Captive (2015)
Certified: 12A
Duration: 97 minutes
Directed by: Jerry Jameson
Starring: David Oyelowo, Kate Mara, Michael K. Williams, Leonor Varela, Jessica Oyelowo, Mimi Rogers, Matt Lowe, E. Roger Mitchell, Bill Bennett, Scott Parks, J. Karen Thomas
KRS Releasing Ltd

Captive is inspired by the true story of Brian Gene Nichols who is known for his escape and killing spree in a courthouse in Georgia, Atlanta, in March 2005.

Kate Mara plays Ashley who lives in Atlanta and works as a waitress. She has already been through a lot in life, including her meth addiction which led her to lose custody of her daughter Paige (Elle Graham), who now lives with her mother Kim Rogers (Mimi Rogers).

Now Ashley is trying to start afresh and has just moved into a new apartment. Her next step is to see her daughter at a performance the following morning.

Also in the picture is Brian Nichols (David Oyelowo), a man accused of rape and who has just escaped from the Fulton County Jail where he killed the judge who was presiding over his trial. He also shot others and along the way carjacked a number of vehicles.

Their roads soon collide as Brian kidnaps Ashley. Lt John Chestnut (Michael K. Williams) and Sgt Carmen Sandoval (Leonor Varela) are leading the police forces looking for Brian to bring him back into custody. Meanwhile, Ashley, making use of the book The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, opens up to him and also gets to know him a bit more.

The film depends on the duo’s performance and it is very evident that the film hinges on the two actors complementing each other

Jerry Jameson delivers routine direction when the film is in police thriller mode but takes it to another level when it is focuses on the relationship that starts to build between captive and kidnapper.

Oyelowo plays Brian in a very unsettling manner. It’s this sense of unrequited attitude that makes his performance central to this picture. Moreover, he is balanced out by Mara, who pegs down her role with a very natural performance. She excellently portrays a woman who is on the verge of getting her life back on track but is faced with the probability of losing it all again. Seeing her trying to cope with this kidnapping while not giving up on herself and taking drugs again is very convincing.

The two develop a relationship in the short time they spend together. With the characters holed up together, the film depends on their performance and it is very evident that the film hinges on the two actors complementing each other. They play off each other really well and this is felt throughout.

Reading the accounts of what really happened in the Brian Nichols case is eye opening to say the least. The film had a hard wall to climb to try and achieve a realistic portrayal of the two and deliver their relationship and how both of them in one night made decisions that affected each other and themselves in such a decisive manner.

Thanks to the two protagonists, this hurdle is surmounted as they give the film its heart and core.

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