A film about child abduction is hardly the most appealing of subject
matters, as no matter how it is handled, there will always be something of an
uncomfortable feeling about enjoying it, considering the real life consequences
of this kind of situation. But whether or not this, or any other topic or
subject matter is considered taboo or off limits, is something that should be
decided by the individual and not a studio or focus group.
Prisoners, as mentioned earlier is about the abduction of two young girls from
two families and what they do following the event. Each family reacts in
different ways, which is shown through the actions of each father, one is
proactive and tries to do everything he can while the other is passive and
hopes that the police will find the girls. The other main character is the
police detective who is tasked with finding the missing girls.
Prisoners did remind me of a few films of recent years, not necessarily in terms
of plot or characters, but more in its tone and its structure. At times it
doesn’t play by the normal rules of a thriller, it down plays its big thrills
and doesn’t use music to build tension, instead it relies on its performances,
in much of the same way that Tinker
Tailor Soldier Spy or Zero Dark
Thirty did.
Tonally, it is a call back to some of David Finchers most recent films
in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
and Zodiac, as there is a omnipresent
sense of dread and hopelessness as the situation and weight of the characters
choices bare down on them.
As I touched on earlier, this is a film driven by performances, and two
in particular. Hugh Jackman as Keller, one of the fathers who has lost their
daughter, and Detective Loki, played by Jake Gyllenhaal. Where most actors
would choose to go big whenever they could, these two choose to tone it down
and play it in a much more restrained and natural way.
While Jackman plays the emotional core of the film, as he struggles with
the desperation to get his daughter back and come to terms with what he is
willing to do to get her back. It is Loki who is by far the most interesting
character we meet. Very much a loner who has the respect of his superiors and
colleagues, but isn’t liked by them, it’s as though he needs to keep up his
100% record to validate himself and be able to fight his corner.
In his conversations with Jackman, which are the strongest of the film
as you may expect, he offers the bare amount of sympathy he has to at the
beginning, which then quickly deteriorates as the family start to interfere in
his investigation and hinder his work. He fights back a desire to truly berate
Keller on numerous occasion’s, it is a struggle that is rarely seen in crime
films.
There are a few loose ends at the end of the film, I won’t go into
detail, that in a way undermine
the brutal natural of the previous two hours as some consequences are ignored,
while others are brought to the fore front. The one that is pushed to the
front, in actuality needs to be pushed on the audience as they are asked to
make their own conclusions about should happen to a certain character and if
their actions are right, wrong or at least justifiable.
When awards season roles around I hope there is at least one category
with someone from Prisoners in it. If
I were to put money on it, it would be Jake Gyllenhaal in a supporting role.
It is a difficult subject matter to deal with, but one that is worth
your time for questions it poses and that it offers up a mature adult based
thriller, something we don’t get as often as we should. Whether it pushes the
subject matter to far, or not far enough is up to you.
If a story about children being kidnapped doesn’t put you off
immediately, then go and see this great film.
