By, Heather Fulton

No big spoiler alerts for this review, it was all over the news when the incident happened. The real surprise is that the crews of the Maersk Alabama are now saying that Captain Phillips book is not exactly truthful, according to a recent article in the “New York Post” by, Maureen Callahan. The movie “Captain Phillips” is the supposedly true story, of the first American cargo ship hijacking in 200 years, which happened in 2009.

“After the hijacking, 11 crew members have sued Maersk Line and the Waterman Steamship Corp. for almost $50 million, alleging ‘willful, wanton and conscious disregard for their safety.’ Phillips is a witness for the defense”, reports Callahan “New York Post”.

A crew member, who remains anonymous due to the lawsuit, claims that Phillips was not the hero that is presented in the film. He states that Phillips arrogantly disregarded the repeated email alerts regarding pirating events occurring in the area. The emails warned cargo ships to stay at least 600 miles away from the coast of Somalia, while Phillips navigated the cargo vessel 235 miles off the coast.

This much is true, the US-flagged MV Maersk Alabama was captained by Richard Phillips, who is taken hostage by Somali pirates, ending in a dramatic rescue by U.S. Navy Seals. The screen play is based upon the book “A Captain’s Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea”, by Richard Phillips.

There are very few familiar faces in the movie, but that doesn’t matter since the brightest shining star Mr. Tom Hanks (Captain Phillips) is the main character. Hanks gritty performance sucks the viewer into the dark place of angst one would feel if taken hostage on the high seas by a brutish bunch of pirate thugs.

If the Somali’s never spoke a word or fired off a round, they would still terrify viewers. They look like something out of a zombie apocalypse flick, or someone in “District 9”. Sub title alert, there is a lot of dialog in Somali.

These pirates are a malnourished disorganized bumbling bunch of fools, constantly at odds with each other for lead dog status. The only reason they made it onto the ship was due to a breach in security procurements. One of the high powered fire hoses firing off the ship’s side at the pirates fails when it comes loose; the pirates are then able to attach a ladder and board.

Most of the crew hides in the engine room in the bowels of the vessel, while the Somali’s shoot their way into the wheel house where Captain Phillips and a few other crew members are. The Somali’s over take Phillips and navigation crew and hunt for the rest of the crew. There is some interesting plot twists during this game of hide and seek.

Ultimately, Phillips is taken hostage and the pirates end up jettisoning off of the side of the boat in a life boat, heading off for the coast of Somalia. This is definitely true. The U.S. Navy shows up to save the day; culminating with all the blood and guts one expects at the end of a pirate movie.

There are parts of the movie where one is on the edge of their seats filled with anticipation and dread. During the other parts, one is leaning back in their seats hoping that the pace quickens.

Phillips is portrayed as a humanistic, but genius like hero figure, which is a bit over the top knowing about the controversy. His last moments in the film post rescue are astonishing and tear jerking. Phillips has gone back to being a Captain, on the not so jolly-rogers like seas.