K-19: The Widowmaker on DVD
Heres something you dont see every day: Hollywood
making a movie about the Soviet Union where the Soviet Union isnt
glorified as the be-all and end-all of human greatness.
And thats good.
Not only that, but theyve also crafted a gripping and
fascinating human drama with realistic characters and situations into which the
audience can really get its teeth. And its based on a true story,
too.
Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson star as the captains of K-19, the
Soviet navys first nuclear-powered submarine. The time is 1961, at the
height of the cold war. Kennedy has only recently come to power and the Cuban
missile crisis is still in the future. The communist Soviet government is
paranoid about the possibility for US aggression, afraid of a possible first
strike nuclear attack. K-19, once operational, is designed to ease that threat
by putting American cities within range of its nuclear missiles.
Neeson is the original commander, but the commie bigwigs
dont trust him fully because he dares to exhibit independent thought, so
they bring in Ford to take over the center seat, keeping Neeson aboard as
executive officer. At this point in the movie, K-19 is kind of like
Star Trek the Motion Picture - where a ship
that isnt yet ready for action is sent out anyway skippered by a man not
as familiar with it as he should be. At least with Star Trek, the Earth was
indeed in danger, whereas it could be argued that the Soviet reading of
American aggression was overblown.
Isn't hindsight great?
Anyway, as was often the way with communism, the ship (the pride
of the fleet) was sent out unfinished, improperly equipped, and with
inexperienced men in some of the key positions of responsibility. It was a
recipe for disaster.
And guess what happens disaster, or near disaster at any
rate as one of the subs reactors malfunctions, forcing the crew to make
some jury-rigged repairs that not only dont work properly but which sends
deadly radiation throughout the ship and infects some of the crew terminally. A
nearby American ship offers help, but the Soviet sailors have been trained to
distrust, even to hate the Americans and their altruistic offer is spurned:
better to sink with everyone aboard than hand over the Soviets greatest
naval prize to the enemy.
Or is that really whats behind Fords characters
rationale?
About the only complaint we had about K-19: the Widowmaker was the
cheesy fake Russian accents, which it appears not everyone in the cast was
forced to adopt. The audience knows right from the films opening that
these are Russians everyone in the movie is a Russian but
theyre speaking English for the obvious reason that this is an American
film made for an English-speaking audience. We think the audience is adequately
bright to remember the characters Russianness without the obtrusive
accents.
Other than that this is a terrific film and the criticism
over the accents is pretty minor in the grand scheme of things. The cast is
first rate, as is the story. And the production design and overall attention to
detail (which may explain the accents) is laudable.
Ford, who was also Executive Producer, even gets to play a bit of
a change of pace role here. Where hes usually a stoic, stern faced heroic
character here we get to see him playing a stoic stern faced character whose
heroism is in doubt. In fact, he seems for most of the movie to be closer to
the Caine Mutinys Captain Queeg than Air Force Ones president James
Marshall.
Then again, sometimes theres more than meets the
eye
Neeson is also very good as the Captain, beloved by his crew but
shoved aside by the bureaucrats he serves. And the supporting cast, most of
whom you probably havent heard of before, contribute believable
characterizations to this ensemble shoehorned together into the claustrophobic
space of the Spartan Soviet sub.
The DVDs also very good. The picture is presented in
anamorphic widescreen (Hallelujah! No Pan&Scan version is offered!), and
the 16x9 TV compatible picture is sharp and crisp and with very good color.
Its a tad dark, but thats more a result of the cramped interior and
undersea locations in which the story is set.
Audio is Dolby Digital 5.1 surround and its also very good.
Theres some very nice opportunity for using the rear channels and the
producers have done it justice. The point one low frequency effects
channel is also put to good use.
You also get a decent set of extras, including a running
commentary by director Kathryn Bigelow and cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth.
Theres also an interesting 20 minute featurette on the making
of K-19, as well as a set of three featurettes that explore different
aspects of the film: Exploring the Craft, Breaching the
Hull, and It's in the Details. You also get the theatrical
trailer.
We had heard mixed reviews of K-19: the Widowmaker and so
didnt really know what to expect, but ended up mighty pleased not
only with the movie itself but with the good DVD presentation from Parmount
Home Video.
K-19: The Widowmaker, from Paramount Home Video
137 min. anamorphic widescreen (2.35:1), 16x9 TV compatible, Dolby Digital
5.1 surround
Starring Harrison Ford, Liam Neeson
Written by Christopher
Kyle, Produced and Directed by Kathryn Bigelow
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