The Popkorn Junkie :: K-19 The Widowmaker

"Ouch!" Is the expression I had after watching the movie that was nearly 30 years in the making, not because it was bad, but literally because of all the things that the characters went through. This movie is far from bad, and just about the only thing that could be conceived as bad is Harrison Ford's Russian accent...but who cares?

The true story, "K19: The Widowmaker" is about a Russian submarine named K19, and nicknamed "The Widowmaker" in 1961. I think that nickname is obvious, but just in case, the ship, through malfunctions and freak accidents, took the lives of roughly 30 men. The film is directed by Kathryn Bigelow, and stars Liam Neeson and Harrison Ford, among others. I'll be honest here, I didn't know anything about these horrific events, and I quite like it, that now I do. So, what happened? K19 was a nuclear powered sub, and lots of negligence occurred on and off of it.

The crew was stupidly under the power of two Captains. Okay, only one was THE captain, but still, it's stupid to leave the old captain on the same ship, as it prevents the crew from taking in the new captain with warmth. What else? They didn't have the right supplies of medicine, so trying to combat radiation sickness was impossible. They didn't have radiation suits either, and they lied to their crew that the suits they did have would work. "We might as well just have raincoats!" said one of the captains. Of course he said that in a bad Russian accent, but that doesn't matter much.

What matters here is that this story has been told. As the surviving crew was sworn to secrecy to prevent nuclear war, and only when communism fell, were they ever able to morn the victims of this horrible tragedy. Who knows what could have happened had they not have been able to keep the core under control. This is not a spoiler. I am stating fact. This is a true story. Just be glad and thank your lucky souls that because of these courageous Russian men, we do not live under a nuclear winter.

Recommendation: I liked the fact that they told this story from the Russian point of view, as it is about them, but why use American actors? Why is this an American movie at all? I would have loved to see this as a Russian film, but alas, this doesn't matter much, what matters is that this story is known. Go see this movie. It will teach you courage.

-- James ( 3 1/2 out of 4 pops )

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Other Junkie's opinions.....

Matt ( 3 out of 4 pops )

"K-19" is a marvelous film about true heroism. Not that manufactured, Hollywood-style heroism, but true heroism. The Harrison Ford character, an aggressive Russian Captain, is not very likable. As a matter of fact, in the early scenes you pretty much despise him. It's only his intentions you sympathize with. Later on, he develops more of a conscience, but he's still the same aggressive Captain he was earlier. Too many times in films we're introduced to a sympathetic character who's way too sympathetic. How often do we run into people who we sympathize with all the way? Almost I found his character to be very realistic, and the overall film to be very realistic. Not to mention I was blown away by the powerhouse performances by Ford and Liam Neeson. Both deserve Oscar nominations. Neeson almost never gives a performance that's below par, and Ford (and I can honestly say this) gives the best performance of his career. Just like Tom Hanks in "Road to Perdition", he decided to take on a role that's different from his usual nice-guy roles. Here, he plays a character who's far from nice and is perfectly convincing. "K-19" is as exciting as it is touching. I've been crying at a lot of movies lately, so maybe it's just me being a sissy (lol), but I couldn't hold back my tears at the dramatic ending. If you're in the mood for a riveting action/adventure and/or a touching drama about true heroism, then I definitely recommend you purchase a ticket for this movie!

Billy Ra y ( 2 1/2 out of 4 pops )

Not too shabby. I'll admit--from the trailers--Harrison Ford's accent seemed a little weak. It is weak, but we get over it and it doesn't really bother us after a while. "K-19" is one of the better submarine movies I have seen, kicking the crap out of useless submarine flicks like "U-571". To me, the film was a wonderful hybrid of "Das Boot" and "Crimson Tide". Though I liked "Crimson Tide" slightly more, this film was still marvelously acted and wonderfully directed, blending the perfect levels of suspense and action. The film is about heroism and it does a good job of injecting that thought into the characters portrayed by Ford and Neeson. All around good effort--much better than I had anticipated.