iraq. The conspiracy theory can be taken seriously, and the movie will raise your suspicions and want to make you become more informed about what actually went on Iraq. So the movie works  in that it serves as a tool for people to do some research and read some books on the subject, but you can`t base facts on this work of fiction. It only serves as a tool to make you question some things that went on. The problem is that the movie came out a few years too late and many people may have grown tired of this issue which has been highly exposed. That still doesn`t mean this is a bad film, so if you have a chance check it out because it is an entertaining political thriller.

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