Review of Captain Phillips (2013) by Georgebailey — 19 Oct 2013

Excellent and uncomfortably enjoyable. An initial sketch (not gratuitous as Salon.com claimed) gives a brief insight into who Phillips is, that he has regular domestic anxieties: in short, that he is not a hero, or even a hero in the making. Similarly, the introduction to the Somalis helps us see that they are not villains, but victims of the shocking inequalities in the world.

Hanks, cast as Everyman once again, comes under increasing pressure as the ordeal unfolds, yet whilst you want him to be freed, you have more sympathy for the pirates than you might have anticipated. When the might of the US war machine swings into action, the ruthlessness of the resolution is neither admirable nor triumphant. Relief is tinged with regret, that we live in a world where the weak cannot survive against such odds.