''Captive'' is a 2015 American

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

drama Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance: a play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a genre of poetry in general, the dramatic mode has been ...

thriller film directed by

Jerry Jameson Jerry Jameson (born November 26, 1934) is an American television program, television and film director, film editing, editor and film producer, producer. Biography Highly prolific, he began career in 1964 as an editor on the episode "List of ...

and written by Brian Bird and Reinhard Denke, based on the non-fiction book ''Unlikely Angel'' by Ashley Smith. A true story about

Brian Nichols Brian Gene Nichols (born December 10, 1971) is a rapist and murderer known for his escape and killing spree in the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta, Georgia, on March 11, 2005. Nichols was on trial for rape when he escaped custody and murde ...

, who escapes from the Fulton County courthouse in Atlanta on March 11, 2005 and holds Ashley Smith as a hostage, the film stars

David Oyelowo David Oyetokunbo Oyelowo ( ; born 1 April 1976) is a British actor, director and producer. His accolades include a Critics' Choice Award and two NAACP Image Awards as well as nominations for two Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards ...

as Nichols and

Kate Mara Kate Rooney Mara ( ; born February 27, 1983) is an American actress. She is known for work in television, playing reporter Zoe Barnes in the Netflix political drama ''House of Cards'' (2013–2014; 2016), computer analyst Shari Rothenberg in t ...

as Smith. Filming began in October 2013 in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. The film was released worldwide on September 18, 2015 by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

Plot

On March 11, 2005,

escapes from the

Fulton County Fulton County is the name of eight counties in the United States of America. Most are named for Robert Fulton, inventor of the first practical steamboat: *Fulton County, Arkansas, named after Governor William Savin Fulton *Fulton County, Georgia *F ...

courthouse in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, during his trial involving a rape case. In the process of the escape he murders the judge presiding over his trial,

Rowland Barnes Rowland Wayne Barnes (April 25, 1940 – March 11, 2005) was an American Superior Court Judge in Fulton County, Georgia. He oversaw the 2003 trial of the professional ice hockey player Dany Heatley, who was charged with vehicular homicide after ...

, as well as court reporter Julie Brandau. He also shoots Sergeant Hoyt Teasley while escaping from the courthouse, and then later kills

ICE Ice is water frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 degrees Celsius or Depending on the presence of impurities such as particles of soil or bubbles of air, it can appear transparent or a more or less opaq ...

Special Agent David G. Wilhelm, who was off-duty at his home. Nichols becomes the subject of a citywide manhunt. His frantic escape brings him to the apartment of Ashley Smith, a single mother and recovering methamphetamine addict, whom he holds hostage. Smith gets through the time by being inspired by

Rick Warren Richard Duane Warren (born January 28, 1954) is an American Southern Baptist evangelical Christian pastor and author. He is the founder of Saddleback Church, an evangelical megachurch affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention in Lake Fore ...

's best-selling book ''

The Purpose Driven Life ''The Purpose Driven Life'' is a bible study book written by Christian pastor Rick Warren and published by Zondervan in 2002. The book offers readers a 40-day personal spiritual journey and presents what Warren says are God's five purposes for h ...

'' while Nichols searches for redemption. As she reads aloud, Smith and her would-be killer come to a crossroads. Nichols eventually turns himself to the police.

Cast

, a convicted criminal who takes Ashley Smith hostage while on the run from the police *

as Ashley Smith, a young woman and single mother held captive by Nichols who tries to get through him by reading "A Purpose Driven Life" *

Michael K. Williams Michael Kenneth Williams (November 22, 1966 – September 6, 2021) was an American actor. He rose to fame in 2002 through his critically acclaimed role as Omar Little on the HBO drama series ''The Wire''. He has been described as a "singular pr ...

as Detective John Chestnut *

Leonor Varela Leonor Magdalena Varela Palma (; born 29 December 1972) is a Chilean actress. She played the Cleopatra, title role in the 1999 television film ''Cleopatra (1999 film), Cleopatra'', and vampire princess Nyssa Damaskinos in the 2002 Marvel Comics ...

as Detective Carmen Sanchez *

Jessica Oyelowo Jessica Oyelowo (née Watson; born 1978) is a British actress and singer. Early life She was born Jessica Watson in Ipswich and spent her childhood in Suffolk, England. She attended Woodbridge School as a child and was a member of the National ...

as Meredith MacKenzie *

Mimi Rogers Miriam Rogers (née Spickler; born January 27, 1956) is an American actress. Her notable film roles are ''Gung Ho'' (1986), '' Someone to Watch Over Me'' (1987), ''Desperate Hours'' (1990), and '' Full Body Massage'' (1995). She garnered the grea ...

as Kim Rogers * Matt Lowe as Randy * E. Roger Mitchell as Sergeant Teasley *

Bill Bennett William Richards Bennett, (April 14, 1932 – December 3, 2015) was the 27th premier of British Columbia from 1975 to 1986. He was a son of Annie Elizabeth May (Richards) and former Premier, W. A. C. Bennett. He was a 3rd cousin, twice removed, ...

as Sheriff Walters * Scott Parks as Officer Henderson * J. Karen Thomas as Mrs. Nichols, Brian's estranged wife * Fred Galle as Atlanta Police Officer Boltbee * Elle Graham as Paige * Johanna Jowett as Cameron Sampson *

Claudia Church Claudia Lorraine Church (born January 12, 1962) is an American country music singer-songwriter whose singles include "What's the Matter With You Baby" and "Home in My Heart (North Carolina)". Biography Church was the second daughter of Claude a ...

as Melissa *

Michael Harding Michael Harding (born 1953) is an Irish writer. Biography Harding was born and raised in Cavan, Ireland. He went to St. Patrick's College, Maynooth, initially graduating as a lay graduate. He then taught for two years in St. Patrick's College, ...

as Commander Bradley Simpson * William Boyer as Sniper *

Sydelle Noel Sydelle Noel (; born July 16, 1985) is an American actress and former athlete, best known for her role as Cherry "Junkchain" Bang in '' GLOW''. Early life Noel was born in Hollywood, Florida. She studied at the University of Georgia on a track s ...

as Lynn Campbell

Production

Development

On October 15, 2013,

and

joined the thriller ''Captive'' based on the true story of

, who escapes from the courthouse in

on March 11, 2005, murdering the judge, a court reporter, a sheriff's deputy, and an off-duty federal agent. Later, he takes Ashley Smith hostage at her own house. BN Films set

to direct the film, which was adapted by Brian Bird and Reinhard Denke, based on the Smith's non-fiction ''Unlikely Angel''. Alex Garcia, Lucas Akoskin, Terry Botwick, Oyelowo and Ken Wales would be producing the film through Brightside Entertainment, 1019 Entertainment and Yoruba Saxon Productions. Oyelowo was set to play Nichols, Mara to play Smith, while

and

were also in the cast.

joined the film's cast on October 24, 2013 to play Detective John Chestnut.

's involvement was confirmed on March 16, 2015, along with Jameson and Katrina Wolfe as producers.

Filming

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as actor ...

on the film began in October 2013 in

Release

On March 16, 2015,

acquired the worldwide distribution rights to the film and set the film for a September 18, 2015 release date. On June 16, 2015, the first trailer for the film was released.

Reception

''Captive'' has received generally negative reviews from critics, although praise was given towards the lead actors' chemistry. On

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film holds a rating of 27%, based on 52 reviews, with an average rating of 4.5/10. The site's consensus reads, "''Captive'' undermines committed performances from Kate Mara and David Oyelowo – and the real-life story they're dramatizing – with a thin script doubling as an ad for a self-help book." James Rocchi of The Wrap called it "A Lifetime movie shoved into a cage and fattened with sermons and platitudes until it is ready to be served up cold and bland." But Linda Cook of the Quad City Times called it "a top-notch, captivating film." Michael Foust of The Christian Post labeled it "one of the most inspiring movies I've ever seen" and added it was "not the typical Christian movie." Foust wrote, "I suspect the movie ... succeeds because we can see a bit of ourselves in Smith or even Oyelowo, two broken people whose lives intersect on a tragic day in which the power of God's Word triumphed." On

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...

the film has a score of 36 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".

Inaccuracies

In the film, Nichols is depicted shooting Judge Barnes from the front when in real life, Nichols snuck into the courtroom from the back and shot Barnes from behind. He is also shown killing Deputy Teasley inside the courthouse, when Nichols actually killed Teasley after he ran outside. Also, Nichols shot Teasley five times, while in the movie, he shoots him only twice. Nichols took four hostages before the killings but in the film, he doesn't take any hostages aside from Smith.

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Captive (2015 Film) 2015 films 2010s English-language films 2015 crime drama films 2015 crime thriller films 2010s prison films American crime drama films American crime thriller films American thriller drama films Biographical films about criminals Crime films based on actual events Drama films based on actual events Films about kidnapping Films about domestic violence Films about rape Films about drugs Films about Christianity Films about religion Films based on non-fiction books Films directed by Jerry Jameson Films scored by Lorne Balfe Films set in Atlanta Films set in 2005 Films set in the 21st century Films shot in North Carolina Films about hostage takings American prison drama films Thriller films based on actual events 2010s American films