---
title: "Captain Phillips"
year: 2013
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/captain-phillips"
fi1m_id: "captain-phillips"
imdb_id: "tt1535109"
tmdb_id: 109424
wikidata_id: "Q2937646"
fi1m_score: 83
critics_score: 79
critics_reviews: 17
published: "2026-09-15"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:37.343625+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Captain Phillips (2013)

Directed by Paul Greengrass · 2h 14m · MPA PG-13 · Action, Drama, Thriller

## Identity

Captain Phillips

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/captain-phillips
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** captain-phillips
- **IMDb ID:** tt1535109
- **TMDB ID:** 109424
- **Wikidata ID:** Q2937646
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1535109/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/109424, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2937646

**Fi1m score: 83** · Critics 79 from 17 reviews

*In a sentence:* Tom Hanks attempts to remain professional in circumstances well beyond the scope of the staff handbook

> Paul Greengrass makes an absorbing hijack thriller, with Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi giving the fear a human scale. The opening explains too much, but the tension soon becomes difficult to shake.

## Synopsis

Tom Hanks plays Captain Richard Phillips, who commands an American container ship that comes under attack from Somali pirates. Barkhad Abdi plays Muse, the pirate leader confronting Phillips as a working voyage becomes a struggle for control. Phillips tries to protect his crew and manage the danger, while Muse presses his demands under pressures of his own. Directed by Paul Greengrass from a screenplay by Billy Ray, the film follows the confrontation at sea, concentrating on the decisions of both men as their options narrow and the threat of violence grows.

## Review

Paul Greengrass approaches *Captain Phillips* as a series of practical decisions taken under worsening pressure. An American container ship comes under attack from Somali pirates, and the film stays close to the work of trying to manage the danger. It is a gripping thriller, particularly good at making competence look fragile. The early explanation of the wider circumstances is heavy-handed, but once the confrontation takes hold, Greengrass trusts actions and faces.

Hanks plays Captain Richard Phillips as a man who keeps trying to do his job after the usual rules have stopped helping. He is terse, watchful and not especially interested in being liked, which helps enormously. We were frightened by the effort it seems to cost him to stay still. His guarded movements and fixed attention suggest someone concentrating on the next manageable task because anything larger would be unbearable. The film gives him time to convey that fear without making a speech about it.

Barkhad Abdi’s Muse makes the threat harder to dismiss, because his authority also looks precarious. Abdi gives him the force of someone who needs his orders to sound final, with desperation showing through the bravado. In their exchanges, Hanks and Abdi keep testing how much confidence the other man has left. We can see why the film wants us to consider the pressures on both men, although their immediate positions are plainly unequal. Abdi earns that attention without asking us to forget what Muse is doing.

Barry Ackroyd’s handheld photography keeps the camera close enough to faces for small changes in confidence to register. The movement can be tiring, but it makes the struggle feel physically uncomfortable rather than merely busy. Christopher Rouse’s editing keeps the sequence of pressures clear: an action prompts a response, and that response creates a new problem. We can follow the decisions even while the camera is shaking. That is a considerable part of why the suspense holds for 134 minutes.

Paul Kirby’s production design is effective because the ship feels like somewhere people work. Its cramped spaces give the actors little room to retreat, and the resulting closeness makes the confrontations uncomfortable. Henry Jackman’s score is less helpful when it stresses danger that the performances have already made obvious. It maintains pressure, but the music sometimes pushes a scene that would be tense enough without it.

Billy Ray’s screenplay is weakest when it spells out the circumstances that have brought these men together. The opening exposition makes the comparison between their lives too tidy, and we can feel the dialogue preparing an explanation for the violence. The script acknowledges the economic pressures behind piracy, then moves on before examining them in much depth. The actors are more convincing when they show us frightened men trying to hold their positions. Abdi supplies much of the complexity through his performance.

Compared with a routine hijack thriller, this puts unusual weight on the strain of giving orders. Hanks never lets Phillips settle into the reassuring certainty of an action hero, and Abdi makes authority look like something Muse must keep proving. We recommend it warmly, with patience required for the opening explanations and a tolerance for the restless camera. Watch it when there is nothing else demanding attention, and leave a little quiet afterwards.

*Fi1m score 83, published 15 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics welcome Captain Phillips as a tense, intelligent thriller, with praise clustering around Paul Greengrass’s documentary-style direction and Tom Hanks’s restrained performance. The reviews repeatedly credit the close camerawork and urgent pacing with making the ordeal feel immediate, while Hanks gives the physical danger emotional weight. Barkhad Abdi also draws praise, and many critics find that the attention to the pirates’ circumstances prevents a simple division into heroes and villains.

The reservations come from a mixed minority rather than outright detractors, and centre on emotional distance and the handling of those circumstances. Variety admires the realism and performances but finds the film drier and less affecting than Greengrass’s earlier work. Slant Magazine considers the effort at even-handedness laboured, particularly in the early exposition. The Wrap raises a sharper objection: despite effective suspense, it finds the pirates one-dimensional and the racial politics troubling. The broad agreement on technical skill does not extend to the film’s empathy.

## Straight answers

**Is Captain Phillips worth watching?**

*Captain Phillips* is worth watching for anyone who wants a hijack thriller built on frightened, competent people rather than heroics, and we scored it 83. Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi give the fear a human scale, and Christopher Rouse's editing keeps every decision clear. Expect a heavy-handed opening and a restless handheld camera before the tension takes hold.

**How long is Captain Phillips, and what is it rated?**

*Captain Phillips* runs 2h 14m and is rated PG-13 by the MPA in the US. It is an action and drama film.

**Where can I watch Captain Phillips in the US?**

*Captain Phillips* is streaming on Tubi and Amazon Prime Video in the US, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV from $3.99. It leaves Tubi on 1 October. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How does Captain Phillips compare to The Wages of Fear?**

*Captain Phillips* and [*The Wages of Fear*](https://film.one/film/the-wages-of-fear) both turn dangerous work into suspense, but Paul Greengrass's film is a modern hijack story built from shaky close-ups and quick decisions, while Henri-Georges Clouzot's is a slow, patient journey with a long wait before it moves. Clouzot's is the more exacting film; Greengrass's is the more immediately gripping.

**What should I watch after Captain Phillips?**

After *Captain Phillips*, try [*The Wages of Fear*](https://film.one/film/the-wages-of-fear) (1953, Fi1m 90): Dangerous work becomes intolerable suspense, with every practical decision carrying a cost. Then [*United 93*](https://film.one/film/united-93) (2006, Fi1m 88): Greengrass makes procedure and ordinary behaviour under pressure almost unbearably tense; and [*Das Boot*](https://film.one/film/das-boot) (1981, Fi1m 89): Cramped quarters and exhausted men make command feel like punishing physical work.

### Reviews we read (19)

- **Radio Times**, Stella Papamichael (5/5): Greengrass re-creates the events with heart-pounding urgency and conveys the growing desperation of both Phillips and the lead pirate. The film builds to a dizzying emotional crescendo, with Hanks at the peak of his powers. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-noebqo/captain-phillips/)
- **Screen Daily** (90/100, inferred): The film is an enthralling action-drama driven by Tom Hanks's absorbing performance as the stoical captain kidnapped by Somali pirates. Elegantly directed with a sense of epic scale alongside gritty reality, it balances the stories of the two captains effectively. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/captain-phillips/5060432.article)
- **Empire**, Dan Jolin (85/100, inferred): The film is a riveting, emotionally complex and hugely intelligent dramatisation of a real-life ordeal. Greengrass and Hanks excel in an even-handed, detail-heavy procedural that explores shades of victimhood on both sides rather than simple heroism-versus-villainy. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/captain-phillips-review/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (85/100, inferred): Greengrass exceeds expectations with a propulsive, realistic thriller that mixes tense action, strong acting and subtle social commentary. It reminds viewers what mainstream cinema can achieve when it balances human behavior under stress with nuts-and-bolts authenticity. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-captain-phillips-movie-review-20131011-story.html)
- **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (85/100, inferred): This unbearably tense hijack thriller from Paul Greengrass is based on a true story from 2009 about a Somali pirate attack on an American container ship. It gives global context to the forces driving piracy and terrorism while delivering a quasi-war movie set in peacetime. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/oct/17/captain-phillips-review)
- **Evening Standard** (80/100, inferred): This is a thrilling action film and a masterclass in what an action movie can really be, gripping throughout its 134 minutes. Greengrass seamlessly marries documentary skills with kinetic handheld camerawork and editing that follows the action zealously without CGI fakery. [Read](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/captain-phillips-film-review-8868253.html)
- **The Telegraph** (80/100, inferred): Tom Hanks gives one of the best performances of his career in Paul Greengrass's Somali piracy drama. The film heightens a portrait of conflicting imperatives and delivers a truthful hero whose courage comes from desperation. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/10388339/Captain-Phillips-review.html)
- **Time Out**, Dave Calhoun (4/5): The critic praises the film's high-stakes tension and real-world politics, highlighting Tom Hanks's affecting performance as an ordinary man in crisis. Greengrass is noted for creating claustrophobia and a masterclass in containment during the lifeboat sequences. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/captain-phillips)
- **The New Yorker**, Anthony Lane (75/100, inferred): Greengrass delivers a gripping survival tale that benefits from Tom Hanks’s restrained performance as a pragmatic, unlikable everyman. The film respects the pirates’ bravado while showing Phillips shaken into childlike vulnerability. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/10/14/dangerous-waters)
- **Vulture**, David Edelstein (75/100, inferred): The lifeboat section becomes a great thriller with the camera locked inside, and Hanks reaches new heights with an internal performance of mixed fear, pity, and humanity; the film understands the larger tragedy of the Somalis' situation. [Read](https://www.vulture.com/2013/10/movie-review-tom-hanks-in-captain-phillips.html)
- **Slant Magazine**, R. Kurt Osenlund (65/100, inferred): The film works too hard for even-handedness between the American captain and Somali pirates and relies on overt exposition early on, but improves markedly in the lifeboat and climax thanks to Hanks' empathetic, heartbreaking performance that conveys universal pain. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/captain-phillips/)
- **Variety**, Scott Foundas (65/100, inferred): Greengrass’s kinetic docudrama impresses with its you-are-there realism and strong performances from Hanks and newcomer Barkhad Abdi but falls short emotionally compared to the director’s earlier verité works. It forms a loose trilogy with Bloody Sunday and United 93 yet feels drier and less resonant. [Read](https://variety.com/2013/film/reviews/film-review-captain-phillips-1200599772/)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Todd McCarthy: Greengrass excels at recreating a perilous post-9/11 incident with his kinetic style, delivering an immaculately made account that pairs well with United 93 and benefits commercially from Hanks and its outcome. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/captain-phillips-film-review-623141/)
- **The New York Times**, Manohla Dargis (NYT Critic’s Pick): The film has vital moral immediacy and combines kinetic action with intelligence. It deepens into an unsettling look at global capitalism and American privilege. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/11/movies/captain-phillips-stars-tom-hanks-as-a-high-seas-hostage.html)
- **The Playlist**, The Playlist Staff (A): The critic calls it a gripping, immersive survival thriller elevated by strong character work and emotional stakes into a harrowing, nail-biting experience of desperation and tension. They single out the nuanced performances by Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi, along with Paul Greengrass's masterful real-time direction. [Read](https://theplaylist.net/review-paul-greengrass-harrowing-absorbing-thriller-captain-phillips-starring-tom-hanks-20131011/)
- **Den of Geek**, Luke Savage (4/5): Greengrass delivers a smart, tense thriller that avoids clichés and flag-waving, keeping viewers immersed with the crew at sea. Hanks and newcomer Abdi shine in grounded, physically expressive performances that humanize both sides of the conflict. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/captain-phillips-review-2/)
- **Digital Spy** (80/100, inferred): Greengrass wrings every moment of tension from the ordeal in a masterclass of grounded, documentary-style filmmaking, with Hanks delivering a palpable, non-verbal performance that makes the stakes feel immediate and real. The film also finds surprising empathy for the pirates without turning it into a simplistic us-vs-them story. [Read](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/bfi-london-film-festival/review/a521324/captain-phillips-review-tom-hanks-opens-bfi-london-film-festival/)
- **The Wrap**, Alonso Duralde (60/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's taut suspense and immersive storytelling, along with Tom Hanks' unfussy performance as the resourceful captain. However, they criticize the one-dimensional, zombie-like depiction of the Somali pirates and the film's racial politics, which evoke colonialist tropes. [Read](https://www.thewrap.com/captain-phillips-review-taut-suspense-iffy-racial-politics/)
- **Collider**, Matt Goldberg (C): The critic finds the film a cold procedural that becomes exhausting due to its focus on action over emotion. It benefits from strong performances, particularly from newcomer Barkhad Abdi, and an intelligent depiction of the Somali pirates' circumstances. [Read](https://collider.com/captain-phillips-movie-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** Paul Greengrass
- **Director:** Paul Greengrass
- **Screenplay:** Billy Ray
- **Cinematography:** Barry Ackroyd
- **Editor:** Christopher Rouse
- **Music:** Henry Jackman
- **Production design:** Paul Kirby
- **Costume design:** Mark Bridges
- **Producer:** Michael De Luca, Dana Brunetti, Scott Rudin
- **Cast:** Tom Hanks as Captain Richard Phillips; Barkhad Abdi as Muse; Barkhad Abdirahman as Bilal; Faysal  Ahmed as Najee; Mahat M. Ali as Elmi; Michael Chernus as Shane Murphy; David Warshofsky as Mike Perry; Corey Johnson as Ken Quinn
- **Runtime:** 2h 14m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 11 October 2013
- **Genres:** Action, Drama, Thriller
- **Also in:** [Best Picture winners](https://film.one/collections/oscar-best-picture.md) (Nominee, 2013); [BAFTA Best Film winners](https://film.one/collections/bafta-best-film.md) (Nominee, 2013); [Golden Globe Best Drama winners](https://film.one/collections/golden-globe-drama.md) (Nominee, 2013)
- **Budget:** $55 million
- **Box office:** $219 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzU3UJuV80w

## Where to watch in the US

- Tubi: free, hd, leaving 2026-10-01
- Amazon Prime Video: add-on
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, hd
- Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $14.99, hd
- Apple TV: buy $14.99, hd

*Checked 2026-09-15.*

Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 2014: Best Film Editing (nominated); Best Picture (nominated); Best Sound (nominated); Best Sound Editing (nominated); Best Supporting Actor (nominated); Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (nominated)

## If you liked this

- *A Hijacking* (2012): A quieter maritime ordeal, with negotiation made almost as frightening as captivity.
- *The Wages of Fear* (1953), Fi1m 90: Dangerous work becomes intolerable suspense, with every practical decision carrying a cost. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/the-wages-of-fear.md)
- *United 93* (2006), Fi1m 88: Greengrass makes procedure and ordinary behaviour under pressure almost unbearably tense. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/united-93.md)
- *The Taking of Pelham One Two Three* (1974): Professionals confront a hijacking with procedural intelligence and considerably more dry humour.
- *Das Boot* (1981), Fi1m 89: Cramped quarters and exhausted men make command feel like punishing physical work. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/das-boot.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/captain-phillips