Entertaining submarine thriller

Rating: 8/10 (24 November 2000)

"U-571" is an entertaining submarine thriller that takes place during World War II when an American submarine crew make an attempt to take over a German U-boat and recover a secret-code transmitter. Things don't exactly go as planned. "U-571" has a good opening, then drags for about a half-an-hour before the real excitement begins. Matthew McConaughey gives a strong, effective performance as the leader of the American crew, and gets good support by the supporting cast. The action scenes are well done, and all-in-all I wasn't disappointed. "U-571" kept me on the edge of my seat most of the time, which makes it a pretty good film. However, it's not quite as good as another submarine thriller, 1990's "The Hunt for Red October".

*** (out of four)