"Hostage" goes beyond the standard template for a home invasion drama by including two sets of hostages, two groups of hostage takers and a burnt-out former hostage negotiator who's forced to confront his deepest fears in order to save the lives of the people he cares about most. The result is a downbeat action thriller that's tense, fast-moving and more dramatic than most movies of its kind. It's also, however, rather formulaic and as such doesn't deliver any genuinely surprising developments. Despite this, it's so well-directed that it never seems to drag and actually gives the impression of ending much sooner than its running time would suggest.
Former Los Angeles SWAT officer Jeff Talley (Bruce Willis) was an expert hostage negotiator who, through an error of judgement, mishandled a stand-off with a disturbed gunman and failed to prevent him from killing his wife and child before committing suicide. The anguish he suffered as a consequence of this experience, made Talley unable to continue in his job and a year later, he's been transferred to the role of Chief of Police in Bristo Camino which is a peaceful, small town in Ventura County.
Trouble starts when a group of three local teenage delinquents who resent the affluence of a local family and covet their Cadillac Escalade, follow Walter Smith (Kevin Pollack) and his two children back to their hilltop mansion and break in with the intention of stealing the SUV. Realizing what's happened, Smith's young son Tommy (Jimmy Bennett) sets off a security alarm that produces a prompt response from a lone police officer. When she demands to speak to the homeowner, the teenagers panic and one of them shoots her. The entire local police force then rapidly surrounds the place and Talley initially takes charge of the operation before handing over responsibility to the County Sheriff's Department.
Walter Smith is a mob accountant who routinely launders money for his employers and keeps the encrypted data relating to those transactions on a DVD that he keeps in his home. Having become aware of what's taking place in the Smith residence, the mob become concerned about the potential for the DVD to fall into the wrong hands and so kidnap Talley's wife and daughter and threaten to kill them unless Talley recovers the DVD.
Talley successfully regains control of the hostage crisis and has to harness all his mental and emotional resources in order to face down his own fears, save the two sets of hostages and in the process, redeem himself for the event in his past that has haunted him ever since.
Bruce Willis does well in this movie because his role not only plays to his proven strengths as an action hero but also enables him to portray the emotional struggle that his traumatized character has to deal with on a daily basis. The fact that Talley has to do this without much support or understanding from his wife and daughter makes his road to recovery even more challenging and Willis' performance shows all the quiet stoicism and courage that Talley uses to eventually redeem himself and come to terms with his past. The supporting performances are also generally good with the contributions of Kevin Pollack and Ben Foster standing out above the rest.
Former Los Angeles SWAT officer Jeff Talley (Bruce Willis) was an expert hostage negotiator who, through an error of judgement, mishandled a stand-off with a disturbed gunman and failed to prevent him from killing his wife and child before committing suicide. The anguish he suffered as a consequence of this experience, made Talley unable to continue in his job and a year later, he's been transferred to the role of Chief of Police in Bristo Camino which is a peaceful, small town in Ventura County.
Trouble starts when a group of three local teenage delinquents who resent the affluence of a local family and covet their Cadillac Escalade, follow Walter Smith (Kevin Pollack) and his two children back to their hilltop mansion and break in with the intention of stealing the SUV. Realizing what's happened, Smith's young son Tommy (Jimmy Bennett) sets off a security alarm that produces a prompt response from a lone police officer. When she demands to speak to the homeowner, the teenagers panic and one of them shoots her. The entire local police force then rapidly surrounds the place and Talley initially takes charge of the operation before handing over responsibility to the County Sheriff's Department.
Walter Smith is a mob accountant who routinely launders money for his employers and keeps the encrypted data relating to those transactions on a DVD that he keeps in his home. Having become aware of what's taking place in the Smith residence, the mob become concerned about the potential for the DVD to fall into the wrong hands and so kidnap Talley's wife and daughter and threaten to kill them unless Talley recovers the DVD.
Talley successfully regains control of the hostage crisis and has to harness all his mental and emotional resources in order to face down his own fears, save the two sets of hostages and in the process, redeem himself for the event in his past that has haunted him ever since.
Bruce Willis does well in this movie because his role not only plays to his proven strengths as an action hero but also enables him to portray the emotional struggle that his traumatized character has to deal with on a daily basis. The fact that Talley has to do this without much support or understanding from his wife and daughter makes his road to recovery even more challenging and Willis' performance shows all the quiet stoicism and courage that Talley uses to eventually redeem himself and come to terms with his past. The supporting performances are also generally good with the contributions of Kevin Pollack and Ben Foster standing out above the rest.