Captain Phillips

Paul Greengrass has been absent from screens since his last directorial effort, Green Zone. Known for searing political thrillers Tom Hanks is not necessarily the actor you think of when paired with Greengrass. The heavy nature of the director's work tends to have an equally 'serious' actor at the forefront of it. Hanks has an innately likeable everyman quality to him but you wouldn't buy him as one of Greengrass' CIA spooks. His very casting transforms Captain Phillips into the director's best work.

Based on the true story of a commercial ship hijacked by Somali prates in 2010, the men at the center of this story are not soldiers. They are essentially mechanics. They can't fight and don't know how to. Early attempts to defend their vessel are clumsy and awkward when contrasted against the ruthless professionalism of the invading pirates. Notably when defending their ship they only have hoses and flares at their disposal. The sheer odds stacked against these sailors is unbelievable. Their opponents have nothing to lose. These action sequences are edited in harmony with the shredded nerves of the characters and audience.

Without giving anything away the drama becomes far more intimate later and here Greengrass' beloved handheld cameras heighten the claustrophobia and tension on screen. Unlike Bourne the technique does not dizzy or confuse us, we are right there with these people.  Characters are squeezed together and every passing moment feels more fraught and hopeless. Composer Henry Jackman's pounding score keeps your blood pressure up throughout even the quietest moments of this crisis. You are never given pause.

Hanks is the secret weapon though. He is playing another of his trademark every-men but one tested to the very limits of human endurance. The character's vulnerability and humanity always evident, his final scene is without exception his best work. The final twenty minutes really set Phillips out from the actor's other roles. The emotional toll this experience takes on Phillips is unbelievably portrayed to the point it will almost certainly leave you a little traumatised. Hanks provides a humanity many of Greengrass' other films have sorely lacked. It is his emotion that keeps us hooked and praying for a happy outcome, no matter how unlikely that may be or how well presented the story is.

So far in 2013 this is the clear standout and film of the year for me. Less showy than a lot Oscar fare coming up will be but you are unlikely to have a film hit you harder by the time the credits roll.