The new Tom Hanks film Captain Phillips recalls the true story of how Somali pirates kidnapped the crew of a shipping vessel hoping to squeeze a ransom out of its U.S.-based company.
The pirates aren’t an imposing lot. They’re young and inexperienced, but they still manage to overtake the captain (Hanks) and his boat.
How? They had guns, and the captain and his crew didn’t.
That narrative, reflected in the film, has Hanks saying the movie packs a message that might come as a surprise to Hollywood observers.
Paul Greengrass has said he wanted people to understand the position of the pirates, their humanity. Are you concerned some people may find this sympathy misplaced?
I gave up trying to figure out what’s going to happen with anybody’s reaction. It’s always across the board. On the one hand, there’s almost a pro-gun argument in the film, you know?
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