K-19: The Widowmaker

I am one of those people who rolls their eyes at war and submarine films. For some reason, I find the claustrophobic atmosphere irritating and often bore of them in any case.

But this was gripping. Most of the drama actually takes place on the submarine rather than annoyingly cutting between onboard the submarine and the outside world the whole way through the film.

The acting was surprisingly good. In fact, exceptional, even though anyone could point flaws in the Russian accents. The drama was intense and overall, the film was gripping and easy to follow. The story unfolded, avoiding the temptation to overplay irrelevant aspects of the story. It's unfortunate that it was a box office bomb, but I think a great deal of that had to do with some unnecessary "show off" special effects, when the film ultimately hit its heights and greatness in the last 45 minutes, where a basic set and some good lighting is all that was needed.

If I had one complaint, it would be that the early stages could have been shortened because the film makers seemed hell-bent on trying to build a sense of intense camaraderie within the ship's crew, but somehow the dialogue and early events didn't quite do it correctly. Or perhaps it wasn't so necessary to harp on about so much. Nonetheless, it was a great watch and I was pleasantly surprised, even if you don't like movies of this genre.

Come on, Liam Neeson and Harrison Ford in one movie. And it doesn't disappoint. OK, the accents are a bit corny at times but then, Russian accents can be, even in real life :)

This is a great film and the unusual setting, a Soviet sub, makes it even more interesting. It's up there with Crimson Tide and Hunt for Red October. Comparing it to the best sub movie, Das Boot though, one can see why this one is great: It shares the sense of "There might be politics at the surface (both metaphorically and physically) but when it comes down to it, we are alone down here, with the problems, the danger and the decisions".

Got an 8/10 from me mainly for the exceptional atmosphere.

I rented this DVD for a little diversion, in spite of the bad buzz and the word "flop" attached. I thought it was a very good movie, very suspenseful and interesting. I don't nitpick about things like accents with films, just try to enjoy them. I agree with the majority of posters here, it is well worth your time.

This was a pretty solid supposed true story of a Russian submarine and its captains during the early 1960s. It's memorable, story-wise, for the radiation victims among the crew members. There are some really dramatic scenes involving that horrific event. Otherwise, it's a story of the sub's problems and the conflict between two captains.

The story starts slowly so you have to stick with it as it gets better and better as it goes on and rewarding enough to make you glad you hung in there for the whole 137 minutes.

Profanity is minor and the Russian accents are handled well by the lead actors, led by Harrison Ford, Liam Neeson and Peter Sarsgaard.

It's not a great film, but it's good and interesting enough to recommend a rental, but not something I'd watch numerous times. Those radiation scenes would be a little too grim to watch numerous times.

Despite some bad reviews, being the war film fanatic that I am, I went to see this movie. I was expecting something much like U-571, (Men trapped in a disabled boat surrounded by the enemy), and this movie wasn't far from it. I must say that U-571 is my all-time favorite war picture, so I didn't expect The Widowmaker to surpass it. However, it came very close. The story was told well and the acting from most of the newcomers was superb. However, when I left the theater, I didn't want to watch it again for a long while. Not that it was a bad movie. It was just a little too graphic. I'm one who can watch people get blown to bits, decapitated, and crushed, however, since this story is true and the way these men suffered before they died a horrible death, was a little too much for me to watch. I know they couldn't have filmed it any other way. That is what makes this movie so good... the mere fact that I was uneasy while watching it. I found myself gasping... (I'm not one to gasp.)

The film is based on the story of a Russian sea captain (Harrison Ford) that is ordered to command a new nuclear powered submarine that has been thrown together in a very short amount of time. The objective is to test a missile near the north pole in hopes that the Russian government can catch up to the US who is threatening nuclear war. Although the crew is hesitant to board the ship, they fear the captain's wrath and work without complaint. Of course, the captain is 'do or die' and works the crew mercilessly, much to the dismay of the ship's original captain (Liam Neeson), who can do nothing but watch as his crew gets ready for mutiny. When the nuclear generator malfunctions, it is up to a few brave men to expose themselves to radiation and try and fix the power before disaster strikes and World War 3 begins. What I found most disturbing was the captain's refusal for American help until 7 men were dead and hundreds more were already exposed to dangerous levels of radiation. Watching these brave men slow-cook themselves for the rest of the crew was enough to make me cringe, (while other men dove into freezing water rather than go back into a radioactive submarine.)

All in all, this movie was a bit too much reality for me. However, it was wonderfully written, directed, and acted. I gave it ********/10.