It is actually quite funny how often one would see Harrison Ford’s visage staring at them from a movie poster or a DVD cover during the late 90’s or early 2000’s. Clear and Present Danger, The Devil’s Own, Air Force One, Random Hearts, and K-19: The Widowmaker all have a stern Mr. Ford affixing his steely glance on us from the poster/box art.
In many ways, I believe this is why I and many others overlooked this movie during its original release in 2002. As a viewing audience, I believe we had hit our “Harrison Ford” and “Tom Clancy” saturation point by 2002, and a quick glace at the movie poster or DVD cover gave little indication that it was anything other than another movie of this genre. That the movie had such a poor title likely didn’t add to its appeal, and it was ultimately a financial mess, failing to recoup its $100 million production budget.
However, with director Kathryn Bigelow winning the Best Director Academy Award for The Hurt Locker, it was inevitable that this film would receive the Blu-ray treatment. And reading the box and discovering that this movie was actually based around a true story of Soviet heroism in the 1960’s made me disappointed that I had not given this movie an opportunity in 2002.
Film 
As a film viewer, I do have a soft spot for those in the military. Some of my family served in World War II, and I have always admired the brave souls who are willing to sacrifice their lives for a greater ideal than self. This can also apply to those on the other side of the Cold War; those who themselves had a way of life and families that they loved and wanted to protect.
To truly enjoy this move, this is the mindset one must adopt: these are not the evil Soviets, instead they are soldiers and seaman, doing their duty for their families and country, and acting as honorably as they can under the circumstances. And in today’s world of uncertainty and threats from virtually anywhere, one can almost remember the Cold War fondly; although the Soviets were our enemy, they agreed to the rules of engagement, and we knew who they were.
This aside, the movie is a very (very) loose adaptation of the true history of submarine K-19, the first Soviet nuclear-powered sub which was capable of launching ICBMs to attack cities on the U.S. Eastern seaboard. Rushed into service for political reasons, we are warned early in the movie that Soviet build quality is not very good. Couple this with a nuclear reactor, and a nickname “The Widowmaker (earned by the untimely deaths of workers and crew during its build), and we can easily see where the plot will be going.
Much of the movie centres on the interaction of Capt. Vostrikov (Ford) and Capt. Polenin (Liam Neeson). Captain Polenin was the commanding officer of the boat, but was replaced before its maiden voyage by Captain Vostrikov, due to authorities stating that “Captain Polenin was putting his life and the lives of his crew before the Party.” Whereas Captain Polenin is a kind-hearted officer who treats his crew like family, Captain Vostrikov is a hard task master who drives the crew through incessant drills, and questionable or dangerous manoeuvers.
The two officers are played nicely against each other, all against the backdrop of an increasingly tense crew in a very claustrophobic setting. And we know that it is only a matter of time before the third main character (the nuclear reactor) rears its head and impresses its will upon the crew.
For a war-type movie, this film is surprising devoid of action. Only emergency measures being taken on the submarine have a kinetic pace – this is much more of a verbally-driven suspense film. The enemy itself is also invisible as radiation does not possess guns, subs, or tanks; instead we only see its effect on the crew.
Director Bigelow does an excellent job conveying the feel of being on a submarine, through the darkness that tinges the edges of every indoor shot and the cramped and claustrophobic set design. The lead actors are also superb in their interplay with each other, and each effectively represents one side of the duality that exists in every commanding officer.
Where the film falls short is in its pacing. At 138 minutes it is far too overlong, and does tend to drag in the middle. Time could have saved in the development of the secondary characters; this is illustrated by the sympathy we feel for Chief (an heroic but undeveloped tertiary character) compared to what we feel for the developed character of Vadim (Peter Sarsgaard).
Overall, this is quite a substantial movie, well-acted, and authentically filmed. Is it a great movie? No, but it is much better than a lot of movies I’ve seen recently (yes, I’m looking at you, Paul Blart). In hidsight, one has to wonder if something as simple as a different title (and a poster with a sub, radiation symbol and a hammer and sickle) could have improved this film’s fortunes. Oddly enough, the nickname “The Widowmaker” was never applied to the real K-19; its actual nickname was “Hiroshima”, applied after its nuclear accident.
Video 
In watching the film, I am forced to wonder if Paramount rushed out this release to take advantage of Ms. Bigelow’s current ascendancy. The video quality is surprisingly soft for a movie released in the 2000’s, with excessive grain appearing in many of the submarine’s indoor shots.
On outdoor shots, black tones have little detail, with an excessive level of contrast. Indoor shots have a soft, almost yellowish tone, with excessive contrast again reducing the black detail. In one scene of Harrison Ford on the bridge, there is actually very noticeable and distracting noise speckling on his cheeks.
Although this movie offers decent visuals, it appears to have not had any additional clean up for its Blu-ray release. Overall, it falls short of my expectations for a Blu-ray from this era.
Audio 
The Dolby TrueHD 5.1 audio presentation of this movie was much better than the visuals. Like most “talky” thrillers, it was quite front loaded, though a close listen showed excellent use of ambient sounds to replicate the submarine’s environment. In fact, I believe that these sounds subconsciously add to the feeling of claustrophobia experienced by the viewer.
When the LFE channel kicks in, it is rather startling, as it is used very judiciously throughout the movie. However, the dynamic range was well mixed, and its use should not have you reaching for the remote. Speech levels through the centre channel were also mixed well.
Special Features
As a military buff, I can honestly acknowledge that I have likely over-rated the special features on this disc. Despite being in SD, I loved the featurette “The Making of K-19: The Widowmaker” which was 20 minutes of the true story behind the movie, the logistics of the filming, the refurbishment of an actual decrepit Soviet sub for the filming, and bits of information from the cast.
Other extras are not quite so grand, including a middle-of-the-road commentary track, a short featurette on makeup used (including the radiation burns, something that gives me the heebie-jeebies), a short featurette on the K-19 breaking through ice (which was a poor effect, by the way), the trailer, and an eleven minute feature on attempts to make the move as authentic as possible. The latter three featurettes and the commentary appear to be hold overs from the 2002 DVD release.
Final Thoughts
As a fan of military-themed movies, I am comfortable in stating that K-19: The Widowmaker is still an enjoyable movie. Tense, claustrophobic, well acted, and compelling, it is both entertaining, and a reminder of a Cold War that has disappeared surprisingly quickly in our rearview mirrors.
Unfortunately, the movie could have been served better in its Blu-ray release with a cleaner video transfer and a few new bonus features. For owners of the DVD, there is not a great incentive to upgrade to the Blu-ray. For others, this movie is at least worth a rent.
