The Pirates of Somalia
A rookie journalist risks his life to document Somali pirates from inside their world and uncover the pressures behind their crimes.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Moderate
- earnest
- tense
- grounded
- serious movie night
- true story viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film an earnest, accessible true-story drama with a committed lead performance, though its treatment of the subject was considered uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Jay Bahadur deliberately embeds himself among Somali pirates to report how they live and what motivates them.
The reporting investigates the forces driving Somali men toward piracy rather than treating them only as villains.
The film follows Jay's close-up access to pirate life and his attempt to interpret it for an outside audience.
Jay begins as an inexperienced journalist with an improvised plan and faces the practical dangers of making it work.
Films like The Pirates of Somalia, and why
The Year of Living Dangerously
journalist protagonist, true-story drama, and immersion in a dangerous foreign environment
A Private War
ambitious outsider reporting from a conflict-afflicted region, combining political context with personal risk
The Insider
fact-based journalism drama centered on confronting powerful and dangerous institutions
Hotel Rwanda
grounded true-story drama about Western observers entering unfamiliar social and political worlds
Movie Details
- Director
- Bryan Buckley
- Release Date
- 2017-12-08
- Runtime
- 117 min
- Rating
- 6.8 / 10 (266)
Cast
- Evan Peters
- Barkhad Abdi
- Melanie Griffith
- Al Pacino
- Philip Ettinger
- Russell Posner
- Kiana Madani
- Maria Vos
- Jojo Gonzalez
- Coral Peña
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- History Vault, Cineverse Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Pirates of Somalia about?
- A rookie journalist risks his life to document Somali pirates from inside their world and uncover the pressures behind their crimes.
- What is The Pirates of Somalia like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Pirates of Somalia as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Pirates of Somalia violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in The Pirates of Somalia as moderate.
- What did critics think of The Pirates of Somalia?
- Critics broadly found the film an earnest, accessible true-story drama with a committed lead performance, though its treatment of the subject was considered uneven.
- Which films are like The Pirates of Somalia?
- Films with a similar feel include The Year of Living Dangerously, A Private War, The Insider, and Hotel Rwanda.
- How long is The Pirates of Somalia?
- The Pirates of Somalia runs 117 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Pirates of Somalia?
- In United States, The Pirates of Somalia streams on History Vault, Cineverse Amazon Channel.
