Synopsis
Nearly a decade after occupation by an extraterrestrial force, the lives of a Chicago neighborhood on both sides of the conflict are explored. In a working-class Chicago neighborhood occupied by an alien force for nine years, increased surveillance and the restriction of civil rights have given rise to an authoritarian system -- and dissent among the populace.
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Cast
- John GoodmanWilliam Mulligan
- Ashton SandersGabriel Drummond
- Jonathan MajorsRafe Drummond
- Vera FarmigaJane Doe
- Kevin DunnPolice Chief Igoe
- Kevin J. O'ConnorKermode
- Alan RuckRittenhouse
- Ben DanielsDaniel
- James RansoneEllison
- D.B. SweeneyLevitt
Recommendations
- 90
Variety
Although the TV ads and other promotional material appear to promise a megaplex-ready thrill ride about space invaders and rebellious Earthlings, this rigorously intelligent, cunningly inventive, and impressively suspenseful drama plays more like a classic tale about a disparate group of resistance fighters united in a guerrilla campaign against an occupying force. - 85
IGN
An atmospheric, affecting science fiction flick with big ideas, slick execution and a message that will stick with you. - 75
Chicago Sun-Times
Though Captive State has plenty of action, it’s not a blood-and-guts sci-fi thriller. It aims for a more cerebral, social-commentary approach. - 60
The Guardian
Captive State is imperfectly constructed, at times frustratingly so, but it’s trying, doggedly, to do something different and given the bland efficiency of so many wide-releasing sci-fi movies, that’s hard to fault. - 50
The A.V. Club
It’s not unreasonable to expect something like excitement out of a story about freedom fighters plotting to take back the planet. Captive State does not clear that fairly low bar. - 42
The Film Stage
The groundwork is laid for a rich playground of political intrigue and sci-fi thrills, but Captive State is continually hobbled by acting more like a mouthpiece for the state we are in rather than a memorable genre outing with characters we can root for. - 40
New Orleans Times-Picayune
While director Rupert Wyatt's film has a handful of things going for it -- alien invaders, bursts of action, sociopolitical subtext, a stern-faced John Goodman -- it is missing one key element: a soul. - 38
Movie Nation
Captive State might have achieved some sort of screen satisfaction had the straight-forward-with-obvious-twist script not been hacked into tiny image bites, rendering huge passages of it a confused visual mush.
