What are critics TALKING about???

Rating: Null/10 (23 July 2002)

So it seems that historians and critics alike have destroyed the submarine epic K-19: The Widowmaker in any way they can. Historians have a valid reason. Critics on the other hand, do not, unless their complaint is a lack of historical accuracy. Granted, the film doesnt EXACTLY stick to the events or the characters portrayed in them, but leave the criticism for those who were involved. (Believe me, they're doing what they can to smash the film for portraying the underwater fellows as alcoholics instead of professionals). Remember, this is a MOVIE. Not a documentary. And no matter how close a film is to its true events, it will never actually hit it, because after all, it is an adaptation. (Hey, Braveheart wasn't even CLOSE to historically accurate, but it won a bunch of accolades including Best Picture and Director oscars, not to mention, our hearts.) Getting history out of the way, let's now venture to the film itself. If you weren't involved and absorbed in this movie, you're as cold as the person you last had a funeral for. I have a theory as to why this film is receiving bad reviews. It was trashed before it was even released. First and foremost is because of the title. It simply sounds like a B-Movie, but when you actually see the film, you realize its pretty legit. Secondly are the previews. Going into this film, I was CONVINCED Harrison Ford was going to suck as a Russian, with a truly reproachable accent and maybe the worst performance of his career. I was CONVINCED the film would be just another submarine movie to put on my list of dont-sees. I was wrong, by both accounts. This film has a great story, incredible acting, and lets just face it it's made in such a way that you are grabbing your seat in excitement from minute 1 to minute 138. I have not been so truly engulfed in a movie in a very long time. The suspense and unpredictability puts this film at a pace thats nearly intolerable, but just tolerable enough to enjoy the hell out of. While we're truly involved in not knowing what the fate of this ship and its crew is, we are becoming more and more acquainted with the characters at sea and their struggle between patriotic loyalty and the fight to save their own lives (and possibly the lives of many others). It is a film that constantly questions what matters more: the fight of a nation or the embracing of life and life's values. Characters are constantly in the struggle between human morals, self-sacrifice, and the ever-pledging loyalty of Russian patriotism. And this struggle only brings K-19's actors to incredible depths, deeper than the 300 ft they can't afford to sink to, but inevitably do. The accents in this film can be criticized and praised all at once. While they are often very slight, they remain consistent. I never heard Harrison Ford perform with an accent before (unless you include his brief French comedic impersonation in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) but it seems he's a natural at it. The actors' accent coach went to great lengths to make sure these fellows were believable, and for the most part, they surprisingly are. Each major character has something distinguishing about them that we can't help but either identify with, or simply admire and aspire to be. Harrison Ford's unwavering loyalty to his nation; Liam Neeson's reason- his worry and care for his crew and the other lives at stake; the man in charge of the boat's reactor, and his incredible fear of the chemical radiation that he must eventually dive into, to save the ship. And when all three of these characters come together at the end, with their own personalities and their own morals, it is so moving, even Harrison Ford's strong-as-steel character breaks into tears that only inflict the audience to do the same. And even at that kind of depth, the film still manages not to be pretentious. Within this dramatic story, its wonderfully conveyed characters, and a heart-racing pace, comes a truly remarkable film that should only be condemned for the same historical fallacies that every film adaptation ultimately makes. And unless you're one of those historically anal freaks, there is no reason why you shouldn't enjoy this incredible film. Don't miss it.