Captain
Phillips had a lot to live up to after Paul Greengrass' last docudrama United
93. In many viewers' eyes, Greengrass might just be the guy who gave us Matt
Damon in a pair of solid Bourne films but to me he is the director behind one
of the most tragic and gripping films of the 21st century. He is politically charged, emotionally
manipulative but also bloody effective.
Captain
Phillips invites comparisons with United 93. Both are based on tragic true
stories, though Captain Phillips is considerably less tragic, particularly for the
American victims of the stories. Both find at their centre a very modern
conflict of cultures. Both feature four armed attackers taking on Americans by
hijacking a mode of transport. Both have differing amounts of sympathy for the
attackers but much more for the innocent victims. Both employ shaky camera
aesthetics to give it an added sense of realism and quick cuts that make it
appear edgy and captured by a fly on the wall documentary team. The claustrophobia
is also palpable in both films. In United 93, the attackers and the victims are
trapped together in the small space of a passenger plane and in Captain
Phillips much of the action takes place on a tiny cramped lifeboat where
Phillips is forced in to close contact with his captors. In both films, many in
the audience will already know how the story ends before they see it. Greengrass
even employs some of the same techniques when shooting the film such as keeping
those playing his protagonists and antagonists apart until they meet on screen.
The music even sounds almost identical, despite being created by different
composers.
On
the other hand there are also distinct differences between the films too. In
United 93, it was Arab Muslim terrorists that took over a plane to crash it
into a Washington landmark for their religious and political ideology. In Captain
Phillips it is Somali pirates that take control of a container ship, not for
religion but for business; simply to make money. While it would be easy to say
that the pirates of Captain Phillips are less sympathetic for having no more
nobler cause than to get rich quick, it is actually far from the case.
Greengrass only barely humanised his terrorists in United 93. He gave one a
hurried farewell phone call and showed the nerves and fear that they were
feeling before they took over the plane. However there was no backstory, little
motivation and even less differentiation between the attackers.
In
Captain Phillips however, Greengrass makes the film absolutely tragic from
start to finish and it's not because of the threat to American lives, though
Hanks' performance will guarantee to have you shedding a tear by the end. Instead
it is because of the four young Somali men who take the boat and then begin to
rapidly lose control of the situation before ending up the biggest losers of
the film. Whereas United 93 ends with tragedy for all involved, Captain
Phillips ends with only tragedy for its Somali underdogs. The unknown actors
have come out of nowhere and seared themselves into audiences memories. Their
terrifyingly gaunt faces are not the work of Christian Bale and his wonder
diets. They feel real and they are heartbreaking. Barkhad Abdi has been singled
out for praise by many as the captain of the pirates but his whole crew are
incredible, more than holding their own against Hanks. I don't want to sound racist or offensive but
they look like skeletons and their faces like skulls. They are so skinny and
desperate looking, so young and inexperienced that you cannot help but
sympathise with them. Like in United 93, Greengrass uses unknowns to keep
things real with Hanks being the only concession to Hollywood star power.
The
fact it all goes so wrong for the pirates and that their leader ends up as a
hostage and then finally arrested is as saddening as the effect it is likely to
have had on Captain Phillips. Even if there have been accusations that Phillips
was not the hero as portrayed, Hanks delivers a heart breaking performance by
the end but the death of the desperate young men is never completely
overshadowed.
The
Somali's feel like real characters. We see their homes, their circumstances,
their ruthlessness and the weaknesses. The fact that no one was killed proves perhaps
that they were not bloodthirsty animals (or perhaps that they simply were aware of how much each American life is worth). Instead they are absolutely tragic young
men completely out of their depth throughout. It might play to mass audiences attraction
to seeing third world violence and despair but in amongst the real-time
blockbuster thrills is a clear and powerful political message. Contrasting the pirates'
homes with the container yards makes for a sickening comparison of first world
wealth hoarding and third world desperation. It really does not feel like the
Somalis have much choice in what they do in life. They have been stripped of
all opportunities and must take something back if they are to survive. The
young actors give life and breath to the tragically young men that tangled with
the far superior American forces. Captain Phillips is an underdog story of epic
proportions where the underdogs never stand a chance.
What did you think of Captain Phillips?
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