Hostage

Starring: Bruce Willis, Kevin Pollack, Ben Foster, Jonathan Tucker
Directed by: Florent Emilio Siri
Rating: R
Genre: Action, Crime
2005

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: A Los Angeles hostage negotiator (Bruce Willis) moves to a small town to escape the pressures of the big city. There, three young hoodlums kidnap a father (Kevin Pollack) and his two children, holding them hostage in their house. To make matters worse, a mysterious group kidnaps the hostage negotiator's family, and forces him to retrieve a DVD from inside the house. Now, not only is one group of hostages in danger, but two.

Review:

Tim: Hostage movies are always an exciting breed. This one could have easily fallen into rehashing the same old ideas, but an exciting twist saves this movie from mediocrity- having two separate groups of hostages being held, with only Bruce Willis in the middle, trying desperately to save everyone, trying desperately to not have to choose between his family and a stranger's.

The action is pretty intense. The film does a great job of having us identify with Pollack's family. His young son is particularly resourceful and likeable. Even his bratty older sister is innocent enough for us to desperately hope she lives.

The real success of the film comes from the three young hostage takers. The brothers are interesting characters, and I really like the idea of the hostage takers not being cool, calculated criminals, but stupid kids who get themselves into a situation beyond their control. The third man, played brilliantly by Ben Foster, is the highlight of the film in a strange, darker sense. He is maniacally insane and teeters on being a full fledged psychopath. His performance is mesmerizing and very, very scary. It is what keeps us afraid for the hostages and unable to pay attention to the film's weaker aspects.

Hostage has its flaws, and is ultimately just a smaller scale action film, but refuses to be forgettable. You can find better action films and even better hostage movies, but this is still an exciting movie. I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Die Hard, Die Hard 2: Die Harder, Die Hard with a Vengeance, The Usual Suspects