Captives - Prigionieri

This is a movie that I really enjoyed. It was well written and very intense. Although the idea of a prison romance could have been a turn-off, in this film you feel compassion for the characters who are portrayed by these two fabulous actors. Julia Ormond was wonderful, and Tim Roth was HOT! I definitely have a thing for him, I think he is so sexy, not only is he a talented actor, but he also has this quality that makes him so attractive. If you feel the same way I do, or you like Julia Ormond, or if your just looking for a good movie with suspense and talented actors, then you will like this movie.

This movie's premise-a prisoner and outsider falling in love- may normally turn many people off. Surprisingly, is well-scripted, wonderfully filmed (some of the best camera shots and angles I've ever seen, and exceptionally well-performed. Julia Ormond, who I normally don't much care for, was wonderful. Tim Roth, as usual, blew me away. It remains one of the few movies I can watch repeatedly.

I probably wouldn't have rented it if I realized it was a woman having an affair with a prisoner, so I'm glad I didn't know that or I would have missed out on this very good movie. As it was, it turned out to be more of what I expected - two people who had been drawn together by sexual chemistry being bonded together from a shared adversity. And the sexual chemistry and tension between Roth and Ormond (or, technically, their characters as portrayed by the two excellent actors) is very strong. This is one hot movie, and it manages to be so with no nudity (although, it does have a sex scene). The movie also keeps tension throughout by showing various people noticing them. That way, you really can't be sure who their future threat will be.

This is a movie I watch over and over. You care about Rachel (Ormond) and Philip (Roth) from the beginning. You see the struggle they both go through when weighing what they have to lose by beginning a relationship. Then it's a romantic/suspenseful joyride to the end. If you like Roth or Ormond, you will love this movie, the rest of you, give it a try, you won't be sorry.

I saw this film when it came out on British TV in the 1990s and it's remained embedded in my memory ever since. All young Hollywood directors should be contractually obliged to see "Captives" to see what real on-screen chemistry is like: the heat and intensity generated between leads Tim Roth and Julia Ormond just isn't something you see in every modern film, so much so that there were moments when I almost wanted to look away, embarrassed for their intimacy and urgency, shout "get a room!" – ah, but there's the rub – they can't. He's in prison; she's the visiting prison dentist, and they're caught in an impossible position that there's no easy escape from.

Others here have described the story well, so I won't cover that ground again. But it's exactly the kind of "little" British film I love to watch: when they're good, you're rewarded with an unusually good cast, a decent script and a neat premise that draws you in and grips you. The slightly unconvincing conclusion doesn't detract from how very enjoyable and stirring this film is.

"Captives" illustrates why Tim Roth deserved his reputation as an actor; but I'm sorry not to have seen more of Julia Ormond on screen since the 90s. Is it that she's in that twilight zone of female actresses, who suffer from the lack of good parts for women who don't look twenty years younger than their age?