Captain Phillips (12A)

The growing problem of piracy off the coast of Africa has been in and out of the news in the past few years.

Here in Britain, we had the tale of Paul and Rachel Chandler - a couple who were kidnapped while spending their retirement sailing round the world.

In America, you had Captain Phillips. For those who missed this one, Somali pirates boarded his container ship but left with just him. In a lifeboat. Not a great success, this particular raid.

While both stories were big news in their home countries, I'm pretty sure neither washed up on the opposite nation's radar - so the story of Phillips and his time with a small band of Somali pirates in a lifeboat had passed me by.

Fortunately, as is the modern way of dealing with a traumatic event, Captain Rich Phillips wrote a book  (A Captain's Duty) which was then optioned as a film, and here we are. With Tom Hanks.

And Paul Greengrass.

And it needs Greengrass, as a counterpoint to Hanks. With Hanks at the helm, you know you're going to get Acting and Emotion. With Greengrass, you're getting in-your-face action. An interesting mix.

And, for the most part, it really, really works.

Starting off with Phillips (played by Hanks) setting off to work, arriving on the Maersk Alabama and then setting sail, the opening scenes are intercut with our Somalian pirate gangs getting ready for their day at the office.

And this is important, because we get to see that, essentially, these are people who are doing something out of desperation and fear. They're not freelancing freeloaders stealing for fun, they have warlord bosses who have revolutions to fund.

The pacing of the opening scenes is perfect, slowly allowing the two stories to unfold as they converge at the point the pirates board the ship.

Which is where Greengrass hits the throttle.

Making fast-paced action scenes is no mean feat - container ships are not quick, nippy things after all - but Greengrass ratchets up the tension, making shots of rudders and engines pounding and integral part of the action and drama.

And it works so well.

You'll be holding your breath before you know it, you won't be able to take your eyes off the screen, as shouting and gun pointing becomes the order of the day.

It's here that Greengrass' signature hand-held style comes into it's own, allowing the fear and tension to be shoved right down your throat - even when all people are doing is hiding in a cold store. The drama is pretty unrelenting from here on in.

Perhaps the most amazing thing about all this is the fact that Barkhad Abdi is making his debut here. As the leader of the pirates, he's going toe-to-toe with a Hollywood veteran - and he's holding his own.

The other pirates are all equally good, and equally making their debuts, but as the central figure Abdi almost steals the film from Hanks.

He comes into his own once they're adrift in the lifeboat, perfectly capturing a man trapped by situation and circumstance.

And it's here that Greengrass' introduction of the back story comes in. Without it, it's just some nasty criminals with that nice Mr Hanks in a small boat. With it, the pirates are human, desperate, trapped and afraid.

You'll almost be rooting for them as much as you are for the Navy Seals arriving cavalry-like off the starboard bow.

And if you thought the scenes on the container ship were tense, they're nothing compared to the lifeboat.

Four pirates and Tom Hanks, shouting, screaming, scared, afraid, violent, angry - and you're in the middle of it all. It's claustrophobic, tense, and utterly thrilling.

Now, if you don't know how this all plays out (as I didn't), don't look it up. Don't Google it. Just go see the film. Because when the whole situation is resolved, you'll be holding your breath again.

If only the film had ended at the same time.

It's a long film, that could lose 20 minutes without detracting from the experience, and it could start with the final ten.

It's not a spoiler to say Captain Phillips survives (he wrote the book leading to this film after all), but did we really need to have Tom Acting in those closing scenes?

He's been wonderfully measured and understated throughout the film. He's been believable and watchable in a way I've not seen in him for quite a few years. But then he has to go and ruin the whole thing by having some scenes at the end where he Acts and Emotes.

It actually feels like they were bolted on at the end to show how Tom can 'do' Emotion. And it almost ruined the film.

For two hours I'd been engaged, gripped and thoroughly enjoying (OK, sounds wrong, but you know what I mean) this tale of piracy on the high seas.

And just when the film's natural ending arrives, Tom has to go overboard and provide ten minutes of pure Hanks - making me wish they'd left him on the lifeboat.

It didn't quite ruin the film, but I would have rather left the screening feeling I'd watched a great film than leave - as I did - feeling annoyed at someone's blatant attempts to yank at my heart strings.