Paul Greengrass' Captain Phillips has been met with near universal acclaim at the New York Film Festival. Both the film and star Tom Hanks are receiving high praise and it seems set to join Oscar frontrunners 12 Years a Slave and Gravity as a leading contender for Picture, Director, Actor and across the board categories, maybe even Supporting Actor for newcomer Barkhad Abdi, who's been praised as well. The fact-based story of Captain Richard Phillip's 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates (another survival tale- that's a popular trend this season) is coming out in theaters in two weeks, October 11th.
"'Captain Phillips' unfurls with an intensity that knocks the wind out of you. Paul Greengrass' film is the most gripping based-on-fact film so far this year." (NY Daily News)
"Hanks is tremendous in the role of Richard Phillips- the nuance with which he unveils layers of control, the lack thereof, fear, dread, escalating panic and hopelessness is astounding and hard to watch at times." (The Playlist)
"Greengrass creates one of the most impressive, captivating military spectacles in recent years...Hanks is so commanding, so authentic here, taking what could be cheap, sentimental heroism and creating a real but extraordinary human who is just smart enough to survive." (Cinemablend)
"Tom Hanks does his finest work on screen since 'Cast Away' as Richard Phillips...the story, which made international headlines, is brought to vivid life by Greengrass." (NY Post)
Here's the trailer once more:
