At the Movies: Prisoners Explores a Father's Fury

Keller Dover is a mensch—a guy who doesn't just bring home the bacon, but (as we learn in this movie's opening scene) hunts venison, too. He teaches his son to know his way around a gun as well, explaining that it's important to be self-sufficient, in case the fabric of society is ever rent asunder.

So begins Prisoners, a bleak but gripping tale of two families and how they cope when, indeed, the unspeakable happens. On Thanksgiving Day, as the Dovers and their neighbors, the Birches, celebrate together, the couples' daughters both mysteriously disappear from the front yard. Have they run away? Have they been abducted? And what of the shabby RV parked nearby not long before?

The RV is tracked down by police, and its driver, a creepy, laconic fellow with a child's IQ, is a suspect. His stringy hair and oversized glasses are fashion felonies, but it's maddeningly unclear whether he's committed any actual crimes. When he's released for lack of evidence, we learn the shocking lengths that Dover (played by Hugh Jackman) will go to in order to get to the truth out of this oddball.

You won't always want to watch what happens next—though each scene involving the chief investigator, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, is worth keeping your eyes open for. His Detective Loki is a study in contrasts; a man who urges the anguished parents to remain calm, while his own face contorts into nervous tics. Maria Bello, as Dover's wife, also has a fascinating face. As the days drag on, her eyes darken and her lips fade till they merge into the divot under her nose. But her underwritten character does little besides retire to bed amidst snowdrifts of crumpled tissues. Viola Davis, as the mother of the other missing child, has it better: In one wrenching scene, she demonstrates where feminine gentleness ends and motherly ferocity takes over.

Will the tragic tots be found? Of course you'll be rooting for their safe return, but they're almost beside the point. Dover Keller's really the one who's gone missing. He's on an autopilot of ferocity and vengeance, one that, in the end, makes him as much a prisoner as he believes the girls themselves may be. Literally. You'll be playing his armchair quarterback--and conscience--long after the movie ends.

Is Prisoners easy viewing? No--especially given that this is "Walk to School" week in some parts of town. Is it for everyone? Absolutely not. And definitely not for children. But if you like suspense, and the chance to have movie-club-style debates with your date, you'll find plenty to ponder here. Just be aware that for the price of the ticket, you're about to watch a man sell his soul.

Deborah Skolnik is a Greenacres mother of two and the Content Director for Myron Corporation, a large business-gifts company in Maywood, New Jersey.