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Captive State | Average Guy Movie Review


Nine years after an alien invasion, the Earth is under occupation. The invaders have installed a subservient human government in order to keep the population in line, while they strip the planet of its resources. But when a long thought dead resistance group emerges from the ashes with a plan to ignite an uprising, it becomes a race against time for the security services to track them down and prevent the attack.



Director Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes/The Gambler) delivers a different take on the alien invasion movie with Captive State, which couldn't be farther from the likes of Independence Day and Battle Los Angeles. In fact it looks more like a gritty sci-fi/mystery/thriller, with elements of a police procedural story. At the heart of which is a young man named Gabriel (Ashton Sanders), whose family died at the hands of the invaders. He's simply trying to make enough money to escape the city, but when a job draws him in too deep he lands on William Mulligan (John Goodman)'s radar. Mulligan is a Commander with the Chicago Police, responsible for tracking dissident groups and maintaining order. Watching these two play cat and mouse can be quite a tense affair at times, especially when the movie keeps you guessing as to their intentions. Goodman even manages to make Mulligan in some way likeable, whereas you can't help feeling sorry for Gabriel, who has had it pretty rough.



As for our mysterious invaders, well they seem to want to stay out of the limelight for the most part. But when we do see them they are pretty scary looking. Some are seen simply wearing a lot of armour/spacesuits, they're some sort of hunter and look something like the buff cousins of the big gold aliens in The Fifth Element. The others, depending on when you see them either look like a sentient carpet or Cousin It after an all night bender. They also seem to be able to morph into a bipedal porcupine, it's quite terrifying - especially if you need to get close to the thing. The CGI used to create these creatures is pretty good all round, not to mention their ability to dispatch humans with apparent ease. So when they do appear it is definitely worth the wait.




The story is a little slow in places, as Wyatt introduces us to this world which isn't our own anymore, not to mention a pointless cameo by Machine Gun Kelly. But as things build toward the coming attack, the director carefully builds the tension. He keeps you guessing too, as you try to piece it all together, to figure out what exactly the plan is. In many ways Captive State is more puzzle than movie. It gives you just enough to have some idea of what's going on, but not enough to figure it all out, and you soon learn that what you are seeing is actually something else entirely. But the thing that makes the movie so engaging is that there's no light at the end of the tunnel. Unlike other alien invasion movies, where you can be pretty sure that no matter what happens the humans will emerge victorious, with Captive State you don't know how it's going to end, whether it will be worth all of that sacrifice. In that way there is a sense of hopelessness that permeates throughout the story.



In that way the movie takes on a more realistic approach. How well would the human race really do against an invading alien force? There's no laptops delivering viruses to motherships, here. This is a chilling look at a world in which masked law enforcement officers utilise aggressive tactics to keep their own people down. Much like the real-world resistance groups who have fought to overthrow oppressive regimes around the world, these fighters have no idea if they're actions will actually achieve anything. Every move the resistance makes has to be calculated and discreet, and yet smacks of futility. Flying under the radar is always their best defence. This life is never made to look glamorous or exciting, instead we see the danger and desperation of taking on such a role. A sense of peril is present in almost every scene. The resistance fighters are risking everything - which definitely comes across in all of the performances - and you can't help questioning whether it's even worth it. A question you will continue to ask right up to the very end.



With Captive State Rupert Wyatt delivers a slow but tense alien invasion/conspiracy movie. What it lacks in explosions - and there are a few - it more than makes up for with mystery and intrigue. 

8/10


Captive State is available to watch (in the UK) on Sky Movies and Now TV.



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