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Prisoners has an emotional complexity and a sense of dread that makes for absorbing (and disturbing) viewing.
All Critics (240) | Top Critics (57) | Fresh (193) | Rotten (47) | 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. Oct 4, 2013 | Full Review…
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.
Wesley Morris
A whodunnit too classy to ignore, too crude to respect. Sep 27, 2013 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…
A whodunnit too classy to ignore, too crude to respect.
Charlotte O'Sullivan
A hulking gothic whodunit which sadly falls to pieces in its final act. Sep 26, 2013 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…
A hulking gothic whodunit which sadly falls to pieces in its final act.
David Jenkins
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. Sep 26, 2013 | Full Review…
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.
David Thomson
A certain dour realist vigour keeps the nightmare alive. Sep 26, 2013 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…
A certain dour realist vigour keeps the nightmare alive.
Peter Bradshaw
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. Sep 24, 2013 | Full Review…
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.
Jocelyn Noveck
For all its bells and whistles, Prisoners feels more like a middle-of-the-road episode of "Law and Order" than a film that wants to be a mystery wrapped in a moral dilemma. Apr 9, 2019 | Full Review…
For all its bells and whistles, Prisoners feels more like a middle-of-the-road episode of "Law and Order" than a film that wants to be a mystery wrapped in a moral dilemma.
Micheal Compton
Attempting to present torture in a way that neither endorses nor condones the act, the film feels trapped in a sticky web of moral musing which it never fully comprehends. Mar 4, 2019 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…
Attempting to present torture in a way that neither endorses nor condones the act, the film feels trapped in a sticky web of moral musing which it never fully comprehends.
Patrick Gamble
Prisoners is watchable and holds attention, but for those not sold on its specific thoughts on religious good and evil, it winds up being more popcorn than profound by the finale. Jan 24, 2019 | Rating: B- | Full Review…
Prisoners is watchable and holds attention, but for those not sold on its specific thoughts on religious good and evil, it winds up being more popcorn than profound by the finale.
Abbie Bernstein
The movie is compelling but clumsy and would have benefited massively from an edit. Nov 5, 2018 | Rating: 6/10 | Full Review…
The movie is compelling but clumsy and would have benefited massively from an edit.
Debbie Baldwin
Whenever you can set aside a few hours for this thing, go and see it. Just be prepared for it: this ain't a movie you can just casually watch. Nov 1, 2018 | Rating: 10/10 | Full Review…
Whenever you can set aside a few hours for this thing, go and see it. Just be prepared for it: this ain't a movie you can just casually watch.
Jennifer Heaton
Prisoners is the best film I have seen so far this year and one people will be debating about for some time to come. Oct 12, 2018 | Rating: 9.5/10 | Full Review…
Prisoners is the best film I have seen so far this year and one people will be debating about for some time to come.
Aaron Peterson
With fantastic performances (Gyllenhaal deserves an Oscar), an extremely complex script so well written in every single detail and a phenomenal direction that invests in a slow-burning tension with perfection, Prisoners is certainly one of the best films of the year.
Super Reviewer
Outstanding acting, a tight, mesmerizing and engaging script and the directing make this one of the most exciting and best thrillers of recent years. The themes and questions raised here together with the images stay with you for a very long time. A gem of the genre.
Grim, ugly and violent. Good acting but not enjoyable as a viewing experience.
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.
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