Captain Phillips
Film Review by Kam Williams

On April 9, 2009, the Maersk Alabama, an American container ship headed for Mombasa, Kenya, was hijacked on the high seas in an area that had become very popular with Somali pirates preying on international commerce. Despite having recently practiced evasive maneuvers in the event of just such an attack, the vessel’s 20-man crew’s flare gun and fire hoses proved no match for the fearless, heavily-armed quartet high on an herbal stimulant called chat.

After climbing aboard, the drug-emboldened buccaneers abandoned the idea of commandeering the cumbersome, 500+ foot-long craft carrying 17,000 metric tons of cargo, since all they were really after was a multimillion-dollar ransom. Instead, they opted to take Captain Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks) hostage on one of his own lifeboats as a very valuable bargaining chip.

However, when their demands fell on deaf ears, a standoff ensued in the middle of the ocean. Soon, a destroyer stationed near the Gulf of Aden, the USS Bainbridge, was dispatched to the scene, and its Captain, Frank Castellano (Yul Vasquez), feigned negotiating while simultaneously securing permission from President Obama to hatch a daring rescue plan.

Directed by Paul Greengrass (United 93), Captain Phillips is certain to invite comparison to the somewhat similarly-plotted Zero Dark Thirty, given how both recount a real-life mission mounted by a crack team of Navy SEALs. The difference, however, is that this adventure amounts to little more than a high-anxiety orgy of worry unfolding from the perspective of the imperiled kidnap victim, while the relatively-cerebral Zero Dark Thirty devoted most of its attention to delineating the intricate details involved in the complicated manhunt for Osama bin Laden.

Curiously, this movie repeatedly makes the presumably politically-correct point of reminding us that these madmen are not Muslim terrorists, but without offering much of a hint as to their motivations besides money. Nevertheless, Tom Hanks does bring his A-game here, even if he’s cooped-up in close quarters acting opposite a B-support cast (Barkhad Abdirahaman, Mahat M. Ali, Barkhad Abdi and Faysal Ahmed) for the bulk of the picture.

Unfortunately, his one-note abductors are painted as soulless, primitive natives right out of a typical Tarzan flick. Sure, the bloodlust payoff is bigger when the bad guys are the frightening embodiment of pure evil with no redeeming qualities. Yet, this production would’ve benefited immeasurably from just a little development of the villains’ characters.

Shades of Cast Away (2000), with Tom Hanks being tortured by sadists as opposed to talking to a volleyball for over an hour while waiting for the cavalry to arrive.

Very Good (3 stars)

PG-13 for intense violence, sustained terror, bloody images and drug abuse In English and Somali with subtitles

Running time: 134 minutes

Distributor: Columbia Pictures

To see a trailer for Captain Phillips, visit

Gravity
Film Review by Kam Williams

Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) is set to retire following a distinguished career as a NASA astronaut. The veteran captain is currently in command of his final flight of the Space Shuttle Explorer with a primary mission to replace solar panels on the Hubble Telescope.

Upon rendezvousing, the spacewalk proceeds so routinely that devastatingly-handsome bachelor is comfortable engaging in flirtatious chitchat with attractive Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock), a medical engineer on her maiden voyage. But then Mission Control urgently orders them back into the capsule because the debris field from a damaged Russian satellite is headed in their direction at the speed of a bullet.

However, it causes catastrophic damage to the shuttle before they have a chance to reenter it, killing all their crewmates and destroying the vehicle beyond repair. Suddenly, Kowalski and Stone find themselves floating in space, no longer in radio contact with Houston, and with a very limited amount of oxygen left in their tanks.

This is the intriguing premise established practically at the point of departure of Gravity, a gripping sci-fi thriller written and directed by Alfonso Cuaron (Pan’s Labyrinth). What ensues is a desperate race against time in which the unflappable Kowalski does his best to keep the frightened rookie calm while trying to survive more by his wits than by the book.

The impromptu plan involves using their thrusters to reach the International Space Station 100 kilometers away before the shrapnel returns upon completing another orbit of Earth. This is just the first of many challenges to be faced successfully if the protagonists’ are ever to feel solid ground under their feet again.

Rather than ruin the plot’s unpredictable developments for you one iota, permit me to heap praise on a pair of nonpareil performances by Oscar-winners George Clooney and Sandra Bullock. Of equal note are the picture’s breathtaking 3D cinematography and the magical way in which weightlessness is convincingly created onscreen.

Buckle up for a relentlessly-riveting, roller coaster ride through a deceptively-close outer space you can virtually reach out and touch!

Excellent (4 stars)

Rated PG-13 for intense peril, disturbing images and brief strong profanity

Running time: 90 minutes

Distributor: Warner Brothers

To see a trailer for Gravity, visit

Rush
Film Review by Kam Williams

Back in the Seventies, a couple of racecar drivers as different from each other as Dudley Do-Right and Snidely Whiplash became sworn adversaries on the Formula 1 circuit. England’s James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) was a brash daredevil willing to put his life at risk every time he drove around the track. By contrast, Austria’s Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl) was a technical genius who invariably employed a relatively-scientific strategy.

The pair were also polar opposites afterhours, with handsome Hunt being a flamboyant playboy who liked the limelight, while relatively low-key Lauda preferred to spend his free time in peace and quiet with his socialite wife, Marla Knaus (Alexandra Maria Lara). The bitter rivalry between the two came to a head during the 1976 season, when both were in contention for the coveted title of world champion.

That cutthroat quest is the subject of Rush, a character-driven drama

directed by two-time Academy Award-winner Ron Howard (for A Beautiful Mind). Based on a screenplay by two-time Oscar-nominee Peter Morgan (The Queen and Frost/Nixon), the picture’s engaging plotline repeatedly juxtaposes the personas of the leads, painting the hunky Brit as a lovable bon vivant on a crusade to wrest the crown from a defending champ portrayed as just too methodical a nerd to root for.

The movie masterfully depicts the cat-and-mouse mental as well as racecar jockeying which transpires, with the tension mounting at adrenaline-fueled contests staged in international ports-of-call ranging from Brazil to Spain to Monaco to Germany and inexorably leading to a white-knuckle showdown in Japan.

Along the way, we’re treated to the sight of chain-smoking Hunt’s substance abusing and womanizing, as he all but makes a mockery of uptight Lauda’s Spartan regimen. The emotional build-up subtly suggests that getting the checkered flag at Fuji will serve as a confirmation of the eventual victor’s approach.

A compelling, high-octane thriller, literally and figuratively!

Excellent (4 stars)

Rated R for profanity, nudity, sexuality, smoking, disturbing images and brief drug use

In English, German, Italian and French with subtitles

Running Time: 123 minutes

Distributor: Universal Pictures

To see a trailer for Rush, visit

Linsanity
Film Review by Kam Williams

Jeremy Lin came very close to abandoning his lifelong dream of playing in the NBA after a couple of unremarkable seasons spent mostly in the developmental league as an undrafted free agent. He had been released by both Golden State and Houston after brief stints, but was picked up by the New York Knicks in December of 2011 when the team was suddenly in need of a backup point guard due to an injury.

Still, at fourth on the depth chart, it looked very unlikely that Lin would ever get to play except during garbage time when the outcome of a contest was no longer in doubt. But he did get a chance in a February 4th game against the then New Jersey Nets where he made the most of the opportunity, scoring a surprising 25 points, grabbing 5 rebounds and making 7 assists.

Furthermore, he went on to prove that that feat was no fluke, as he averaged over 20 points per game while leading New York on a 13-game winning streak. As a Harvard grad and the only Asian-American in the NBA, Jeremy caused quite a stir as fans flocked in droves to Madison Square Garden to see the Knicks’ new sensation.

Directed by Evan Jackson Leong, Linsanity chronicles the Palo Alto product’s path from high school standout to Harvard Ivy League star to obscure journeyman in the pros until miraculously becoming a household name virtually overnight. An Evangelical Christian, Jeremy freely credits the Lord for his unprecedented emergence in the NBA, saying “I know that God orchestrated this… There was just too much out of my control.”

A moving biopic about a humble underdog who surmounted overwhelming odds with the help of family, friends and a strong faith.

Excellent (4 stars)

Unrated

In English and Mandarin with subtitles

Running time: 88 minutes

Distributor: Ketchup Entertainment

To see a trailer for Linsanity, visit

Watch a short clip

THE ANONYMOUS PEOPLE IS A FEATURE DOCUMENTARY FILM about the over 23 million Americans living in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction. Deeply entrenched social stigma have kept recovery voices silent and faces hidden for decades. The vacuum has been filled with sensational mass media depictions of people with addiction that perpetuate a lurid fascination with the dysfunctional side of what is a preventable and treatable health condition. Just like women with breast cancer, or people with HIV/AIDS, a grass roots social justice movement is emerging. Courageous addiction recovery advocates have come out of the shadows and are organizing to end discrimination and move toward recovery-based solutions.

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