Hostage (2005) User Reviews

a solid suspense movie with some extra darkness

[brokenimage227 · 8/10 · 12 March 2005]

this is definitely a film that you have to come into with a knowledge that it does pander to a mainstream audience, but not as much as you may think. it does take chances with sensitive subjects that most movies of its ilk usually avoid, resulting in an action flick that's a little more twisted, morbid, but also involving. it's not Seven, but there are similar disturbing touches.

i don't like writing full blown synopses because of my personal dislike of having too much information before i see the film. i like an honest opinion of whether someone loved or hated a movie, but when plot points start being handed off without warning, it irritates me. so here's the stuff:

the direction is more than competent (though nothing special). the writing, while allowing some rather cheap conveniences along the way, still delivers enough material for an exciting ride. the acting is above average, while it's not exactly the bruce willis comeback i was hoping for, this film doesn't insult his abilities either. he is able to showcase most of his dependable acting range in this, most of the time convincingly, though there is the occasional weak point. there are intentional cookie cutter characters who's sole function is to get the story past a certain point with no development, but that didn't bother me. the main characters accomplished their roles in carrying the story. especially ben foster.

after seeing this guy in last year's punisher, i was expecting a little more of the same in the dryly comedic, sidekick potential that shea lebouf turned out as. didn't exactly get that here. in Hostage, he's one of the most convincing psychotics i've seen in film in a long time. he is the devil in this movie, and it's a harrowing thing to watch. he earned his keep and then some.

the bottom line is that i enjoyed this movie. while it doesn't live up to it's full potential, it serves well as an engaging ride at the movies. that is, if you have a tolerance for a few sick twists along the way

An unexpected delight.

[chez_dre · 8/10 · 9 March 2005]

I went to see this movie last night for the only reason, it was a free premiere ticket, and I had not much else to do. I was therefore pleasantly surprised by the movie. Artistically and dialogue wise this movie is lacking, except for the first scene, but this is to be expected from a Bruce Willis film. As a an action/thriller the movie hits the mark. It is noir, gritty, violent, and similar to the director's, Florent Siri, style used for his 2002 film, "The Nest". Several very cool shots by the cinematographer, tie this movie together. This is a great movie to go watch on a Saturday night with friends. You will be thoroughly entertained by Willis, who is best suited for this type of role.

A Nutshell Review: Hostage

[DICK STEEL · 8/10 · 12 March 2005]

It's been some time since I last saw a movie with creative opening credits. This one is unique, with comic book like panels and graphics, which looks suspiciously like Sin City, capturing different aspects of first responders in a hostage crisis, before dissolving into real life and putting everything into perspective.

And we see Bruce Willis with hair! Lots of it! Well, at least for the opening tense and engaging scene. He seems to have monopolized the role of the world weary cop, this time, a renowned hostage crisis negotiator, until the mission goes awry and he literally has blood on his hands.

We fast forward to today, and we see the Willis we're all too familiar with - bald, and into a career as a small town police chief. Before you can say "bring on the action!", 3 teenage delinquents hold a man and his 2 children hostage in their swanky ultra modern home.

To add to the mix, there's something shady going on behind the man held hostage, and given Willis' reputation as an ex-hotshot negotiator, he's now blackmailed by unidentified masked men holding his own family hostage, who want a DVD from the house with probably important information (don't ask). So Willis has to use his smarts, play both sides, putting his skills into practice and wiggle out of both situations - get the hostages safe, deliver what the masked men wants, and in turn, guarantee safe passage for his own family. Naturally when you play both sides, those on the side of the law always question your motives, as you deviate from the book.

What intrigues me is the negotiation process - between Willis and the hostage taking delinquents, and between Willis and the professional masked men - which takes centerstage in any hostage drama. I've been reading up a bit on crisis negotiation, and some aspects of the movie does seem to apply the principles of what I have read, which is cool.

It's a thrill from start to end, and this film delivers, with 2 finales tying up the 2 major plots. While at times predictable, the superb delivery by the cast does not bore you, though some might think that having "unidentified" masked men seems a little too convenient, as their motives go unexplained.

This is based on a novel, so I might just check out the book. And if Willis' character is called John McClane, this could well be a worthy addition to the Die Hard franchise.

THIS is how a thriller should! Edge of your seat stuff!

[SpanishRicky · 11 March 2005]

I just loved this movie. Tense. Engrossing. Gripping from start to finish. All words to describe a conversation with Johnny Betts. But they also adequately describe Bruce Willis' latest movie Hostage. The movie could also be referred to as Redemption because that's definitely what you'll see this as if you have been disappointed with Bruce's recent efforts.

Hostage sacrifices heavy action and humor for a darker, more character-driven tale, and it works. THIS is how a thriller should be!

Are you in the mood for a dark, intense, edge-of-your seat thriller? Then Hostage will most certainly entertain. If you're the type of moviegoer who only knows how to complain about clichés and coincidences then I'm sure you'll do the same here. I recommend loosening up and enjoying life a little.

Heaven can wait

[jotix100 · 7/10 · 10 June 2006]

Jeff Talley, who we first meet at a hostage situation in a poor section of L.A., is in charge of negotiating with the man that is holding a woman and a young boy. Talley can't prevent the set of events that happens when the trigger man goes berserk and doesn't want to hear what Talley has to tell him.

Fast forward to a year after that incident and we see Talley again. By now he has shaved his hair and beard and by the magic of the movies he is transformed in Bruce Willis, a favorite action hero of many films of this genre. As Talley, he is now working in a small suburban town where soon will be the center of the TV news on all the news channels.

Dennis and Kevin, who are brothers, and their friend Mars, like the car that Walter Smith is driving. They follow the car to a remote house that has the looks of a fortress. Walter and his children, the teen ager Jennifer, and the small boy Tommy, are getting ready to order something to eat at home. Little do they know the trio of bandits have decided to invade their home and take the car and whatever they can.

When everything goes bad, Jeff Talley, as the chief of police of that locale, comes to the house and realizes what's going on. To make matters worse, Walter Smith is a criminal accountant that is fronting some bad criminals. Smith possesses the key to their ill gotten fortune and in order to ensure he will deliver, the higher ups decide to kidnap Talley's wife and daughter to make him do whatever they dictate in order to assure their money is safe.

Back at the house, the trio of young criminals, make the blunder of almost killing Walter Smith, as everything unravels because the situation goes beyond their control. Mars, who is the cruelest one of the three, takes matters into his own to create havoc, but Talley is able to deal with them and his family captors, as we expected him to do.

Bruce Willis' role as Talley has been humanized. He is not the hero that shows no feeling in his pursuit of justice. When his family becomes part of the equation, he realizes he is cornered and must act accordingly. Mr. Willis' contribution to the film, although a bit over the top (but then again, it wouldn't be a good action film otherwise), is effective in bringing all the elements together. Ben Foster plays the mercurial Mars, the vilest of the three youths that break into the Smith household. His performance goes from being a cool killer to a desperate man who will do anything to destroy before letting him be taken away.

As an action film, and as directed by Florent Siri, "Hostage" is a good entertainment that will not disappoint. The novel by Robert Crais was adapted by Doug Richardson and produces a film that is entertaining and while it doesn't break new ground, it's recommended for fans of this type of movies.

Exciting movie with magnificent creation of action, thriller , emotion and suspense

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 15 November 2006]

The film focuses a previous LA hostage negotiator (Bruce Willis) who subsequently a failed negotiation goes away to a little town along with his wife (Serena Scott Thomas) and daughter , Amanda, (Bruce Willis's daughter in the movie, was played by his daughter Rumer Willis , she wanted the part, but Willis made her audition like everyone else and she got the part) . Then , three punks (Jonathan Tucker, Ben Foster, Marshall Alltman) pull off a burgle from a rich man's house (an accountant Kevin Pollack) taking him as hostage along with his children (Michelle Horn and Jimmy Bennett). But the events go wrong and the negotiator's family is also kidnapped to force him to obtain an information at home with a high-tech security system .

The movie is plenty of thriller, violence , shootouts with stimulating and spectacular action set pieces ; including profanity , as the word "fuck" is used 89 times . Bruce Willis , as usual action hero , confronts perils and risks and he must battle till vanquish in this overly violent action film , his main enemy results to be a psychopathic young killer (an excessively nasty Ben Foster) . The picture gets similarity with ¨The nest¨ , previous film by the same director , cameraman (Giovanni Fiore) , musician (Alexandre Desplat) and technicians ; in fact , there is also a place surrounded by various perpetrators and a violent showdown in a locked location . As Bruce Willis as film producer hired to filmmaker Florent Siri for the successful former film . The flick will appeal to Bruce Willis fans and action movies enthusiast . Predictable but delivers the action required of the genre and is recommended for those who are just looking for exciting films . Rating : Better than average and well worth watching.

Willis Excels In Well-Directed Action Thriller

[seymourblack-1 · 7/10 · 23 October 2018]

"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.

Waste of a very high potential.

[ubasarsahin · 6/10 · 13 January 2021]

I'm a huge fan of Bruce Willis and Jonathan Tucker and their actings were 10/10. They were incredible in this movie. Other actors/actresses did a good job as well. But when it comes to directing, I can't say the same things. The story could have been told in a different way cause movie deserves better than that, story deserves better. There were nothing special about directing, it just made the movie look like very flat and ordinary. Wish I'd read the book so I could criticize deeper. Not a bad movie, it has the highest potential but movie couldn't carry that potential, unfortunately. Will I watch it again? Sure! Why not! It's still a good movie to watch.

Challenging the clichés

[alinabonci · 9/10 · 3 March 2005]

I just saw Hostage today at an advanced screening and I liked it! It seems to have all the elements of the Bruce Willis action movie, so one might think it cannot surprise anymore. Then again, you rarely see a bad Bruce Willis movie. It has the opening failure of the perfect cop, and the almost "post traumatic stress" side to the character who then moves into a smaller town, but carries his burden along with him.

But this time, Bruce Willis doesn't seem all that perfect, he is scared, his voice is shaking in several situations and even cries. He still saves the day, but he's a lot more... human. And the guy is pretty good at this, too.

Then there are the really powerful scenes that shake your soul! Young actor Ben Foster is involved in many of them and does a terrific (literally and figuratively speaking) job! There are also some unexpected resolutions and some even less expected symbolic shots.

Bottom line is, Hostage is a good pick not only for the action/thriller fan, but also for any movie goer.

Excellent beginning, but it really falls apart after the half-hour mark

[MovieAddict2016 · 6/10 · 15 July 2006]

The first half-hour of "Hostage" is excellent - it's innovative, stylish, gritty and fun.

But then it just gets kind of stupid.

The plot is typical: cop fails on the job, blames himself for a child's death; changes his profession to avoid unsettling memories, but then gets unwillingly drawn back into a similar scenario - this time feeling the need to redeem himself for his past errors.

Bruce has done this a few times in the past. In "The Sixth Sense" he was a shrink who let a kid down and took it upon himself not to make the same mistake again. In fact I believe "Mercury Rising" had the exact same opening as "Hostage."

In this flick Bruce is a hostage negotiator, and he gets involved in a memory-stirring hostage situation when three troubled kids take a rich accountant (Kevin Pollack) and his family hostage in his home. Things go haywire, cops wind up dead and the accountant's employees - a weird underground mob whose offshore accounts are managed by Pollack - decide to take Bruce's family hostage in exchange for him rescuing Pollack and/or retrieving a DVD full of encrypted files from Pollack's home.

Kind of a cool twist on a familiar plot, but there are way too many lapses of logic here. I dug the directorial style - but after a half-hour everyone seemed to get kind of lazy. The plot has a lot of holes in it and way too many long, rambling scenes that don't serve much of a purpose to the rest of the picture.

The ending in particular is what really left a bad taste in my mouth. It goes from suspension of disbelief to utter stupidity. Mars (Ben Foster in a devilish role) turns into Superman and is running around a burning house tossing Molotov cocktails at everyone, popping in and out of vents firing handguns (which never seem to need to be reloaded), getting stabbed and shot but never dying.

And then we get the heavy-handed religious symbolism - to quote another review, "It's like, please, baby, spare me!" Mars turns into Jesus and the accountant's daughter is the Virgin Mary. His death sequence has him take on the crucifixion stance as the daughter of the accountant stares on with a towel draped around her head. Hmm...

The film tries to handle way too many subplots, and I think that's the real problem. They all crash together at the end, and suddenly it feels like three or four different movies all going on at once. There's the plot with the cop who feels the need to redeem himself, the plot with the cop whose family has been taken hostage, the plot with the troubled kids, the plot with the hostage situation, the plot with the retrieval of the DVDs, the plot with Mars (halfway through the movie he suddenly becomes a major focus and Bruce begins studying old CCTV tape footage of him murdering a clerk, observing, "He's watching him die" - and from this point onwards the symbolism gets weird).

I'm all for suspension of disbelief but some of the stuff in this film is simply ridiculous.

That said, I was entertained and I thought the beginning of the film was excellent - it's just rather unfortunate that the rest of the duration wasn't up to par with the earlier moments.

Held hostage by overacting and plot craters

[sunraider · 5/10 · 1 July 2005]

This film starts off good, and by the start I mean the opening credits. The innovative credits drew me in and I thought I was going to see a cool S.W.A.T. vs. young punks holed up in a fortress-like mansion movie. But after the credits we descend into standard-issue fare with Willis overdoing the acting as he bungles a hostage situation as a big-time LAPD negotiator. With his unkempt appearance and ridiculous messiah-like overacting, Willis is a joke.

Fast forward to the present day where Willis is a Chief of Police in "no-crime Mondays, low-crime Tuesdays" suburbia and the real story starts. Three no-good youths in a beater truck spot a Cadillac Escalade, rant about "rich people" (Escalade=rich people? not in LA, where this movie takes place), and decide to steal the car by breaking into the drivers' fortress mansion high-up in the canyon areas of greater Los Angeles. Things go wrong and the Escalade's driver, teen daughter and young son are held hostage by the violent and unpredictable boys, but not before the silent alarm gets activated by the resourceful son and Willis re-enters the picture.

Unforntuately, with Willis back in the picture we aren't allowed to have a straight-forward hostage movie and we're presented with a "twist" as Willis' family is also taken hostage, by a shadowy group intent on getting their hands on a disk of off-shore account numbers. The problem: the disk belongs to the Escalade driver (Kevin Pollak), he's unconscious and may die, and nobody knows where this disk is hidden. Willis has to get the disk by any means possible, even if it means violating every hostage negotiator rule, which he does with impunity.

This set-up is what destroys the movie. It's so implausible--first, that a Chief of Police and veteran hostage negotiator would fail to let other law enforcement aware of the situation and, secondly, that the other law enforcement agencies who come into the picture would allow a raving lunatic like Willis to behave as he does and control the scene. In any real hostage situation, Willis would have been instantly removed from the scene and taken to a hospital for a mental eval, regardless of his "rank." And the idea that a bunk of black-clad, hooded FBI tactical HRT members would be able to bust into a hostage situation and assume command with little resistance from a fairly large sheriff's department is ridiculous.

The best actor is this movie is the house--a fortress-like mansion built up next to the face of a cliff and outfitted with amazing high-tech security. (But not high-tech enough to stop three loser teens from climbing the fence and entering the home unnoticed!) The best scenes involve the young son scurrying around unnoticed in the air ducts, which gives him a fly-on-the-wall view of the goings on of the trio in the home's many rooms. If the film had centered on the fortress and dealt with the family's plight and their response to their situation (I liked the Stockholm syndrome-like response of the teen daughter to the creepy sexual advances made by the most disturbed of the trio), the film may have resonated more. Instead, we got a bifurcated plot that never really engages the viewer.

Introduce yourself early to the edge of your seat.

[TheMovieMark · 9/10 · 10 March 2005]

Tense. Engrossing. Gripping from start to finish. All words to describe a conversation with Johnny Betts. But they also adequately describe Bruce Willis' latest movie Hostage. The movie could also be referred to as Redemption because that's definitely what you'll see this as if you have been disappointed with Bruce's recent efforts.

However, I would recommend that you not go into the movie expecting a Die Hard clone. Hostage sacrifices heavy action and humor for a darker, more character-driven tale, and it works. THIS is how a thriller should be! Things start off on an intense note as we see a grizzled-looking Bruce Willis attempting to negotiate with a psycho who has locked himself and his family in their house. He's got a gun, and he's clearly not right in the head. I will not reveal what happens, but flash forward a year later and having burnt himself out in the negotiation business, Willis is now a police chief in a smaller town. You think he'll be called on to use his negotiation skills again? If you say "no" then please let me slap you upon the cheek.

The thrills only intensify from there once the trailer park trio takes Kevin Pollack's family hostage. I really like the fact that we have two sets of bad guys here. There are the white collar criminals who remain faceless, yet ruthless in their desire to get what they want. Then there are the blue collar boys who make a stupid mistake and get in way over their heads.

I also appreciate the fact that the blue collar bad boys aren't one-dimensional. Jonathan Tucker plays the older brother (Dennis Kelly), and he does a great job of making his character somewhat sympathetic. He's a small-time wannabe tough guy who gets himself in a very bad situation that only escalates as the movie progresses. As the situation worsens, we see that Dennis regrets what he's done. He obviously wants to be anywhere else at the moment. He's scared, but he continues to try to talk tough. He's reaping the consequences of falling in with the likes of Mars.

Mars, portrayed by the show-stealing Ben Foster, is a long-haired, black clothes-wearing troublemaker. His back story is completely a mystery at the beginning, but we deliberately begin to see that he may not be quite as sympathetic as the others. Is he pure evil? Cold-blooded? Misunderstood? Regretful? Revealing anything would be a disservice to your viewing enjoyment, so I'm not saying anymore except that the character is very well-developed.

I know it's only March, but other than Million Dollar Baby, Hostage is the best movie I've seen this year. If you want a fun, suspenseful night at the movies then ignore the critics whining and moaning about clichés and improbabilities and go check out Hostage. I love the irony in the fact that half of the negative reviews on Rottentomatoes complain about the clichés in the movie. Wow, at least THAT complaint isn't cliché or anything. Try a little originality yourself.

Some of these critics like to go to Wal-Mart before a movie like this and purchase the biggest, most industrial strength Nitpicker they can find. You didn't know that was an actual tool? Oh yes. They're owned by every single uptight critic who white-knuckle clenches his Movie Snobbery PhD degree at all action and thriller movies. Don't listen to 'em. Hostage is a movie for movie fans, not movie elitists.

THE GIST Are you in the mood for a dark, intense, edge-of-your seat thriller? Then Hostage will most certainly entertain. If you're the type of moviegoer who only knows how to complain about clichés and coincidences then I'm sure you'll do the same here. I recommend loosening up and enjoying life a little.

Rating: 4.5 (out of 5)

relatively OK thriller

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 9 August 2015]

Jeff Talley (Bruce Willis) is a former LAPD hostage negotiator. After a particularly brutal incident, he leaves L.A. to be the chief of police in the small suburb of Bristo Camino. Some time later, Dennis and his brother Kevin, and their vicious cohort Mars Krupcheck break into the Smith home. They are challenged by a cop and shots her. They lock down the highly secured home taking Walter Smith (Kevin Pollak) and his two kids hostage. However other interests intervene. Walter actually does work for a mysterious criminal gang and they want a DVD from inside the house. The criminals take Talley's family hostage forcing him to work outside the law to find the DVD and trade it for his family.

This is a functional thriller. The main thing that bugged me are the three young thugs. They are too stereotypical. They're greasy and jittery. It's too on-the-nose. I like that the movie takes a simple premise and puts a slightly different spin on it. It's too bad that Kevin Pollak doesn't have a bigger role. This movie seems geared towards his wheelhouse. Bruce Willis is usually good in this type of roles. This is a relatively fine thriller but it's nothing special.

A movie that started out great....

[Exeron · 4/10 · 15 August 2007]

In the beginning, i felt the tense and everything, couldn't stop watching, then after 30 min things started to get more slow and boring. And the movie got unrealistic itself. Bruce Willis did great it was a different part for him, he acted like an actual Human being instead of a killer machine.

*SPOILER* I really lost the respect from the movie in the later scenes where Mars starred in. When he chased the daughter and the boy through the vent like a damn panther. And the way he seemed invincible with the Molotov Cocktails. But it was kinda sad when he died though :( *SPOILER ENDS HERE*

Anyway don't get me wrong, this movie was good but it lost the tense. This movie could turn out so good, but it went from realistic to...well things that would be normal in a video game.

6/10 Not the best Bruce Willis film :(

All That Cringe-Inducing Yelling And Screaming!

[Chrysanthepop · 23 March 2008]

I had read Robert Crais's novel some years ago and remember enjoying the book as a good thriller. Now I know most adaptations of novels tend to not match the original in terms of overall quality. Thus I kept me expectations low. But even that wasn't enough. 'Hostage' is very disappointing. It's executed in the form of an uninteresting episode of 'CSI: Miami'. The background score is heavily intrusive and makes every single situation overtly dramatic. Add to that, the over the top performances by every single member of the cast who are mostly yelling and screaming. The director really made it into a 'Die-Hard' style action flick. It lacks the depth of the book. Willis is in his Die Hard mode, shouting at people and running around. Oh and there's also this irritating Jimmy Bennett who tries to be cute and screams. Michelle Horn is pretty but she's the clichéd whiny teen. Foster is unrecognizable but his character has no layer. Pollak doesn't do much to be proud of. Tucker overacts. Allman manages to keep the balance at times and does better than his co-stars. It's pity that a novel which would have made a fine thriller film has been wasted on a poor film due to over-the-top...everything. They didn't even follow the events of the novel properly resulting in plot holes and lack of development (thanks to Richardson's screenplay).

Thumbs up

[theresesor · 7/10 · 12 December 2019]

I don't know why there are so many people saying that this is a bad movie, I mean it's not the best movie I've ever seen, but seriously it's 2005 not the best movie effects and all, but definitely a good movie, worth watching.

The trailers aren't accurate - MUCH BETTER

[BitterMan23 · 7/10 · 11 March 2005]

The TV spots basically make this movie look like Die Hard 4: In A House, but its not at all. first off, its a suspense movie with some action, not the other way around. Secondly, the main thrust of the movie isn't even hinted at in the TV spots that I've seen. All of the acting is very good, the villains especially considering their age, pull off their roles quite well. There's a scene where they face off with Willis and a chopper thats truly nail-biting, and it wouldn't work at all if they were bad actors.

So i recommend this movie even if you think it looks generic from the trailers. its got a lot of twists and surprises, tho not in an annoying M Night shamalamadingdong way. Please go see it in theaters, support our rare R rated films while enjoying a good movie in the process!!

Hostage

[Stokes_dan · 7/10 · 23 March 2005]

Best Brucey film I have ever seen, was quality. Well worth seeing at the cinema as you need the sound and picture quality. like the way they did the hostage of Willis's family, although at times predicable, excellent throughout. casting was also excellent, especially Ben foster, set as Mars Krupcheck, with his deadly eyes and morbid interests. Also thought Jimmy Bennett as little Tommy smith was brilliant, such talent from an actor of only nine years of age. Good to see Bruce Willis can still pull it off, as good as his Die hard days, and good to see him back to quality films, unlike mercury rising and Armergeddon from the recent decade. Best thing i have seen in the cinema since Lord Of The Rings.

The Reduplication of the Predicament Premise as the Movie’s Central Motif

[gyokusai · 7/10 · 9 May 2008]

Right after watching this movie, I rather liked it, and the only gripe I had was some particular visuals’ symbolic overload and the at times right-in-your-face score to go with it. Solid popcorn action movie, and let’s move on. But then I got second thoughts. Some people voiced the implausibility that Talley (Willis’s character) manages to down four pros in the final shootout. I watched the scene again, and I figured it was plausible: all four are taken completely by surprise, and after the leader’s been shot point blank by the accountant, a moment of disorientation adds to it. Now here’s the scene: not a single gun is leveled at Talley, and everything looks absolutely solid that they’ll honor the deal and release his family and leave him alone. Moreover, besides taking Talley’s wife and daughter hostage, the bad guys hadn’t even killed anyone so far; on the contrary, it was they who got wiped out in numbers by Mars in the accountant’s mansion, and so far they even showed impeccable professional manners.

Then Talley breaks the deal and kills them all.

Which bothered me a lot, until it dawned on me that the ending cleverly reduplicates the predicament premise as the movie’s central motif. Let me explain.

If Talley’d got his family back and the bad guys’d left with the accountant, what would have happened? Of course they would have had to kill him after extracting the vital information; not just because the accountant’s “face has been seen” but because the (real) feds would have tried to extract from him precisely the same information. Which is something at least the accountant must have been aware of, of course. So whatever happens—regardless whether the accountant makes a deal with Tally or is forced by Talley at gunpoint to the exchange—leads to a situation where Talley is faced with another predicament: renege on his “deal” with the bad guys or renege on his “deal” with the accountant. He can’t get out of this situation without getting someone killed, and he has to make a decision. The decision he makes is the logical one, of course, no doubt about that. But for me the important thing is that the movie doesn’t end on the ethically somewhat dubious note that the cop kills all the bad guys while they have their weapons down because they took his family hostage, but for more dramatically complex reasons.

Which raised my rating to seven.

Well-acted and Emotional Action Thriller

[rydercup · 9/10 · 13 March 2005]

I went into this movie with moderate expectations, but was very impressed with how good it was. Thoroughly entertaining from start to finish, Hostage offered some great action, drama, emotion and most of all some fantastic acting, mainly by Bruce Willis and Ben Foster. I have not always enjoyed Willis' movies, but this one was reminiscent of some of his better roles, ie. Die Hard and Sixth Sense.

I have read some of the media's reviews of this film and some have been unjustifiable harsh. Were they watching the same movie? Once again, I am glad that I did not listen to the critics because I would have missed this movie. If you are in the mood for a tense, gritty thriller with believable and emotional characters, Hostage will not disappoint. I give it 8.5/10.

good action film

[ejsr-58235 · 7/10 · 31 December 2019]

Bruce Willis is in fine form in this fun action film from 2006. It is thrilling and suspenseful. Acting is fine throughout as are writing and directing. Story will keep you on the edge of your seat. Not the type of film to take Intvw awards but do what? It is not pretentious and knows what it is. This is thrilling action at its finest.

How To Turn A Good Book Into A Bad Movie

[gusman05 · 3/10 · 18 July 2005]

Robert Crais writes a really good book with some interesting plot twists and turns and Hollywood screws it up. While trying to play it "dark" the whole movie passes on the subtleties that make for great drama and instead beats you over the head. And so at the end, the bad guys are really . . . ? Oh, that's right, we never really know. You have to read the book to find out and even then because it is so screwed up . . . Never mind. Just skip the movie altogether. It isn't worth it. Read the book.

Individually, the acting isn't bad, but Ben Foster as a serial killer? Puhleeze. He mumbles through about 30 words of dialogue that doesn't make any sense and doesn't tell you anything about him.

A shame. Had the makings of a pretty good flick if they had managed to stick a little closer to the book.

IT ROCKS! This is a Bruce Willis we did not see for a long time!

[big.jay · 9/10 · 10 February 2005]

I saw Hostage in a German Pressscreening and I was blown away. Visually stunning from the first second to the last. The director Florent Siri nails every frame. He kept me on the edge of the seat from beginning to the end.

In the last years Bruce Willis disappointed me. His last movies I found very lame. But here, he is back as the great Action dude, he is famous for. But Hostage is not another "die hard"-flick. It is different. With more Drama, much darker and less humor is Hostage one of the most adult (means grown up) Action Thriller I saw in Years.

The story is great. No cheap tricks, every second is well written, superb acted and directed. The same with the soundtrack and - as I said before - the visuals.

Hostage is a kind of violent Film noir in a MTV a like style. A real ride. I don't want to tell much about the story. Go and see!

A lot of it seems unlikely but when looked upon as mindless entertainment then it's practically perfect

[jimbo-53-186511 · 6/10 · 5 March 2016]

When a family (father and 2 children) are taken hostage by 3 men it's down to officer Jeff Talley (Bruce Willis) and his team to step in and try to rescue the family from this terrifying ordeal. An already tricky situation for Talley is made worse when he learns that the father is working for some criminals who are after a special disc that he has in his house. This 'other' gang kidnap Talley's wife and child and threaten to kill them both unless Talley is able to recover the disc for them. Talley now has the unenviable task of trying to appease his family's kidnappers whilst also trying to rescue the 'kidnapped' family.

Hostage is a film based on a novel by Robert Crais and the screenplay has been adapted by Doug Richardson. I've no idea what the novel is like, but Richardson's screenplay throws up so many unlikely scenarios that it quickly becomes hard to take any of it seriously. Here are a few things that I noticed.....

1) Before the 3 youths kidnap the family they discuss stealing the father's car and this seems to be their intention when they enter the property. Once in the property, they decide (for whatever reason) to kidnap the family, even though they had no real reason to??? If all they wanted was the car then why didn't they just make the father hand over the keys and drive off with the vehicle??? This whole scenario just made no sense to me.

2) The 3 youths follow the family home and wait outside their home before they decide to try to gain entry. The house has CCTV all over the place and has numerous panic switches (which to me suggests that the father is security conscious and for good reason). Yet the 3 youths seem to be able to gain access to the property without any trouble. How exactly did they get in? Was the front door unlocked? This again seems ridiculous. Silly plot contrivances such as these will always drag a film down no matter how exciting or fast-paced they are.

Despite some of these issues The Hostage is a film that pretty much does 'exactly what it says on the tin'. It moves relatively fast over its 105 minute running time and proves to be a thrilling enough experience. There aren't really any surprises in store but director Florent-Emilio Siri provides enough action,claustrophobia and nicely framed set-pieces to compensate for the predictable screenplay. I also liked the comic book style opening credits even though I'm not quite sure why opening credits of this type were used when the source novel was not a comic??

The performances are mostly what you'd expect here; Bruce Willis is good but this is the sort of thing that he can do in his sleep. I also noticed that Bruce Willis' real-life daughter was in the film and I'm assuming that his presence in this film was the only reason that she was included in the film as she was barely in it and contributed very little (apart from having a tantrum at the start). The standout performance for me was that of Ben Foster whose quirky and creepy character made the film that little bit more interesting. It's a pity that his character wasn't developed all that well - I thought initially that a Stockholm Syndrome was developing between his character and the daughter, but it never played out in this manner which is a shame as again this probably would have made it a stronger film. The supporting performers were OK, but for me it was Foster that made the biggest impression.

Hostage is another in a long line of 'switch off your brain' action thrillers and if you're prepared to do just that and go with the flow then there is certainly plenty to enjoy here.

Plot all over the place

[Calicodreamin · 5/10 · 16 June 2019]

While the acting isn't too bad and the action scenes are shockingly good. The plot is just all over the place. First these ragtag group of boys decide to rob this rich family. Then things go south and they end up taking them hostage and knock the dad unconscious. Then Bruce Willis shows up but hands over the negotiations to the professionals. But his family gets taken hostage by people who have their money caught up with the dad of the family who's being held hostage by the band of kids. So Bruce is blackmailed into getting their money out of the house. So he takes command back, goes double agent... and from there plot just collapses into craziness. One of the ragtag boys is a psycho and goes crazy, killing the other boys and torching the house. Bruce gets the unconscious dad out of the house at some point and fakes everyone into thinking he's dead?? Even the cops he's working with? Fake FBI show up to find the money and get killed by the psycho kid ... then Bruce saves the kids from the first hostage house and takes the dad with him to go get his family. So the dad and Bruce end up killing the bad guys to save his family. It's just a whole bloody mess.