U-571 (DVD)

Advantages: Some good action shots, suspence and fast moving in places
Disadvantages: Weak cast, did not keep up the pace and they changed history

The Film U-571 caused a rather large sensation when it originally was released. It is based in the Second World War at sea, though there is nothing hugely out of place with that. The film has been totally Americanized, though only just a bit. I mean a simple mistake really getting two countries confused, especially when they are on the same side. Changing a story of heroics, stealth, cunning and bravery with British as the main people involved to ...
...is set out to capture U-571 with Captain Mike Dahlgren (Bill Paxton) and Lieutenant Andrew Tyler (Matthew McConaughey) in charge of the crew. They find the stricken U-Boat ahead of the rescue ship sent from Germany to save the sub, all part of the plan to destroy the evidence to stop Germany knowing they have the Enigma. While aboard the German U-Boat another U-Boat sinks the Americas with all the crew on aboard, leaving just a few people left in ... Read review

Advantages: Fast paced action movie.
Disadvantages: Historical inaccuracies may offend some people.

...of special features! U-571 has some superb special effects and the photography is truly remarkable, the sort of movie that has you jumping at the explosions and so on! As you would expect, given the subject matter, much of the movie is set inside both the US submarine and the German U boat. Careful editing and camera angles give a good impression of the cramped quarters submariners live in and the cheek by jowl crowded atmosphere has been caught ...
...during the Second World War, U-571 follows the story of the crew of a US submarine. The submarine crew are on a much needed 48 hour leave, when they are suddenly called together and given their orders for a mission. The crew are tasked with the job of seeking out a German Nazi U boat and capturing a top secret German Enigma encrypting device and it's code book from the boat. The German vessel is sunk and to be totally destroyed, the US submariners ... Read review

Advantages: realistic, action-packed, brilliantly directed
Disadvantages: if it were to be 100% fair, a British crew would feature as the heroes

Once again it is up to the British public to overcome any prejudices they may have as to the way “history has been re-written” by Hollywood to make the Americans look as heroic as possible. This has been done somewhat at the expense of the “Tommies”, who made by far the most valuable contributions to cracking the Enigma code machine (the central focus of this submarine scenario). “U-571” is much like “The ...
...see it actually enjoy it. This theory is strengthened by the fact that, at the time of writing this review, most of the top opinions in the “U-571” sub-category are positive. Indeed, I have heard by far the most scathing criticisms of this movie from those who have not even seen it. The bottom line is that “U-571” does not actually re-write history, as it is a work of pure historical fiction. It is unwarranted to expect American ... Read review

Advantages: Good solid action/adventure
Disadvantages: Fact?

The premise for this film is good. They'd made some great factually based war films in the past. With modern effects and film making techniques this should be a winner...shouldn't it? With their 'unbreakable' codes, the German forces are winning the war - their navy rules the waves and their armies are battering Europe. When u-boat 571 is crippled in an attack, the US navy seizes it's opportunity to capture one of the prized Enigma cypher machines. ...
...seize the stricken sub but can do nothing when their own vessel is destroyed by the German's rescue team. Stranded in the north Atlantic in a damaged, enemy submarine, can the 9 plucky heroes make it home with their valuable cargo? The story is fundamentally good and the fable that ends up on screen is dynamic, exciting and great entertainment, so what's the problem? Fact is the simple answer. Once again the Hollywood history writers have been busy ... Read review

Advantages: Scenery, Special effects, Sound effects
Disadvantages: Acting, Plot, historical "Inaccuracies", anti-German

...be able to approach the U-571 without arousing suspicion. They manage to locate the U-571 and even to capture it. But while Lt. Tyler and his special commando are waiting on the conquered U-571, another U-boat sinks their own submarine and almost the entire crew dies. Lt. Tyler, who’s in charge now after the death of Capt. Dahlgren, has to try to get the Enigma back, with his limited team and in a submarine they barely know. The critics ...
...original German crew of the U-571 massacres an entire cutter of helpless refugees searching for help. The Americans on the other hand, save the only surviving member of the U-571! I will not spoil the rest, but I can assure you that this black/white view only got worse towards the end of the movie. This movie was so extremely patriotic and anti-German it disgusted me. If it had been made 60 years ago I’d say it’s pure war propaganda. ... Read review

Advantages: Loaded with Features
Disadvantages: Hard job rooting for the Good Guy

...arrive as soon as possible. While the movie may not be worth the plastic it comes on, at least there's a chance the special features will make up for it given the fact that it's a Universal disc. Sure enough, one of the top DVD-producing studios doesn't disappoint with this one. Included on the disc is a "Spotlight on Location" featurette, theatrical trailer, audio commentary track with Director Peter Hyams, a special effects feature that takes a look at how ten of the intense special effects scenes were created, a text-based feature that explains the Book of Revelation, a music video from Everlast and another from Rob Zombie, production notes, cast & crew bios, a trailer for U-571, and DVD-ROM support. This disc is loaded with features, and the presentation score is truly excellent as well. While the menus are completely static... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: The best submarine drama to date
Disadvantages: Very long

...It was only after watching my newly acquired copy of U-571 the other day that prompted me to dust-off my DVD of Das Boot (Director’s Cut) and give it another look. In the past, this movie has been seen in several formats. Serialised on BBC2 and in standard movie length being two of them. The DVD version runs for 200 minutes – and that’s just the movie! I suspect that this is closer in length to the TV mini-series in content than the normal movie. The advantage of the DVD format, is that you can hear the soundtrack dubbed into English, or for the purist, in German with or without English* subtitles, which is, of course, much closer to the original. Tip – If you speak any German, see if you can spot the points where the somewhat primmer English subtitles deviate from the more lavatorial German dialogue... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Exciting, Thought Provoking, Tense
Disadvantages: None

...Sam Neill Captain 2nd Rank Vasily Borodin James Earl Jones Admiral James Greer Joss Ackland Ambassador Andrei Lysenko Directed By John McTiernan Feature Running Time : 134 Minutes Certificate : PG Other Recommendations If you like this film, others I would recommend are Crimson Tide and Das Boot, but definitely not U-571. Where To Buy At the time of writing the cheapest price I could find is £4.99 from the online retailer BlahDVD.com. That's a bargain.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful