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Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
Critic Consensus: No consensus yet.
All Critics (61) | Top Critics (16) | Fresh (12) | Rotten (49)
One capably staged chase sequence apart, it's not one to set the pulse racing.
Not only is Hopkins's Freddy incomparably more charismatic than any of his captors, he's the only one who, weirdly enough, seems to be enjoying the ordeal. But maybe that's simply a matter of pay scale.
The true story of Freddy Heineken's kidnapping is fascinating, but "Kidnapping Mr. Heineken" is a disappointingly superficial film in which neither the kidnappers nor their captives are particularly interesting.
The sole object lesson in the true-crime drama "Kidnapping Mr. Heineken" is that not every crime deserves its own movie.
Despite its true-events pedigree, "Kidnapping Mr. Heineken" is woefully captive to B-movie crime saga tropes.
Anthony Hopkins and a cast of erstwhile next-big-things go slumming in Daniel Alfredson's listless, fact-based kidnapping caper.
It's obviously possible to make compelling movies about true crime committed by unsympathetic people, but this sure isn't one of them.
It's far from perfect, but Kidnapping Mr. Heineken still proves to be a generally likable and engaging small-time thriller, regardless of its imperfections.
Hopkins in captivity is always fascinating. He is not Hannibal Lecter-dangerous here, but as a stubborn captive in chains, he is still a defanged alpha male worth watching. If only we were allowed to see more of him.
The stakes might be high, but never once do they produce even a frisson of delight, horror or tension.
Time and again, good material is introduced and discarded.
While the ransom paid was the largest ever, the stakes never seem as high as they should be.
"Kidnapping Mr. Heineken" is better than the critics' score suggests. The critics are right -- this film has a few issues. Kwanten's "English accent" sounds like Eliza Doolittle's closing night performance from the Rappahannock Community Theater troupe, but then again, how appropriate is an English accent on a blue collar Dutch criminal character in the first place? There's not enough action for a heist picture, but then again, this is a kidnapping picture -- not a heist picture, and by nature a hunker-down-and-hide kidnapping story will always be more static. Hopkins is a bit lackluster in his role, but as ceaselessly fascinating as it would have been to have him reprise his role as the imprisoned Hannibal Lector, it would have been inappropriate for the role of an aging, kidnapped Dutch beer mogul. All in all, "Kidnapping Mr. Heineken" is a perfectly good kidnapping tale with thoughtful costumes, good sets and locations, and decent writing.
Super Reviewer
Not the movie the trailer had me believe it would be at all. A film that you think is "just okay" and get steadily worse and worse if you ever put any actual thought into it. Completely unsatisfying, and very very stupid. How they managed to get Sam Worthington, Ryan Kwanten, Mark VanEeuwen AND Sir Anthony Hopkins on board I will never understand.
I never even knew that this took place. I found the story to be interesting more than the film itself. Whilst the acting was solid the ending was predictable, even when true.
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