Release Date: September 20, 2013

MPAA Rating: R

Director: Dennis Villeneuve

Stars: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Dano, Melissa Leo

Our Rating: A++ (WOW!)

Though not as well known as he should be, French-Canadian director, Dennis Villeneuve, brought to life a cinematic masterpiece; a story so dark, so chilling, so… indescribably GOOD. As for the incredible acting by Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal? That’s just the cherry on top.

Prisoners is about a devout, hard-working man by the name of Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) whose family goes to have Thanksgiving dinner with his best friend, Franklin Birch (Terrence Howard),  and his family. However, Keller’s 6-year-old daughter, Anna, (Erin Gerasimovich) and Franklin’s 6-year-old daughter, Joy (Kyla Drew Simmons) end up going missing. Keller’s older son, Ralph (Dylan Minnette) tells him about an RV the girls were messing around with, which Keller immediately reports to the police. Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal), the lead investigator of the kidnapping, apprehends the prime suspect, Alex Jones (Paulo Dano), who owns the RV only to find out that Alex has the IQ of a 10-year-old, rendering his polygraph test inconclusive. It becomes a race against time to find Anna and Joy, and as the time passes Keller contemplates doing something drastic to find his daughter.

The very first thing that should be said about this film is about the controversy that it has sparked in the industry of cinema. Ever since the early 70’s, vigilante justice has been romanticized on TV, in movies, and in essentially every medium of entertainment available (including books). However, Prisoners dares to step out of the preconceived “Hollywood” idea of vigilante-ism ,and delivers a very straight forward, real-life, look at what it really is, consequences and all. Not limited to legal consequences, but also psychological, emotional, social, and even spiritual. The movie’s director, Dennis Villeneuve, presents the idea that Keller’s daughter may be missing and is in terrible danger, which places Keller in several positions where he must make impossible choices. It shows in his later behavior that his actions weigh heavily on his mind. 

The quality of the acting in this film was spectacular. Gyllenhaal nailed his role, a detective who has never failed to close a case, and whose latest one goes from kidnapping to homicide to multiple homicide and then back to kidnapping to a race against time to save a little girl on the verge of death. He wants to keep calm and stay focused but the stress is eating him alive to the point where he loses his “cool” and destroys his computer keyboard. Jackman was also spot on in his performance of Keller Dover, the desperate father willing to do anything to save his beloved daughter. Keller becomes hyper-aggressive when dealing with issues in the investigation and even more so when “interrogating” Alex Jones. Jackman gets this almost insane look in his eyes whenever he/Keller flies off the handle. It makes for a very entertaining yet brutal display.

A capite ad calcem (from top to bottom), I believe that Prisoners is highly entertaining in a slightly morbid sense, but at the same time stuffed full of cinematic value. However, this is a film of a rather strong taste and isn’t suitable for just anyone. I would recommend this film only for those older than 13 and not prone to paranoia. That being said, overall, it’s still an amazing movie.