A Father's Worst Nightmare

Just would like to take this moment and wish everyone a Happy New Year! 2013 has come and gone and to say the least, 2013 was an interesting year. I had a baby girl, I got married, and I started this journey. I just want to say how much I love my wife, Amy, and my 3 beautiful children. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without them. Now for the last film on my top 5 films of 2013…

#1

Prisoners

Remember a time when kids could roam their neighborhood without fear? A time when everyone knew everyone. Kids could stay out till the street lights came on. All that is gone now. If because kids have become attached to technology that keeps them inside or because the fear of kidnappers have become more prominent in parents minds. Prisoners tugs at that fear and what extents we as parents would go to protect our children.

In a little town in Pennsylvania, Keller and Grace Dover with their two children have prepared to have Thanksgiving dinner with their good friends and neighbors, Franklin and Nancy Birch and their two children. Dinner is served and the happiness of the holiday is being had. However, that all comes crashing down when the families realize that their two youngest daughters are missing. Assigned to the case is Detective Loki, who has a reputation have solving all of his cases. When the older children describe a RV that didn’t belong to the neighborhood, Loki tracks it down and seems to have the case all but closed. What he didn’t expect was the driver of said RV, Alex Jones, has the mentality of a ten year old child and Alex isn’t talking. After hearing that the police have to release the only suspect in his daughters case, Keller takes it upon himself to get answers from Alex…any way he can.

I have nothing but praise for this film and believe this film has been very overlooked during the latter part of this year. Hugh Jackman plays Keller Dover marvelously and conveys that emotion that I feel every father would have in this situation. Jackman’s character feels like he is helpless and so he does what he feels he needs to. The only person that can spoil Keller’s intentions is Detective Loki, who is played by Jake Gyllenhaal. A detective with an impeccable record and the smugness to go along with it. Every time Gyllenhaal is on screen, I could feel that in the beginning this was just another case, but when the film goes on you can feel that change in his attitude. He really starts to care about the case and what happened/happens to the missing girls. The most of the other actors in the film also do a great job in the film, but I can tell you that this film mainly focuses on Keller and Detective Loki. I know this is going to be contradictive, but my one and only complaint is Maria Bello, who plays Grace Dover. I have no idea why she is in the film. Period. She is drugged up and sleeping for 99% of this film. I think that the film would have worked just as good if Keller was a single father. Especially since that is what he essentially becomes once the girls go missing.

Prisoners is directed by Denis Villeneuve, a Canadian director who has been previously nominated for a Best Foreign Film Academy Award. Villeneuve has broken through the northern border in a huge way. He has taken every parents fear and feeling of helplessness and projected it on the big screen. Villeneuve really has a dark and brooding style like that of Christopher Nolan. I think that this is Villeneuve’s genre and if he keeps hitting them out of the park like this, we will be seeing a lot of his films in the future.

Over looked but not Over matched by the rest of the seasons “Oscar Worthy” films, Prisoners is a very good mystery film that asks that age old question… “What would you do if your child was kidnapped?”

Verdict: VERY Much Worth Your Time.