-BASED ON A TRUE STORY-
PAUL GREENGRASS
Are all of the characters real?
Yes, the director Paul Greengrass kept to the same characters that there actually were when the hijcacking occured. The movie did not add more hijackers or crew members to the plot of the story.
Did the pirtaes really injure Captain Phillips on the lifeboat?
When Captain Phillips returned to the the only visible injury were the abrasions on his wrists from being tied up in the life boat for 5 days. But, during his time on the lifeboat, Phillips says the pirates beat him and tormented him, firing shots near his head to scare him and pointing an AK-47 assault rifle at his back. This torment from the pirates caused severe psychological stress for Captain Phillips after coming home.
Did Captain Phillips really say, "If you want to shoot somebody, shoot me!"?
No, the real Captain Richard Phillips never offered to give up his own life for his crew. He never compared his life to those on the crew and put his crew's life before his own.
Do the crew members of the Maersk Alabama believe that Captain Phillips is a hero?
No, the majority of crew memebers do not believe that Captain Richard Phillips is a hero. In fact, 11 of the crew members have sued Maersk Line and the Waterman Steamship Corp. for nearly $50 million, citing "willful, wanton and conscious disregard for their safety." They believe that it is the Captain's recklessness that steered the Maersk Alabama into pirate infested waters. "All ships had been warned," says Chief Engineer Mike Perry, referring to a series of seven emails that had been sent to the Alabama by a private maritime security agency saying a warning of Somalian pirates.
Did the crew really take one of the pirates hostage?
Yes, whenever Somali pirate Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse was searching below deck, Chief Engineer Mike Perry fought with him in the dark of the engine room. Perry was armed with a pocket knife and slashed Muse, badly cutting the pirate's hand before taking him hostage.
Historical Analysis
I believe that the movie Captain Phillips is very accuarte with Hollywood's version of what really happened. The only big draw back to the movie being just like what Captain Richard Phillips experienced is his depection of him being a hero. Captain Phillips never offered up his life before his crew members in real life and throughout the movie that was a big part. The idea of having a hero was added to the Hollywood version to make the audience feel more connected to the main character Captain Phillips which is portrayed by Tom Hanks.
I would rate this movie 4 out of 5 stars. I really enjoyed the plot and that it was pretty close to how the hijacking actually occured. Although, some parts of the movie were very long and drawn out which lost my attention making me miss important aspects of the movie.