pale imitation of the great "Das Boot"

Rating: Null/10 (21 October 2000)

Every so often a film comes along that so completely fulfills the demands of its genre that all such films that come after it seem to be little more than pale imitations in comparison. Such a film is the 1981 German classic, `Das Boot,' undoubtedly the gold-standard against which all other submarine sagas must  fairly or unfairly  inevitably be measured. Since that film pretty much exhausted the great humanistic themes of brotherhood and survival to be found in this category of films, the American submarine films that have come afterwards  `The Hunt For Red October,' `Crimson Tide,' and now, `U-571'  have been forced to turn to high level suspense plotting to supplement the standard genre conventions. Each of these films has its moments but, the truth be told, one ends up invariably comparing these pieces of pulp entertainment to a genuine work of cinematic art  and there is just no comparison.
In a way, this genre, more than virtually any other, suffers from the cramped restrictions of its underwater setting. There just isn't a lot to DO in a submarine and, hence, the directors of these films are obviously very limited in the way they can approach the material both visually and dramatically. Thus, we are subjected to the endless tight close-ups on the men's worried, perspiring faces as they cast their eyes upward and strain their ears during the inevitable depth-charge and how-low-can-they-go-before-they-break-apart sequences. We know that, before long, we will be watching that needle moving precariously into the red zone on the depth gauge, followed by the customary popping bolts, creaking hull and spouting water mains as the ship challenges the limits of its diving capabilities. (Not one of these subs, in the history of the movies, by the way, has ever failed this test). To get a little visual action into the picture, the cinematographer will, at some point or other, begin shaking the camera chaotically to simulate exploding depth charges a mere stone's throw from the ship's egg-like outer shell.
Unable to even approach `Das Boot's cinematic and technical expertise, `U-571' attempts to generate excitement with its action movie plotting and ambiance. Regrettably, neither the story nor the characters in this film are particularly engaging. Mathew McConaughey stars as Lt. Andrew Tyler, a naval officer who manages, through a complicated series of partly planned, partly inadvertent circumstances, to lead a group of men on board a German u-boat, kill most of its crew and cruise around the North Atlantic in a Trojan Horse type operation, while uncovering the German codebook they have been sent to find on the ship. Unlike `Das Boot,' whose primary concern was to make its recreation of life aboard a sub as realistic and convincing as possible, `U-571' loses its way in a welter of action film histrionics, cardboard cutout characters and maudlin sentimentality. Taylor is supposed to be a second-rate, overly-sensitive officer whom the bigwigs trust so little that they refuse to assign him a boat and a command of his own - but do we doubt, that by finale time, he will have proven himself to be a leader in the true-blue military tradition? None of the characters in this film seem to differentiate themselves from one another in any way that would make us care about them. They all seem to be, essentially, a group of dressed-up actors playing at soldier  a far cry from the fully fleshed-out and convincing set of characters that comprised Wolfgang Peterson's crew.

Perhaps it is unfair to judge `U-571' in relation to that earlier epic work. (After all, `Das Boot' runs several hours longer than this film). Nevertheless, it is a measure of the true greatness of that incomparable German masterpiece that it literally left nothing for future films to add to the genre. It is all there in that one work  complete and perfect in its artistry and form. Very few films sum up their genres as consummately as Wolfgang Peterson's `Das Boot.'