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The Captive

2025 · 134 min

A somber, talky historical drama that finds hope in storytelling amid captivity, with a tense undercurrent and a measured pace.

Directed by
Alejandro Amenábar
Genres
Drama, History
Starring
Julio Peña, Alessandro Borghi, Miguel Rellán
Tagline
The author of Don Quixote left an incredible story untold. His own.
Overview
In 1575, the young soldier Miguel de Cervantes is captured on the high seas by Barbary pirates and taken to Algiers as a hostage. Aware that a cruel death awaits him if his family does not pay his ransom soon, he finds refuge in his passion for storytelling.

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In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.
Directed by
Alejandro Amenábar
Genres
Drama, History
Starring
Julio Peña, Alessandro Borghi, Miguel Rellán
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How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • darkstrength 2 of 3
  • earneststrength 2 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 1 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • survival
  • isolation
  • power
  • freedom
  • identity
Places
  • prison
  • sea
Era
period
Audience
adult
Form
  • true story
Content intensity
  • Gore none
  • Language mild
  • Violence mild
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action4
Horror2
Humour3
Realism8
Romance4
Tension6
Darkness6
Complexity6
Emotional weight7

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Where to watch in the UK

No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
drama, history
Directed by
Alejandro Amenábar
Written by
Alejandro Amenábar
Starring
Julio Peña, Alessandro Borghi, Miguel Rellán, Fernando Tejero, Luis Callejo, José Manuel Poga, Roberto Álamo, Albert Salazar
Music
Alejandro Amenábar
Cinematography
Álex Catalán
Runtime
134 min
Country
Italy, Spain
Languages
Arabic, Italian, Spanish

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