U-571 . Tucson Weekly . 05-01-00

U-571

DIRECTED BY: Jonathan Mostow

REVIEWED: 05-01-00

If you like war movies, you'll really like U-571, which packs even more tension, claustrophobia and brinkmanship into its tale about a young Naval officer whose dream of commanding a U.S. submarine is unfortunately fulfilled during a costly covert op during the Battle of the Atlantic, 1942. Bill Paxton commands the ancient S-33, the American sub disguised to rendezvous with crippled Nazi sub U-571; Matthew McConaughey is the young lieutenant forced to man the German tub when his own and attendant captain and crew are blown to sub-smithereens in an ambush. Young Lt. Andy Tyler (McConaughey), steely Chief Klough (Harvey Keitel) and a passel of greenhorn enlisted men with names like Tank, Trigger, Griggs and Rabbit then attempt to turn the tides of war with one torpedo, a sinking ship, and almost no hope for survival. Writer/director Jonathan Mostow's formulaic dialogue is more than compensated for by dramatic underwater camera work, tension-building sound effects, and a war made real by live bodies rather than dead ones (e.g., German-speaking German soldiers, who get equal billing with the Americans). All that, and you get to see ER's annoying Dr. Dave (Erik Palladino) shot out of a torpedo cannon. Woo hoo!

--Mari Wadsworth

Full Length Reviews
U-571
U-571

Capsule Reviews
U-571

Other Films by Jonathan Mostow
Breakdown

Film Vault Suggested Links
Blood and Wine
Terminal Island
Fools Gold

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