| | | Heroes Are Ordinary Men Who Do Extraordinary Things in Extraordinary Times.
Features: HD DVD, Dolby Digital (5.1), English, Spanish, French Subtitled
A U.S. Navy Captain and his crew are just beginning to enjoy 48 hours of leave when they receive word to immediately return to duty. On a top secret assignment, they must disguise themselves as Nazis and infiltrate a severely damaged Nazi U-boat. Once on board, they are to steal the Nazi's top secret decoding device and sink the sub before the Germans catch on to what's really happening. Their mission is more dangerous and frightening than anything they could have ever imagined, but one which has the power to turn the tide of the battle."U-571 is exciting!" says Newsweek. Filled with incredible explosions, raging fires and speeding torpedoes, this suspense-filled action-packed film sets a new standard for high impact entertainment and features an impressive all-star cast.
"...irrestible entertainment...the action is well thought out, logical and wastes no time getting down to it." G. Allen Johnson, San Francisco Examiner
"If watching a two-hour submarine movie is this nerve-shattering, imagine what the real thing must have been like..." Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle
"Exciting!" NewsWeek
"Rip-roaring action adventure!" Rolling Stone
"Fast-moving, watertight and firing from all tubes." Sean Means, Film.com
Editor's Note
Faithful to the conventions of the World War II genre, Mostow's (BREAKDOWN) submarine thriller pays earnest homage to the pluck and determination of ordinary people forced to overcome extraordinary odds. The mostly young and inexperienced crew of the S-33 is deployed on a top secret, high-priority mission to intercept a disabled German u-boat (the titular U-571) and capture the ship's encryption system--the Enigma--in order to crack the Nazi's communication codes and hasten an allied victory in the North Atlantic. Racing against a German rescue effort, the S-33 stages a daring raid on the U-571. But after capturing the U-571, the Americans find themselves its prisoner as they must pilot the leaky, disabled vessel through hostile enemy waters. McConaughey (EDTV, DAZED AND CONFUSED) leads a strong cast (Keitel - HOLY SMOKE, Paxton - A SIMPLE PLAN) in this fast-paced, tense, submarine adventure.
Plot Summary
Jonathan Mostow's (BREAKDOWN) World War II submarine thriller about a crew of inexperienced American mariners forced to pilot a disabled German U-boat through hostile waters delivers plenty of action while paying homage to such war genre greats as DAS BOOT and DESTINATION TOKYO. Matthew McConaughey (EDTV) leads the rag tag American crew as Lt. Andrew Tyler, a young officer determined to prove himself a capable leader after being denied command of his own ship. His fellow seamen include Jon Bon Jovi (MOONLIGHT AND VALENTINO), Bill Paxton (A SIMPLE PLAN) and a cross-section of American society, featuring a hot-headed Brooklyner, an earnest farm boy, a wise black cook, a pack of fresh-faced young sailors, and Harvey Keitel as a salty old sea dog. Working with a lean plot, Mostow employs Oliver Wood's (FACE/OFF) detailed, claustrophobic cinematography and an exceptional sound design to create a series of engaging and genuinely tense action sequences that take the rickety submarine to crushing depths in order to outrun German attacks. While his attention to hard historical facts may be a bit leaky, Mostow's ability to sustain suspense rewards viewers with a tight genre piece with no shortage of action or good old American patriotism.
| Features | Audio: English DTS 5.1 Surround Sound | | Audio: English, French, Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 Surround Sound | | Dubbed: French, Spanish | | Feature Audio Commentary With Director Jonathan Mostow | | Featurettes: Spotlight On Location - The Making Of U-571, Inside The Enigma, U.S. Naval Archives - Capturing The U-505 Creating & Constructing U-571, A Submariner's WWII Experience, & Britain Captures The U-110 | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, French, Spanish | | This Is An HD-DVD Made For HD-DVD Format Players Which Produce Higher Quality Picture & Sound |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Universal |
| Release Date: 8/8/2006 |
| Running Time: 117 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 2000 | | Catalog ID: 27779 | | UPC: 00025192777929 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English, French Dubbed, Spanish Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English, French, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Widescreen 2.35:1 |
| Cast & Crew | Bill Paxton | | Harvey Keitel | | Jon Bon Jovi | | Matthew McConaughey | | Dino De Laurentiis - Producer | | Gotz Weidner - Production Designer | | Hal Lieberman - Executive Producer | | Jonathan Mostow - Director | | Jonathan Mostow, et. al. - Writer | | Maria-Teresa Barbasso, et. al. - Art Director | | Oliver Wood - Cinematographer | | Richard Marvin - Original Music By | | Wayne Wahrman - Editor | | William Ladd Skinner - Production Designer |
| Awards |
Winner (2001) | | | Oscar, Jon Johnson, Best Sound Editing | |
Nominee (2001) | | | Oscar, Steve Maslow, et. al., Best Sound |
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| | Professional Reviews | Rolling Stone
"...Matthew McConaughey delivers a tense, terrific performance..." 06/08/2000 p.82Entertainment Weekly
"...Excitingly taut and kinetic....Leaps from one suspense gambit to the next..." -- Rating: A- 05/28/2000 pp.71-2 Total Film
"...[A] well-executed tale...mixing some cinema-rumbling big bangs with plenty of screen-cinging pyrotechnics..." 07/01/2000 p.82-3 Movieline's Hollywood Life
"...[A] smooth white-knuckler....It's a simple pleasure to watch..." 11/01/2000 p.102 Box Office
"...A rousing, old-fashioned submarine adventure....Just the right blend of adventure, action and gritty realism to keep audiences riveted throughout....A smart, slick crowd-pleaser..." 05/01/2000 p.65 Los Angeles Times
"...[The film] gets high marks for tension and excitement. The action sequences are bracing and involving..." 04/21/2000 p.F1 Widescreen Review
"In the cramped quarters of the submarine you can realistically identify with the high temperatures and sweat on the faces of the stressed crew." 07/01/2006 p.67 ReelViews 8 of 10
As submarine movies go, U-571 gets the job done - that is to say, it tells an engaging (albeit predictable) story and features several scenes of nail-biting suspense. All of the usual plot staples are in evidence: tension between crew members, deep diving where the hull threatens to collapse, dodging depth charges, and sub-to-sub battles. Director Jonathan Mostow (the man behind the camera for the relentless but hugely overrated Breakdown) should be commended for taking a thin script and crafting a compelling film out of it. U-571 doesn't hold together well upon reflection, but, while it's playing on screen, it works...In terms of pure action/adventure, U-571 is a strong contender, and its big name cast will give it a degree of visibility. Despite its weaknesses, this movie offers two hours of solid, kinetic entertainment. - James Berardinelli
Reel.com 8 of 10
With the help of co-screenwriters Sam Montgomery and David Ayer, the director assembles this WWII adventure's plot from leftover parts of Das Boot, Hunt for Red October, and Sink the Bismarck, among others. Once the film hits the water, however, Mostow's technical skills surge to full steam ahead -- its storytelling may be second class, but for the most part, U-571 is a thrill ride of the first rank...After a tense 90-minute game of undersea cat-and-mouse, U-571 abruptly ends with a silly sea-raft rescue picked right out of James Bond. This disappointing denouement nearly sinks what is otherwise a highly polished -- if thoroughly derivative -- adventure. Nevertheless, one simple quality puts U-571 20,000 leagues ahead of most escapist fare: It's character-driven. Rather than existing simply to kill time between special effects, the seamen have well-developed personalities. They don't belt off one-liners between explosions, they sweat, scream, and holler like real people. That alone is reason enough to take this dive. - Tor Thorsen
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| Customer Reviews | ![]() | | Cinematography |  5 | | Plot |  4.5 | | Acting | 4.5 | | Overall Satisfaction | 5 |
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5 of 5 X--Mas Gift Monday, December 15, 2008
Art from Houston, TX
I bought this DVD as a Christmas gift for some one, so I have not seen the movie. I can not give much of a review, except that it was shipped on time. Was this review helpful?  
5 of 5 Worth owning Monday, May 12, 2008
Claude from Melbourne, KY
A nice testimony to the capabilities of HD-DVD. Tremendous sound and special effects (esp. in a 7.1 surround theater) with very good cinematography. Movie: OK all the way around. HD-DVD transfer: truly great. Was this review helpful?
5 of 5 Unbelievable! Tuesday, May 29, 2007
A Viewer from Meridian, MS
All I can say is I liked this movie before seeing it in HD but after watching it in HD I have watched it many times. It's great! Was this review helpful?
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