U-571 (2000)

A German submarine is boarded by disguised American submariners trying to capture their Enigma cipher machine.

Director:

Jonathan Mostow

Writers:

Jonathan Mostow (story), Jonathan Mostow (screenplay)

Stars:

Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Harvey Keitel

Won 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matthew McConaughey	...	Lt. Andrew Tyler
Bill Paxton	...	Lt. Cmdr. Mike Dahlgren
Harvey Keitel	...	CPO Henry Klough
Jon Bon Jovi	...	Lt. Pete Emmett
David Keith	...	Maj. Matthew Coonan
Thomas Kretschmann	...	Capt.-Lt. Gunther Wassner
Jake Weber	...	Lt. Hirsch
Jack Noseworthy	...	Seaman Bill Wentz
Tom Guiry	...	Seaman Ted 'Trigger' Fitzgerald
Will Estes	...	Seaman Ronald 'Rabbit' Parker
Terrence 'T.C.' Carson	...	Steward Eddie Carson (as T.C. Carson)
Erik Palladino	...	Seaman Anthony Mazzola
Dave Power	...	Seaman Charles 'Tank' Clemens
Derk Cheetwood	...	Seaman Herb Griggs
Matthew Settle	...	Ens. Keith Larson

Storyline

In the midst of World War II, the battle below the seas rages. The Nazis have the upper edge as the Allies are unable to crack their war codes. That is, until a wrecked U-boat sends out an SOS signal, and the Allies realize this is their chance to seize the 'enigma coding machine'. But masquerading as Nazis and taking over the U-boat is the smallest of their problems. The action really begins when they get stranded on the U-boat.

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Plot Keywords:

u boat | submarine movie | world war two | battle | crew | 

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Taglines:

You won't come up for air until it's over!

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Genres:

Action | War

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for war violence

Details

Official Sites:

West Video / Videoguide Company (russian)

Country:

France USA

Language:

English German

Release Date:

21 April 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

U-571: La batalla del Atlántico

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Box Office

Budget:

$62,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$19,553,310, 23 April 2000, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$77,086,030, 13 August 2000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$127,666,415, 30 June 2012

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Canal Plus Image International, Dino De Laurentiis Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS (8 channels)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie represents one of a few World War II submarine movies which have won one Academy Award in a technical category, that's just only the one Oscar in either special effects or sound editing. These movies include Crash Dive (1943), The Enemy Below (1957), Torpedo Run (1958), and U-571 (2000). The non-World War II sub movie, The Hunt for Red October (1990) also won just the one Oscar, as did the World War II part sub movie 49th Parallel (1941), but for Best Original Story.

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Goofs

When U-571 torpedoes the freighter, the Captain calls for a spread shot from two tubes. The torpedo crew are then seen to operate two cranks, but in the exterior shot, all four bow caps open.

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Quotes

Lieutenant Andrew Tyler: What the hell are you doing, huh? This is NOT a God damn democracy!

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Alternate Versions

At least one version of the theatrical release contained no subtitles for the opening scene aboard the German submarine. This was possibly to increase dramatic effect, placing emphasis on the acting and visuals rather than the dialogue.

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Connections

Featured in Troldspejlet: Episode #25.9 (2001)

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Soundtracks

Dein ist mein ganzes Herz
from "Das Land des Lächelns"
Written by Franz Lehár, Fritz Löhner-Beda, Ludwig Herzer
Performed by Benny Goodman

User Reviews

Shipwreck

I rented U-571 thinking that a movie with submarines and Harvey Keitel in it would at least be vaguely entertaining, but boy, was I wrong. As for its mindless entertainment value, if you have only ever seen one u - boat movie you will essentially have seen U-571 because it goes to great pains not to miss any cliché in the book; the first third in particular is an almost exact copy of "Das Boot".

What really angers me about U-571 though, apart from it being a really bad movie, is the premeditated way it tries to remanufacture history. Without going into details: the actual Enigma machine was relatively well known, the difficult bit was cracking the code -- which was brilliantly accomplished by the British (after some spadework from the Poles). Next there is the cheap attempt to whitewash racial segregation in the US by throwing in a black sailor and then putting the onus on the Germans by showing a German sailor being shocked at seeing a black person -- maybe it was the historical inaccuracy he was astounded by. Even worse, the film promotes an almost fascist type of ideology, namely the leader principle, mindless submission to authority, the objective must be achieved regardless of the cost of human life (enemy or comrade). So ironically, U-571, with reversed sides and minus the special effects, could pass for a German propaganda movie of that era.