Signature Entertainment
Every year, Edinburgh Film Fest offers up a star-studded genre piece; it’s the kind of film that should do well on a theatrical release but usually gets dumped into the festival circuit. Last year, was Jon Hamm led The Negotiator and this year’s it’s Ethan Hawke-starrer The Captor.
Lars (Hawke, donning a gleefully extravagant outfit) is an amateur bank robber; when he takes over the biggest bank in Stockholm, creating a hostage situation, in a bid to get his former-cellmate set free (Mark Strong), things go awry when he finds himself developing feelings for one of his hostages – charming bank teller Bianca (Noomi Rapace) – which starts to come in the way of his plans to be a tough, no-holds-barred criminal wanting to make demands.
Related: New trailer for Ethan Hawke starrer The Captor
The Captor is the kind of film that looks crisp on paper – an absurd true story with a great ensemble that should make for a riotous heist film. The thing is, Robert Burdeau’s screenplay is caught between tones and without much of an identity so the result is a hollow, wasted opportunity. It’s not without its charm, however; it’s such an outlandish true story that the sheer appeal of the narrative remains constantly entertaining and there’s the occasional good joke that lands. Plus, anytime you have a leading trio like this, good performances are a given. The problem lies in not committing to the humour enough; the film tries to straddle the middle ground of being serious and thrilling whilst also ludicrous and witty but it doesn’t really hit home on either; Burdeau seemingly doesn’t know what he wants this film to be so it comes as very unsure of itself – it lacks any sort of confidence and swagger. The story isn’t serious enough to have any weight nor is the screenplay wry enough to be consistently funny. Instead, it’s just a little dull.
The characters themselves are the same, written as either too grandiose they border parody but also playing it so straight it threatens to become a caricature. Their motivations and ideologies are always changing throughout so there’s no consistency with anything that’s going on. It’s also not extensive enough a story to justify its runtime; even at 90 minutes, it feels long. All the set-up happens within the first 15-20 minutes (which are easily the film’s best) so we’re left with little to develop in the hour or so that follows – which just becomes repetitive and tedious as various characters have same-y conversations just altercating in different locations within the bank. It’s an unfocused narrative that clearly boasts a lot of potential and the cast should be given credit for just how much they commit to the roles – undoubtedly the saving grace of the whole thing. But it’s such a muddled, final result that misses the mark so much so it ends up a haze. By the end, you’ll be feeling like this film’s captive and waiting for the sweet release of the credits.
The Captor review by Awais Irfan, June 2019.
The Captor is released in select cinemas from 21st June 2019.
