Family, Faith, Freedom?

Prisoners:

            In the past decade there have been police thrillers left and right that keep you guessing until the end or are predictable from the start but none of them have taken the plot to the next level: insanity. With two girls missing and the sinking feeling of not having enough time in the day to keep looking in every spot imaginable, Hugh Jackman goes to great odds in search for his and his neighbor's daughters. They have to be somewhere, right? The police department would be the safest place any parent would go to first but they can only do so much, also.

            Keller Dover (Jackman) is a man of prayer and faith and now he is on a mission for his daughter who has been abducted along with their neighborhood friend's (Terrence Howard, Iron Man) daughter on an ordinary Thanksgiving day. The only person who is going through just as much trouble as Keller is Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal). With his neck tattoo and twitchy eyes, Detective Loki tries to do his job but in any case like this one it is easy for the worried parents to get in the way and even cause complications. There are surprises at every turn accompanied with the intensity that can drive a person insane, or maybe just crazy.

            One non-spoiler alert to start off with is that the symbol of a maze is incorporated at some point throughout Prisoners but that is beside the fact that this film is a maze in itself. Turn here. No there. Okay, now left or right? Pretty much what you'll be saying when you go see it. But, let's save that for a little later. Director Denis Villeneuve has not made his mark in American cinema quite yet but this one may put his foot in the door. It is easy to draw some details out when your movie is over 2.5 hours but when you place a cast that consists of four Academy Award nominees and one Academy Award winner (Melissa Leo) in front of a camera, you're probably going to succeed in one way or another.

            Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal work together to try and save these two lives and the level of intensity is reflected in both actors. Jackman channels his inner Wolverine dedication and pulling it off once again. This is Gyllenhaal's best role since Zodiac (2007) and the guy writing this review would be pleased to see him on the list of nominations come awards season in the next few months. The supporting cast delivers with Terrence Howard, Melissa Leo (The Fighter) and Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood) all caught up in this twisting maze of mystery. Sounds like a carnival, huh? While the length of this movie is longer than one would think, the acting alone is worth a look of what is hidden around each turn. Grade: 7.8/10