User:LancedSoul/sandbox/Captain Phillips

Captain Phillips is a 2013 American biographical drama-thriller film directed by Paul Greengrass and starring Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi. The film is inspired by the true story of the 2009 Maersk Alabama hijacking, an incident during which merchant mariner Captain Richard Phillips was taken hostage by Somali pirates in the Guardafui Channel led by Abduwali Muse. It premiered at the 2013 New York Film Festival on September 27, 2013, and was theatrically released on October 11, 2013.

Plot
In April 2009, the U.S. containership Maersk Alabama sails toward its destination on a day that seems like any other. Suddenly, Somali pirates race toward the vessel, climb aboard and take everyone hostage. The captain of the ship, Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks), looks to protect his crew from the hostile invaders, and their leader, Muse (Barkhad Abdi). The pirates are after millions of dollars, and Phillips must use his wits to make sure everyone survives and returns home safely.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) Well done performance by Tom Hanks.

Reception
Captain Phillips was praised for its direction, screenplay, production values, cinematography, and the performances of Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 93% based on 274 reviews, with an average rating of 8.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Smart, powerfully acted, and incredibly intense, Captain Phillips offers filmgoers a Hollywood biopic done right — and offers Tom Hanks a showcase for yet another brilliant performance.". On Metacritic, the film has a score of 83 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".