Captain Phillips, review

I finally got around to watching ‘Captain Phillips’ today.

I’d give it a solid 7 out of 10. Likely an 8, but I’ll need to watch it again and catch details that I’m sure to have missed.

The US Navy was presented very professionally. There was none of the ‘all-singing-all-dancing elite ninja bullshit’ that Hollywood normally goes in for. Just low-lit ops rooms and all emotion kept in check. Just as it should be.

The USS Truxtun (DDG 103) stood in as a filming location for fellow Arleigh Burke-class destroyer USS Bainbridge (DDG 96), but the Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Halyburton (FFG 40) played herself in the movie.

Aerial surveillance photo of the USS Bainbridge while apprehending Somali pirates, via ScanEagle UAV.

The Maersk Alabama was portrayed in the film by her sister-ship the Alexander Maersk and the clear blue waters of the Mediterranean (shout out to Malta!) stood-in for the pirate-infested waters of the Horn of Africa.

At anchor at Mombasa,Kenya during FBI investigation after the hijacking. Via shipspotting.com.

Tom Hanks delivered a tight performance as Captain Rich Phillips. That restraint is what made the emotion at the end of the film very believable. He’s got two Academy Awards. This could earn him a third.

Solid performances from the actors portraying the Alabama’s crew. No gung-ho Chuck Norris b/s and chants of “USA! USA!” which would have made the flick unbearable. Just a solid portrayal of sober professionals and a frank portrayal of the true threat that pirates present. That merchant mariners take these risks every day is remarkable. And frightening. And should make you thankful that they do.

Which brings me to the pirates, and particularly to Barkhad Abdi as Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse, the hijack leader. (1) Showing us Somalia early-on as an utter toilet was a piece of genius. Yes, they’re pirates, but now we know how and why. (2) If Barkhad Abdi doesn’t win an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor then there is no justice in Hollywood. His performance was incredible. He brings pathos to a character that could otherwise be a two-dimensional cartoon “bad guy.” Muse is doomed from the outset. And he is aware of his doom. Which is utterly tragic. As is, of course, Somalia.

Barkhad Abdi as Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse, Somali hijacker leader.

Go and see it. Definitely recommended.

Maersk Alabama hijack movie ‘Captain Phillips’ opens in US theaters Fri 11 October

Navy SEAL museum has lifeboat from Maersk Alabama pirate hijacking

Two things.

One. There’s a friggin’ Navy SEAL museum. Awesome.

Two. It’s got the lifeboat from the Maersk Alabama hijacking.

Visit Captain Phillips’ Maersk Alabama Lifeboat at Navy SEAL Museum

The Maersk Alabama was captured by Somali pirates on April 8, 2009. When you visit the Navy SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida, you can board the lifeboat upon which Captain Richard Phillips was held hostage for five days before being rescued on April 12, thanks to the accuracy of Navy SEAL snipers.

On Wednesday, April 8, 2009, four Somali pirates hijacked the U.S.-flagged cargo ship, Maersk Alabama. The ship’s captain, Richard Phillips, prevented the initial takeover by ordering his crew to lock themselves in a secure room while he remained on the bridge. To safeguard his crew and free the Alabama, Captain Phillips surrendered himself to the pirates and boarded this lifeboat to be taken ashore in Somalia.

The next day, the U.S.Navy destroyer USS Bainbridge arrived on the scene and began negotiating with the pirates for the release of Captain Phillips. While negotiating, the crew of the Bainbridgee stablished a “control net” around this lifeboat to prevent the pirates from receiving support from pirate mother ships in the area.

On April 10, Captain Phillips noticed a lapse in the pirates’ security and attempted to escape from the lifeboat to swim to the Bainbridge. The pirates shot at him with their AK-47s and recaptured him. His situation became dire as the pirates became more desperate under conditions of extreme heat, unsanitary conditions, high winds and the effects of chewing quat and sleep deprivation. They hoped to drift closer to the Somali coast and have greater negotiating leverage.

On Saturday April 11, the pirates agreed to be towed by the Bainbridge as one of them came aboard to begin negotiating for the captain’s release. Later that day, a team of Navy SEALs parachuted into the area and were brought aboard the Bainbridge. They took position on the fantail of the Bainbridge, trained their sniper rifles on the lifeboat tethered behind the ship and waited in the 100+ degree heat. On Easter Sunday, April 12, the captain of the Bainbridge, Commander Frank Castellano, determined that Captain Phillips’ life was in danger and ordered the SEAL snipers to take the shot.

You can board the Alabama lifeboat at the Museum and see the holes left by the SEAL bullets as they opened fire simultaneously, firing three bullets and killing three pirates.

The Maersk Alabama lifeboat arrived at the Museum on in April, 2009. The museum assisted the makers of the motion picture Captain Phillips starring Tom Hanks, due out in October, 2013.

http://www.maritime-executive.com/article/Visit-Captain-Phillips-Maersk-Alabama-Lifeboat-at-Navy-SEAL-Museum-2013-09-05/

Men With Green Faces (1969)

Department of Defense PIN 25371.