Prisoners (2013)
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Critics Consensus: Prisoners has an emotional complexity and a sense of dread that makes for absorbing (and disturbing) viewing.
Critics Consensus: Prisoners has an emotional complexity and a sense of dread that makes for absorbing (and disturbing) viewing.
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Movie Info
PRISONERS, from Oscar (R)-nominated director Denis Villeneuve, stars Oscar (R) nominees Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal in a story that poses the question: How far would you go to protect your child? Keller Dover (Jackman) is facing every parent's worst nightmare. His six-year-old daughter, Anna, is missing, together with her young friend, Joy, and as minutes turn to hours, panic sets in. The only lead is a dilapidated RV that had earlier been parked on their street. Heading the investigation, … More- Rating:
- R (for disturbing violent content including torture, and language throughout)
- Genre:
- Mystery & Suspense , Drama
- Directed By:
- Denis Villeneuve
- Written By:
- Aaron Guzikowski
- In Theaters:
- Sep 20, 2013 Wide
- On DVD:
- Dec 17, 2013
- US Box Office:
- $61.0M
Cast
-
Jake Gyllenhaal
as Detective Loki -
Hugh Jackman
as Keller Dover -
Viola Davis
as Nancy Birch -
Paul Dano
as Alex Jones -
Maria Bello
as Gracie Dover -
Melissa Leo
as Holly Jones
Related News & Features
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RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: Prisoners, Elysium, Kick-Ass 2, and More
– Rotten Tomatoes
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Box Office Guru Wrapup: Prisoners Captures the Top Spot
– Rotten Tomatoes
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Critic Reviews for Prisoners
All Critics (223) | Top Critics (51) | Fresh (183) | Rotten (40) | DVD (2)
Jackman is still in his phase of high-masculine misery... The entire performance is an exclamation point, and he swings it like a baseball bat.
Prisoners is weary after ten minutes, and I suppose it has persuaded itself that its length is justified by its solemn gaze into the abyss.
In less talented hands, the story could lapse into the maudlin. But Villeneuve, director of the Oscar-nominated Incendies, seems to know just how far to go; only one moment feels less than authentic, but it would be a spoiler to mention it.
It's got lofty aspirations but it also wants to wallow in the muck - to thrill you and sicken you in equal measure while also being About Something.
Ethical exploration or exploitation? In the end, I come down reservedly on the former side: the work done here by Jackman, Gyllenhaal, and especially Villeneuve is simply too powerful to ignore.
Prisoners is unforgettably relentless in asking moviegoers if Keller has gone too far. And, by extension, asking us how far we would go.
Prisoners is in the best thriller traditions, but goes deeper into a reflection of one of the greatest moral dilemmas in modern society ... choosing to not only be memorable, but to matter.
Prisoners is a devastating ordeal through the Villeneuve's impressionistic prism. It's a testament to all involved that you want to revisit the ugliness of the story for the artistry of its construction.
The film not only holds the viewer's focus to the very end, but manages to do so in a genuinely innovative yet comfortingly recognizable way.
...wants to show how one heinous act creates not only victims, but more monsters.
Prisoners -- sometimes awkwardly, for the most part persuasively -- does a delicate balancing act between outright nightmare and naturalism.
Methodical, powerful and one of the year's best, this drama offers up a riveting script and a great cast.
It's engaging and gut-wrenching -- without diving into an abyss of emotional torture in the name of entertainment.
Denis Villeneuve made the Foreign Language Film Oscar nominee Incendies, but his American debut Prisoners just reheats the heavy-handed, high-gloss revenge porn of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and the aforementioned Mystic River.
Even the most seemingly benign scenes posses a low level of fear, and the final hour is heavy enough to leave audiences shaking (and shaken).
Nicely written and acted. Genuine suspense.
Like a more downbeat Zodiac, Prisoners is a rich, expansive procedural revolving around a horrible crime in which a satisfactory resolution only seems to get further away from its protagonists the more they obsess over the case.
...a bold, brave and unforgettable slice of filmmaking that pulls you deep into the mix and doesn't let go.
Unfolds with the sickening tension of a great police procedural, all while poking at America's social and political hypocrisies.
It's impossible to ignore that you are looking at unspeakable cruelty which, even if justifiable, must be ruinous to the soul of the wielder. You expect that to become the theme of the film, but, astonishingly, it never does.
A dark, foreboding and riveting thriller, that will leave many spun by its labyrinth plot, spellbound by its strong performances and haunted by its many moral and religious complexities.
He's the film's most interesting character and it's a great performance from Jake Gyllenhaal.
...palpably ominous and unsettling...
If there is one thing above all else to recommend Prisoners, it's the way it captures that white-hot skewer of fear that must run through the heart and mind of every parent who has ever suddenly looked around them and thought, "where's my kid?"
Prisoners is haunting and will stick with you ... this is one of the best films of the year.
This moody police procedural with Jake Gyllenhaal in sublime form may be nearly three hours long, but it's worth every minute.
Audience Reviews for Prisoners
Super Reviewer
After a man's daughter is kidnapped, he resort to torturing the police's prime suspect in order to discover her whereabouts.
As a thriller, this film follows the basic genre conventions. It's tense, mysterious, and occasionally compelling. However, it seems the film's ambitions are beyond a basic genre film. A lot of the film's exposition establishes Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) as a survivalist -- a right-wing, anti-establishmentarian -- in order to explain his extreme behavior later. But this theme remains undeveloped. I can imagine a good film that questions whether a man's personal moral compass should override the moral compass that most reasonable people agree to, but by the second act, the film devolves into torture porn and the generic dramatic questions overtake the film's philosophical musings.
Jackman has never been an impressive actor, and what depth we see in Keller comes from the script, not his performance. The same can be said of Jake Gyllenhaal, and unfortunately the plot renders Maria Bello catatonic halfway through the film. The best performance is by Paul Dano, who never fails to impress.
Overall, as a thriller, Prisoners fits the genre, but as anything more, it's close but not quite.
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
Prisoners is a Mystery/Thriller film starring Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Terrence Howard, and Paul Dano. Prisoners is a film about two families who both of their daughters get kidnapped and both of the families with the help of the police, investigate and look for their daughters. This is a very dark, grim, and at times is a hard film to sit through. That being said, I have created a PainOmeter scale out of five (five being the worst) to inform you guys if you simply cannot take very violent and painful scenes. This will be addressed along will the film's final score. I loved this film! Hugh Jackman plays Anna's father and is the protagonist of the film. You can see how Jackman really loses his rag and does a great job as Keller Dover. There is one scene that involves Jackman doing something that I won't spoil but you will notice it and go WOW! The story is also very thought provoking and will keep you on the edge of your seat because of the direction and character building involved with this movie. Also Paul Dano who plays Alex Jones, is this weird adult with the IQ of a ten year old and is the main suspect of the investigation. I thought he nailed just the right tone of the character and was hard to "look at" at times. My favorite part of the film was surprisingly Jake Gyllenhaal's performance as the detective looking for the missing girls. Gyllenhaal still plays the role of a cop very well after all of that training for End Of Watch. Another great part of the film is that it manages to never take a rest on character building and story development. I hate when films give you time to take a break then start all over again and this film really avoids that entirely. I really have no problems with the film except for the runtime. Even though this was a great movie I just couldn't go for a perfect 5. 4 Stars 1-30-14
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Super Reviewer
Prisoners Quotes
- Keller Dover:
- He's not a person anymore.
- Keller Dover:
- We hurt him until he talks or they're going to die.
- Detective Loki:
- With all do respect Captain, go fuck yourself.
- Alex Jones:
- They didn't cry until I left them.
- Keller Dover:
- I'm not going to have Christmas without my daughter!
- Franklin Birch:
- I miss my daughter to!
- Keller Dover:
- Where is my daughter? I'm not having Christmas without my daughter!
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