Welcome Back, Matthew!

Rating: 10/10 (24 April 2000)

This is a great adventure. I left the theater wanting to be two things I don't usually yearn for. First, a soldier in the United State's WWII Navy. Second, a man, because just being a soldier wouldn't have gotten me on that sub with Matthew and his crew. Matthew McConaughey does a great job as a seriously dramatic actor, once again. He proves that a little bad publicity can't keep a good man down. Harvey Keitel does a great job as McConaughey's second in charge. Keitel's character hands confidence and wisdom to McConaughey's Tyler without stealing the show. Harvey always does an incredible job at being a greatly understated supporting character. Did anyone else recognize Erik Palladino of ER fame as the unlucky sailor who gets slugged by McConaughey and who later unwittingly creates the diversion that will save all of his pal's lives? He does a great job doing what he has done so far on ER, be the voice of dissent. The rest of the crew is made up of less note-worthy, but extremely recognizable young faces. I was sad to see Jon Bon Jovi's character eliminated so early, I would pay the seven dollars just to watch him eat. Unfortunately, in this picture he doesn't get to really prove himself as an actor, but if you take a look at his other films, he is one to keep close tabs on. All in all I loved U-571. The characters were played well, it wasn't over the top with visual effects, and the story subtly tugged on my heart strings. Keep up the good work, guys!