A respectable entry in the "sub" genre, largely due to Hackman and Washington.
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After WWII, war movies remained popular, and a veritable "sub"genre evolved featuring the men who served aboard submarines. Whether it was Robert Mitchum manning the periscope in "The Enemy Below," Glenn Ford in "Torpedo Run," Clark Gable in "Run Silent, Run Deep," James Garner in "Up Periscope," or Cary Grant in "Destination Tokyo," the films all had one thing in common: in such close quarters and with such a small and restricted space, the emphasis was on character and psychological tension. That's something even action film impresario Jerry Bruckheimer couldn't change, as we see in "Crimson Tide" (1995)--a nuclear nail-biter which followed in the wake of another submarine thriller, "The Hunt for Red October" (1990).
This time it's Gene Hackman giving the orders to go to periscope depth . . . and Denzel Washington. Hackman and Washington turn in typically solid performances as an old-school, battle-hardened captain and his executive officer, a first-time combat sailor who has an extreme difference of opinion on the course of action to take when their order to launch missiles at Russia is only half-confirmed. As far as they both know, a rogue Russian general who's seized control of a nuclear base will have figured out the launch code within the hour and could be airmailing a package to the U.S. Then again, the rebels may have been contained, and their broken radio just might not have picked it up. And what's up with that other sub in the area? The bottom line, and the source of conflict is, if they launch a pre-emptive strike and the rebels have surrendered, will the first-strike start WWIII? And if they don't launch, will the rogue Russian annihilate major cities in the U.S.? It's not an easy call, and we wonder all along the way who the men will side with. It makes for a tense time in the old tin-can, and "Crimson Tide" is solidly in the claustrophobic tradition of those submarine dramas that came before it, including perhaps the most celebrated of them all, the German-made "Das Boot."
The action takes place aboard the nuclear-powered and nuclear-armed USS Alabama, whose athletic team nickname is the Crimson Tide--hence the title. In a further 'Bama tribute, Captain Frank Ramsey (Hackman) has a Jack Russell terrier that he takes with him everywhere, even aboard the submarine. The dog's name? Bear, an obvious allusion to legendary Alabama football coach Bear Bryant.
"Sopranos" fans will enjoy seeing a slimmed-down James Gandolfini as one of the crew, along with Viggo Mortensen ("Eastern Promises") and TV's Rick Schroder ("Silver Spoons"). And while some of the sub gadgets and gizmos are just that, director Tony Scott ("Top Gun") brought onboard a technical advisor who served on the real USS Alabama to keep things from getting too Hollywood.
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[release]22866[/release]