11 Awful Opening Scenes In Otherwise Awesome Movies

3. Lazy Juxtaposition - Captain Phillips

The Movie: Paul Greengrass' muscular, bracingly intense thriller is a riveting account of a terrifying real-life scenario, easily giving Tom Hanks his best role in years (one for which he should undeniably have been Oscar-nominated), and introducing audiences to Barkhad Abdi as Somali pirate Muse.

The Scene: The opening scene shows Captain Richard Phillips (Hanks) preparing to leave home for his latest voyage, and while traveling in the car with his wife (Catherine Keener), they talk about how harsh the job market is for today's youth. Cut to Somalia, where Muse (Abdi) and other young men are being threatened into going out to sea and hijacking a boat for a local warlord. Muse recruits his men and the groups push their boats out into the sea, setting them on a collision course with Phillips' ship.

Why It Sucks: It's just too damn heavy-handed: the conversation between Phillips and his wife can be directly applied to Muse's situation and it's just a little too neat and tidy for a film otherwise filled with smart creative choices. Had the movie instead started at the 9-minute mark, when Phillips arrives for his day's work, it would be more to-the-point.