Prisoners- Review

First film review for 2018.

In a simple viewing of Prisoners without any hint of what the film explores, makes for a hellish ride. In short, this film sends its audience into the five stages of grief repeatedly and then adds further emotions that cannot be described. In Dennis Villeneuve's harsh reality of a movie, we see such captivating performances delivered by Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Terrence Howard and Paul Dano.

Leading to a lengthy process of investigation involving dead leads and helplessness, two girls suddenly go missing on Thanksgiving. When the police seem to be doing next to nothing in the eyes of Keller Dover, matters are taken into the hands of the two grief stricken families.

It's hard to find any critical faults within the characters in this film. It is easy to see how hard each actor has worked and what kinds of character-building exercises have been taken in order to achieve the perfect outcome for their character. Within the roles of Hugh Jackman and Terrence Howard, they make for relatable characters by demonstrating the heartache and frustration over the loss of a child and how any parent would react in a situation such as confronting and shocking as this.

Jake Gyllenhaal on the other hand, makes for a relatable role for those within/ heading an investigation and coming up with poor leads, possibility of never finding the missing persons in question (after the 24 hour period) or the emotional stress that not only strikes the family but authorities too.

This film is quite lengthy, weighing in at a total running time of 153 minutes. That being said, it took me longer than anticipated to finish this film. Why? Because it was so emotionally taxing and cruel. I'm not talking a few hours delay, I'm talking roughly five days. But for this movie to have the power to make an audience member uncomfortable, emotional and frustrated while enjoying it simultaneously is a power of it's own. The fact that it stressed me out doesn't take away from the worth of this film.

Prisoners is a hyperrealistic, dramatic and stressful film that is designed to leave you on the edge of your seat. My only suggestion of caution is to be in a neutral state of mind when viewing as there are potential triggers.

Score: 9/10.