Movie Talk

Are you interested in a film experience that will LITERALLY leave you on the edge of your seat throughout the duration of the movie?

Then I've got just the ticket for you!

A ticket to Captain Phillips.

It is so intense. So, so intense. So, so, so intense.

And it is based on the true story of Captain Rich Phillips!  Of course, Tom Hanks is amazing in this film. So are the men who play the role of the Somali pirates. Extremely convincing acting throughout the movie.

My only concern going into the film was that I hoped we'd catch much of a glimpse into the realities of life for young men in Somalia. I was afraid of stereotypes and misconceptions that could be portrayed.

The film really doesn't explore much about the background of the Somalia pirates or the geopolitical landscape of Somalia. I did see a helpful quote about the film from Omar Jamal, a Somali community activist in Minnesota.

He said: "The film really only depicts these kids as criminals, going after money, it doesn’t mention about the background of piracy. How did this happen? It didn’t happen overnight. The piracy was the reaction to a toxic-wasting, illegal fishing of corporations in that part of the world. So the movie completely ignores that part of the story. It’s the story told through the eyes of Captain Phillips; the movie is a very good movie, but the community is concerned about the lack of the background of the pirates of the story. That’s our immediate concern.”

I think that Captain Phillips has a really worthwhile experience which deserves to be explored through a film. It's his story and a powerful story! The film does that really well. He was amazingly heroic under conditions I can't imagine.

I also think that many other movies should be made about the realities of life (past, present, and future) in Somalia. It would be so good for us all to hear those stories, too. I now feel more inspired to educate myself about Somalia and Somalian refugees living in Minnesota. 

An actor in the film who plays one of the Somali pirates, Faysal Ahmed, said, “Everyone will have their own opinions, but from my point of view, four Somali youth went out and went through this, and they didn’t do it because they wanted to but because the environment around them forced them to. The movie has different layers, and that’s part of it. Somali people are like everybody else. Some good, some bad.”

It is a many-layered flim. I encourage you to check it out and let me know what you think!