Mutually Assured Destruction: K-19, The Widowmaker
Written: Sep 21 '03 (Updated Sep 21 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Harrison Ford, Liam Neeson, Supporting Cast, Cinematography
Cons: Could be edited down to make it move along better
The Bottom Line: Depicts a crisis that could not be revealed until the fall of the Iron Curtain. Interesting take on the Soviet mentality. Heroism in the finest tradition of human fortitude.
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| George_Chabot's Full Review: K-19: The Widowmaker |
I’m caught in a trap - I can’t walk out - Elvis Presley
May you live in interesting times. ancient Chinese curse
I’m a sucker for submarine movies and this is a good one. I’m dedicating this one to my old pal Gungian who spent a lot of time defending the USA in The Silent Service.
Based on a true story, K-19 opens with a couple of graphics that reveal in 1961 the USA had nuclear weapons sufficient to destroy the earth 10 times, the Soviets 2 times. The USA had already placed nuclear armed submarines within striking distance of Moscow and Leningrad. The Soviets had nothing to compare with this threat. 1961 was the height of the Cold War and the Soviet leaders flogged their minions on to close the arms gap. “If they can destroy Moscow and Leningrad what is to stop them except a similar threat?” asks a high party official.
Ergo, the K-19, a nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, was hurried into production - the first of its kind for the Soviets. The K-19 is plagued by difficulties, inferior parts, shoddy workmanship, and so on that causes the party to relieve Captain Mikhail Polenin (Liam Neeson) when he criticizes the process. Polenin is replaced by Captain Alexei Vostrikov (Harrison Ford) who has high party connections through his wife - his daddy also went to the gulag but that’s another story. To add insult to injury, Polenin is ordered to remain onboard as executive officer (2nd in command) for the K-19, which seems to happen quite a lot in submarine movies - see Run Silent, Run Deep, or U-571 for similar plot developments.
The workers hurry to prepare the submarine for her maiden voyage, but sailors are a superstitious lot and many unlucky things seem to be happening. About ten men die putting the boat together, the ship’s doctor gets run over by a truck, the champagne bottle fails to burst when the boat is christened, and that danged nuclear reactor is running hot… “We’re doomed,” is one sailor’s comment. In short, the ship has earned the moniker “Widowmaker” before it ever sets forth to sea…
Nonetheless, the boys take off, the K-19 slightly listing to port and the reactor under command of a green lieutenant just out of school. We'll complete the mission or drown, says Vostrikov.
Their mission: to sneak below the ice to the North Atlantic, surface and fire a test missile. That will show Washington! Ha! Further into the voyage they receive word that they will not return to base but instead begin to patrol offshore between NY and DC. Vostrikov (Ford) turns out to be a tireless martinet and taskmaster in the mold of all good movie sub commanders and Polenin (Neeson) serves as the conscience of the boat.
Pushing the men and ship nearly to the breaking point, the captain succeeds in breaking thru the ice and firing the test missile. A brief respite on the ice where the men play an impromptu soccer game is recorded in a touching series of photographs by the political commissar. Back at sea and heading for patrol area, that danged reactor starts acting up again! The rest of the story, I’ll let you watch for yourself, but rest assured that it contains bravery and self-sacrifice that will touch even the most hardened movie-goer.
Kathryn Bigelow directed K-19 and did a good, if slow, job of it. The film could have been edited down a little instead of bogging down in the endless drills that the men were subjected to before the main action occurred. I believe that Director Bigelow should not have absolved the captain of his responsibility for the debacle, as he was clearly driven by blind ambition and the men paid the price for his folly. Beyond that faux pas, I thought it was a well done movie. She showed how the young sailors were subjected to anti-American propaganda films, which was an interesting twist.
Harrison Ford did a good performance as the unlikable skipper, a role that is deeper than the shallow action figures we are used to seeing him portray. Liam Neeson, as usual did a marvelous performance as the XO. The supporting cast did a fine job with particular kudos to Peter Sarsgaard, who plays an officer who breaks down, but later recovers his nerve.
The Paramount DVD is presented in 2.35: 1 widescreen with an informative commentary by the director and the cinematographer, a making-of feature, a host of featurettes, and subtitles.
People who enjoy submarine films and those who like a tense drama will want to see K-19: The Widowmaker. Also recommmended, Run Silent, Run Deep, U-571, and the incomparable Das Boot.
Happy viewing!
Recommended:
Yes
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