One of the best thrillers to come out in the last 20-plus years. Prisoners is a masterful film that grabs you from start to finish and features two great performances from Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal.
During a Thanksgiving celebration between two families in Peinsulvinya, things take a horrifying turn as the families' two young girls are mysteriously abducted during the festivities. Local police detective Loki heads up the investigation and finds the driver of an RV that the girls were playing on earlier. The Driver, Alex Jones, is revealed to have the IQ of a 10-year-old, and the police find no evidence of the girls in the RV. After the police are forced to release Alex due to a lack of evidence, one of the girl's fathers, Keller Dover, takes matters into his own hands.
Director Denis Villeneuve has established himself as one of the best directors working today with films like Arrival, Sicario, Blade Runner 2049, and recently his two film adaptations of Dune. Looking back, the talents he displayed in those films are on full display here. Villeneuve is very good at capturing the scope and feeling of a scene through visuals and music rather than dialogue. In Prisoners Villeneuve brilliantly establishes a sense of dread and hopelessness through a haunting score by Johann Johannsson and the imagery of the setting captured beautifully by Cinematographer Roger Deakins. From the shots of people gathered with candles outside the families' houses to pray or the use of the weather from rain slowly turning to snow. Moments like these can sum up the situation more so than any line of dialogue can.
What keeps the film gripping is the work being done by Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal on screen.
Keller Dover is a man driven by the idea that a man must protect his family no matter what, and you feel that in Jackman's performance. Jackman's portrayal of a man pushed to the limit is truly reverting to watch. We see how much this search for his daughter is tearing him apart physically and mentally. A great example is the opening dialogue showcases Dover quoting the "Hail Marry", telling us he is a religious man. But later on in the film where he tries to quote it again, he can't find the ability to finish it, showing how this has pushed him to his limit. Gyllenhaal as Detective Loki is also pushed to the breaking point as the case begins to take over his life. It's through Loki's perspective that we see this dark web expand, and Gyllenhaal's portrayal of Loki's observational detective skills keeps us glued. The case leads him down lead after lead from person to person. It begins to look like something that will just go on and on with no happy ending. Loki, like Dover, becomes alienated and frustrated, however, Gyllenhaal shows it in a more restrained but still effective way.
Throughout the 2-hour 30-minute runtime, the film presents several hard-hitting twists and turns. To discuss any of them would spoil a riveting viewing, and it's a viewing I can't recommend enough. It's a tough film to watch at times, but it's also engaging and rewarding.
Comments