A Hijacking

A good story is a construct, while a really good story is one where you do not realize the construct. The paraphrase of Tobias Lindholm's directorial screening credo is perfectly captured by A Hijacking. It depends on what you perceive as dramatic - if it is the scenes with circling boats, shooting and skirmishes, then this procedurally tuned film will logically disappoint you. If you can appreciate the meticulously constructed (and the naturally-feeling) plot, perfectly observed situations and once again perfectly cast civilian characters (Roland Møller is now amongst my top Nordic beasts), then this film is what you are looking for. It is clear that the film was shot directly in the relevant environment, that the director collaborated with people who were dealing with a similar problem at the time, and above all that Lindholm is an unusually clever filmmaker. He does not infer anything or condemn anyone, or study and pretend to be someone. I can’t remember the last time I was so tense waiting to see what comes out of the fax machine. Probably never. Together with the Borgen series, this is the ultimate demonstration of the Danes' ability to "face" geopolitical reality. (07/11/2013)

A Hijacking is authentic, sober and well played. But it lacks more dramatic moments, and some scenes slow it down unnecessarily, while others that are needed to complete the story context are missing. We could learn more about the cook’s family and, most importantly, the CEO was supposed to discuss the ransom amount with shareholders when they were so proactive that they wanted to replace him due to lengthy negotiations. Let’s see what Paul Greengrass can think up with Tom Hanks on board. (07/06/2013)

The talented Tobias Lindholm made a very believable film about contemporary piracy. The plot quickly gets stuck in negotiation maneuvers between the management of a wealthy Danish company and Somali pirates, who demand a hefty ransom for the release of the crew of a hijacked cargo ship. I thought it would be boring, but the opposite was true. The deadlock situations that piled up one after another during months of negotiation turned the initially straightforward narrative into a truly gripping spectacle, during which the mental states of everyone involved took quite a beating. I would also like to mention the great performances of Pilou Asbæk and Søren Malling. (04/10/2020)

A good film about what it's like and what happens when you're attacked by Somali pirates. Certainly, the fact that it has an almost documentary-like quality can be appreciated. On the other hand, this aspect wasn't enough to compel me to enjoy watching the film or to consider it truly powerful. Yes, it is good. (04/21/2017)

Comparing A Hijacking to the new Tom Hanks project Captain Phillips provides a clear illustration of the difference in the approaches taken by American and Danish productions, not only at the level of films, but also in the making of television series. The American entertainment industry primarily focuses on stories that have the potential to be made into flashy spectacles that will constantly provide stimuli for viewers. Conversely, the Danes focus on continuously building drama, as they use the viewers’ awareness of the context of the sequences and intensify the effect through the duration of those sequences. The real drama of the crew of a cargo ship hijacked by pirates, a situation that lasted for four months, is exactly the ideal material for the storytelling and dramaturgy as described above. Some might say that nothing happens in most of the film, but the duration of the impasse is an essential element of the narrative for which the film meticulously lays the groundwork so that it can absolutely devastate viewers in the climax. (06/29/2013)