Based on the true account of Captain Richard Phillips, whose cargo ship with overtaken by Somali pirates back in 2009 whilst sailing around the Horn of Africa, Tom Hanks stars as the eponymous figure, an everyman who is forced to negotiate with some of the most unsavoury characters in recent cinema when they ambush his vessel bound for Mombasa. Director Paul Greengrass (the man responsible for the two best Bourne movies) oversees the production with his trademark documentary-like camera style, and the results are tense and endearingly workmanlike. Hanks' performance as Captain Phillips, who is a relatively simple character, has been lauded as something of a return to form: that's not to say this is flashy, Oscar-baiting stuff. Hanks knows that Phillips is an ordinary guy, and is careful to play him as such. It's not until the very last scene that we get a real glimpse of Hanks' acting chops, as he unleashes what is arguably one of the most affecting interpretations of a "victim in shock" in recent memory. But it's Barkhad Adbi, who plays the leader of the Somali troupe, who owns the movie: his "acting" is near-on invisible throughout.
