Prisoners

So I rewatched Prisoners this weekend. The first time I watched it was a less than pleasant experience… mostly because a friend thought is was a comedy when we went to see it. I still have yet to let him live that down. For those of you who aren't familiar, it’s a psychological thriller with a couple torture scenes that are incredibly hard to watch. Because I was caught off guard the first time I watched it, I feel like this second viewing helped me appreciate how brilliant this film is.

The short synopsis, without any spoilers, is that Keller Dover and his neighbor Franklin Birch both have their daughters disappear. The movie follows the families and the investigating detective dealing with the loss and trying to find the missing girls. I really don’t want to say any more than that for fear of spoiling the movie for those of you who want to see it. Hugh Jackman plays Dover if that sweetens the deal at all. 

One thing that I love about this movie is that nothing is an accident. Every conversation has a purpose. You have to pay attention to every character you meet because they somehow will tie in with the story later on. One example is that Dover and his son talk about being able to afford a car. The son says Dover should sell his father’s building to get the money. It’s a one off conversation, but we learn about a location that becomes a prime location in the second half of the movie. Nothing is an accident and it’s a beautiful thing. 

For those of you that can handle the torture scenes (which are shot in a way to make the audience as uncomfortable as possible) and the psychological thriller aspect, I highly recommend watching with a couple other people. Maybe add it to your Halloween movie roster? If you actually follow campus policy, you’ll have to go off campus to watch it. But how many people actually listen to that rule?