When I saw Prisoners this weekend, it caused an incredible and rarely seen reaction in the audience. It was powerful enough to silence a full theater and keep cell phones out of sight. People gasped, held their breath, uttered profanities, gripped their arm rests out of tension, looked away because the images onscreen were too disturbing, and some even punched at the air out of frustration (I was one of the guilty air-beaters). I saw so much more reaction in the audience from this thriller than I saw at last week’s Insidious Chapter 2, that it was almost comical, and there’s a reason for that.
This movie was just that good.
This very unsettling thriller, directed by Denis Villeneuve (“Incendies”), takes such a toll on your mind and nerves after two and a half hours of suspense that you feel physically and mentally drained when it’s over. Oddly though, you don’t really mind the exhaustion because you are too concerned with figuring out if you are okay with what you just witnessed or ready to start a riot.
Hugh Jackman plays Keller Dover, a survivalist father whose young daughter, Anna, is kidnapped along with her equally young friend, Joy, on Thanksgiving. Jake Gyllenhaal is Detective Loki, a relatively calm and strongly determined man assigned to the Dover’s kidnap case.
The girls were seen playing on a strange, rundown RV that was parked in their neighborhood. When the RV disappeared, so did the girls. Police discover that the man driving the RV is Alex Jones (Paul Dano) a man who has the IQ of a ten-year-old. After extensive questioning and lie detector tests, Jones is released from custody (against the will of Keller Dover) when the police are convinced he doesn’t understand the questions and decide he is a dead-end in the investigation.
I give this movie an 8.5 out of 10.
WARNING: This film is rated R for distrubing violent content including torture, and language throughout.
Content Advisory: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1392214/parentalguide?ref_=tt_stry_pg
Dover is fully convinced, however, that Jones knows exactly where the girls are and abducts him. He stores him in an abandoned apartment building and recruits his friend and Joy’s father, Franklin (Terrence Howard), who reluctantly helps him to torture Jones for answers over the course of several days. These scenes are incredibly difficult to watch as Dover brutally beats Jones even though it seems to be getting him nowhere. This prompts viewers to question themselves on what they would do if they were in the same situation. There are no simple answers.
Meanwhile, Loki never rests as soon as he is assigned to the case. He is constantly running around to the next lead and trying to piece together what could’ve possibly happened to the girls and where they could be. The clock is ticking like crazy with the knowledge that the girls could die if not found in a timely fashion, that is, if they aren’t already dead.
Hugh Jackman is an explosive force in this film. His panic and searing rage are hair-raising as his survivalist instincts kick into full gear to protect what means the most to him. Gyllenhaal, thankfully, refuses to take a backseat to Jackman’s wildfire of a performance and portrays Loki as a brooding, get-it-done-now detective with an intense determination to find the girls that is topped only by Dover.
Dano is bone-chilling as the eerily quiet and unkempt Alex Jones. His performance is like a fog as he says little and you never know what is going internally. Maria Bello, Terrence Howard, and Viola Davis all do fine jobs of portraying parents that are literally worried sick at the sudden disappearance of their young daughters. Melissa Leo is convincing as Holly Jones, Alex’s aunt, an oddball that expresses little emotion even when her nephew goes missing.
Prisoners invokes deep thought long after the credits roll and tests individuals’ morals when under pressure. Like any good mystery, it keeps you guessing until the very end and leaves you feeling like you’ve just hiked up a mountain. To call it a “must-see” is the understatement of the year.