Captain Phillips
Two-time Oscar-winner Tom Hanks turns in one of his best performances in years in the true story of Captain Richard Phillips and the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the U.S.-flagged MV Maersk Alabama off the African coast. Phillips and his crew were held hostage for ransom, setting up a tense headline-making standoff between the pirates and the U.S. Navy. Director Paul Greengrass — no newcomer when it comes to political and action films (“Bloody Sunday,” “The Bourne Supremacy,” “United 93,” “Green Zone”) — creates a spell-binding drama as he first keys in on the day-to-day machinations of freight shipping, then segues into high stakes action as the pirates decide to hijack the ship. Greengrass misses nothing here, and Hanks’ performance as he fears for his life is so realistic that one just has to squirm with recognition. A pulse-pounding thriller with tour-de-force directing and editing, and outstanding performances by a cast of unknowns as the pirates. Extras: “Capturing Captain Phillips,” a three-part, behind-the-scenes look at the film’s production and real events surrounding the film; commentary with director Paul Greengrass. Vitals: Director: Paul Greengrass. Stars: Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman, Faysal Ahmed, Mahat M. Ali, Catherine Keener, Yul Vazquez, Christopher Stadulis, Corey Johnson, Michael Chernus, Chris Mulkey, John Magaro, Max Martini, Maria Dizzia. 2013, CC, MPAA rating: PG-13, 134 min., Drama, Box office gross: $100.700 million, Sony. 
