The Captor's reviews
Media reviews
Los Angeles Times
An enlightening, lively, perhaps not unfamiliar outing.
Roger Ebert
The smartest decision Budreau made at any point during production was to call his former collaborator on ?Born to Be Blue,? Ethan Hawke, who keeps this sometimes frustrating film nimble and entertaining.
The Wrap
If you?re willing to take the movie for what it really is ? a fairly generic caper inspired by, rather than based on, actual events ? you?ll find just enough to appreciate.
Variety
The opening title says ?Based on an absurd but true story,? yet there?s nothing absurd about the facts. Improbable? Yes. Hapless and desperate? Most definitely. But the absurdity ? the impulse to giggle ? is mostly there in the eye of the writer-director, Robert Budreau.
The A.V. Club
Hawke is no stranger to elevating subpar material with a committed performance, but his fidgety crook-with-a-heart-of-gold act is undercut by Budreau?s uncreative use of the limited setting (almost the whole thing takes place inside the bank) and unskillful handling of the broad tone.
The Playlist
The film is not meaningless, or even trifling, but, 'The Captor' never rises above mediocre, and that is what hurts the most.
Indiewire
The best thing you can say about 'The Captor' is that it?s good enough to prove that a much better film could be made from this story.