As I sat down for Prisoners, my expectations were for it to play out as an exceptional and simple child abduction thriller. What I got however, is an incredible blend of suspense and a complex mystery that unfolded unpredictably. A good mystery is one that keeps you guessing until the last frame of the film, and that's exactly what Prisoners does. There's not one moment where your mind isn't rushing to solve the mystery, and just when you think you're close and know the conclusion, another curve ball is thrown and you're left guessing once more.
A film that pops into my head that's similar to this in a few aspects is The Lovely Bones. Don't get me wrong, these movies have large differences, but both do a great job in showing how the families react to their children being taken. You can see the hardships they face and how some family members flat out go insane with rage because they aren't getting answers. Another movie I feel this is similar to is the lesser-known Winter's Bone, which stars Jennifer Lawrence if that helps jog your memory, but again it isn't too popular (though it should be.) Anyways, I want to compare it to that because of the small town setting it gives off and how gritty both films are. They both do not shy away from the hard to watch subjects, and that makes it all the more powerful.
Hugh Jackman deserves an Oscar nomination hands down for this role. He starts out as a simple caring father that slowly makes choices that question our own moral decisions. There is torture in this movie, and it's very brutal and hard to watch. But you're left thinking, "Is it acceptable or just flat out wrong?" This movie makes you think a lot, and it doesn't treat the audience like it's incapable of understanding things. In fact, it leaves a lot for the audience to discuss once the credits start rolling, which is an exceptional film quality.
One last thing I'd like to mention is the camerawork that is done in the movie. You don't realize it right away, but it really puts you directly in the middle of all the action and it makes you feel as though you're right there in that small town with them, and you can literally feel the tension and dread surround you simply with the way the camera angles are set up. It's a fascinating quality of the movie that pushes it into being a likely choice to be in the Oscar-nominee pool.
Though it's a bit lengthy, there probably won't be a minute where you'll want to get up and use that bathroom. You won't grab any refills because you'll be glued to the screen. And even though there's no jump scares or over the top horror scenes, this is one of the scariest movies of 2013. A
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