U-571 (2000) 2 stars out of 4. Starring Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Harvey Keitel, John Bon Jovi, David Keith and Jake Weber. Screenplay by Jonathan Mostow, Sam Montgomery and David Ayer. Story by Mostow. Directed by Mostow
"U-571" is a man's movie.
They sweat, strain and die under the banner of patriotism and prose so purple it may make you blush.
But "U-571" does have a sort of old-fashioned innocence to it, and in its own corny way it is a fun outing.
Set during World War II, the movie's plot revolves around the retrieval of an Enigma code machine from a German U-boat. With this machine the Allies will be able to decipher the secret German code and will be able to intercept all their messages.
"U-571" is the type of movie in which one good guy torpedo sinks a destroyer while 2 million Nazi depth charges cannot even put a dent in a rust bucket, battle-scared submarine.
OK, so "U-571" isn't history. It's a throwback to those lovable John Wayne-Randolph Scott war movies in which We were the stalwart heroes and They were the hissable villains.
It's the kind of movie in which the black cook - without any formal training - can man the controls of a German U-boat.
It's a movie in which the firm, no-nonsense captain (Bill Paxton) gives his executive officer a lecture about being hesitant to sacrifice men's lives for the overall good, which - of course - foreshadows events to come.
Every situation is telegraphed, every character is stock.
And the music by Richard Marvin tries to give the film an epic air, but it only succeeds at assailing the eardrums.
The claustrophobic feel of the U-boat was done much better in Wolfgang Petersen's classic, "Das Boot". "U-571" is merely a pale copy.
Matthew McConaughey is chiseled and determined as the lieutenant suddenly thrust into command. Harvey Keitel is sagelike as the veteran Navy chief who helps McConaughey's Lt. Andrew Tyler grow into command.
The movie's main flaw: The main action piece takes place during a stormy night, thus making it almost impossible to see who among the cast lives and buys it for God and country.
"U-571" is the type of film you drag your wife or girlfriend in retaliation for being henpecked into taking her to see a weeper such as "Random Hearts" or "The Horse Whisperer."
"U-571" is pabulum, a no-brainer. It's merely an excuse to munch on popcorn.
Bob Bloom is the film critic at the Journal and Courier in Lafayette, IN. He can be reached by e-mail at bloom@journal-courier.com or at bobbloom@iquest.net Bloom, an asociate member of the Online Film Critics' Society, has his reviews posted by the Internet Movie Database at http://www.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Bob+Bloom
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