Movie Review - A Highjacking

A Highjacking *** ( R) This mostly subtitled Danish drama presents a riveting view of the ordeal for a ship’s crew hijacked by Somali pirates. We alternate between their lot on the vessel and the shipping company’s offices during months of isolation and negotiations. We feel the physical and emotional toll on the hostages and on those responsible for their safe return.

Though we learn little about the pirates, we share the suspense and anxieties of their captives and all those who care about them. The empathic anchor is the ships’ cook who just wants to see his family again. He becomes an intermediary for the conversations between the captors and the CEO who is trying to make a deal that guarantees their survival. First-rate acting and writing make this a grueling, realistic shared experience for cast and audience. (7/12/13)