Imagine you lost your AirPods and went to the Apple store to buy them. Suddenly, an armed man takes you and all the residents hostage. What happens next? To know this, you have to stream the newest Dutch film, iHostage, released on Netflix. The film is inspired by a real event that happened in the Hirsch building in Amsterdam in 2022. Read the detailed review and real facts below.
What’s the Story
The filmography is set in a Modern, high-class Apple Store where everyone is buying, talking, and being busy. A hostage situation occurs with an armed man entering the building. He creates chaos with loud gunshots. Initially, 50% of the crowd on the ground floor ran away from the door. However, a man who stands close becomes the victim.
The perpetrator drags the sole victim and shoots at the policemen. Understanding the severity, the control room arranges a full-hand risk management team with military cops, negotiators, Snipers, and more. Does the police operation succeed or fail? Did any victims die? All the suspense forms the rest of the movie.
Visuals and Vibes
Visually, the film has all the elements needed a historical building hostage situation, fully armed black cops, high resolution, an alerted control room, snipers, and whatnot, even a helicopter in the vicinity. However, there is no tension. Yes! The film seriously lacks seriousness and depth for that grand setup.
On the other hand, the detail of how the military approaches an issue, dispatches teams, the line of command, and how they deal with hostages is all so beautifully captured. But neither the villain nor his plans work; they fall flat, dull, and boring. If the film had some extreme terrorist situation, this much of a buildup would’ve paid off with a hit result.
How do characters play
The film’s major part is consumed by the control room’s response to the armed villain. First of all, actors Loes Haverkort as Lynn and Matteo van der Grijin as the commando leader are highlights. They created the suspense of being in a captivating situation. The professionalism in their roles throughout the film is applauded.
In the backdrop, the biggest disasters play the main roles as well. The antagonist Soufiane Moussouli has zero character improvement. He could’ve caught or killed hostages, but all he does is ask for 200 million bitcoin to escape. And even when the top floor gets emptied with Bravo soldiers, he does nothing but stay put. At one point, we don’t even know whether the explosives are real or not. Because he possesses a detonator and ends up not using it. So yeah, that big loophole makes the entire story fall into a pit.
Final Verdict
The movie iHostage is just an average cop play that severely lacks or has zero substance to support it. You might end up skipping to the climax because the villain does nothing but speak to negotiators like friends and drink up all the Red Bull before getting caught. The five-hour hostage situation happened in real life; they were given Brave Citizen pins, and the cop who killed the gunmen was declared not guilty without prosecution. So, a big miss with good visuals.
Ratings; 2/5
Written by: Meghana Pinninti