The Captain and His Pirate (2012)

• 70%
• 2012
• Andy Wolff

In 2009, the German container ship "Hansa Stavangar" had been seized by Somali pirates for four months. After its release, magazine covers showed a captain happy to have escaped the barbarian terror. This film shows the deeper layers, the invisible story behind the headlines, recounted from two protagonists' points of view: The pirate leader, Ahado, an eloquent, intelligent young man, and the captain, Krysztof Kotiuk. The former, who grew up amidst mortar shelling in Mogadishu, expecting to die at any moment, has nothing to lose. The latter will be left with nothing in the end. When weeks pass with no help from Germany, the captain decides to approach the opponent in a desperate attempt to save his crew. When both crew and company turn their backs on him, Ahado becomes his only confidant. Step by step the tragedy of two people is revealed - the pirate and the captain are destined to be enemies in a war that we're all a part of. Yet, they grow to form a close bond in the end. What's left when the roles we play, all moral categories and certainties implode? When you slide from a position of strength to one with no way out? And what is it like for those who have no choice in the first place? A psychological drama that addresses existential questions of war and human understanding.