Review of Prisoners (2013) by Jhinman1228 — 03 Apr 2014

PRISONERS (153 min): directed by Denis Villeneuve.

Posted by: Jessica Hinman.

While two families come together to celebrate the holiday dedicated to giving thanks, something very precious was taken from them, their daughters.

The two girls intended to slip outside for just a few minutes, but to their family’s dismay, they never returned. The community all gathered and helped the two families search for their daughters. As the scenes unravel, you begin to question the probability of a fairy tale ending.

This heart stopping, twisted crime drama appeals to the young adult and older audience because of its use of language and violent scene content. The cast consists of Jake Gyllenhaal who plays Detective Loki, Paul Dano who plays the mentally disabled suspect Alex, Terrence Howard who plays the father of the Birch family, Viola Davis who starred in the “The Help” plays the wife of Franklin Birch, and Maria Bello is the wife of Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman). When the investigation doesn’t seem to be moving quickly enough, Dover decides to take matters into his own hands. The scenes that follow make you ask yourself, “Just how far would I go to find my child?” This incredible cast takes you on a journey of emotions: from fear, to anger, to horror, and finally drops you off at guilt.

This 153 minute movie takes its time to build you up and make you think you know exactly what is happening. Then it throws you off a cliff and says “Gotcha!”.

Prisoners is one of the best films of the year! Four stars go to this stomach-wrenching film that captures every parent’s most dreaded nightmare of losing their child.