I will be the first to admit, I thought U-571 was based on true events when I first saw it in theaters back in 2000. In my defense, I was also 11 years old at the time. Over the years, I’ve since learned that instead of being one of the most realistic war movies, Jonathan Mostow’s World War II submarine thriller is instead a military drama filled with inaccuracies and misrepresentations of historical events.
With U-571 having been added to Netflix in September 2023, I decided to go back and watch the movie for the first time in more than a quarter-century, partly because I wanted to see if it still held up as well as to see if the historical accuracies would hamper my experience. Let’s see how it turned out…
Let's Get It Out Of The Way - U-571 Completely Rewrites History
Here’s a little context for those who have never watched U-571. The movie follows a group of American submariners as they hunt down a damaged German submarine in an attempt to steal one of the Nazis’ enigma machines (remember the machine from The Imitation Game?) to decipher secret codes.
But here’s the thing, British forces had already secured one of the devices and started the process of breaking the code months before the movie was set, months before America joined the war effort. Following the film’s release, people around the world, especially high-ranking officials in the United Kingdom (who actually secured one of the devices in 1941), were not pleased, with the BBC reporting that Tony Blair, the Prime Minister at the time, called the movie an “affront” to British sailors.
The Cast, Especially Matthew McConaughey And Harvey Keitel, Is Perfect
A lot of the great war movies have one thing in common, and that is that they typically feature large ensembles of talented actors. That can be said for U-571, as this WWII submarine thriller features an impressive ensemble of actors.
The justified anger and annoyance of McConaughey’s Andrew Tyler (getting his time to shine after being overlooked for a post), Paxton’s Mike Dahlgren (making a great sacrifice to save his crew), and Keitel’s Henry Klough (being a stern, yet calming presence) are all well-rounded characters brought to life by the tremendously talented actors.
Even looking beyond those three, the supporting cast is superb – especially Jake Weber as Michael Hirsch, a superior officer role who feels like the Lieutenant William Gorman character in James Cameron’s Aliens. The same can be said about The Sandlot star Tom Guiry in his understated performance as Ted "Trigger" Fitzgerald. Hell, even Jon Bon Jovi is great.
The Prologue With The German Crew Adds So Much Tension And Foreshadows Some Of The Movie's Biggest Moments
I’m a sucker for a great prologue, and U-571 features an all-timer. Set during the Battle of the Atlantic (a continuous campaign lasting more than five years), the first eight minutes of the movie center on the German crew of the U-571 submarine as its engines are damaged, leaving it as nothing more than a sitting duck for Allied attacks.
Not only is it a great way to open a movie, this sequence also introduces a lot of the concepts that will be in play throughout the film – especially the depth charges. Though not as intense or stretched out as the scene that comes later in the story, the introduction of this explosive device is presented masterfully with the perfect combination of action, tension, and fear.
The Depth Charge Sequence Is Terrifying, Intense, And Incredible
I’m getting out of order, I know, but I just have to talk about the second depth charge sequence in U-571. Though I had forgotten the specifics of the movie over the years, this is a scene that has pretty much floated around in my head for the better part of the last quarter-century. I’m not going to try to explain to you how depth charges work because I still don’t know all the ins and outs of the devastating underwater bomb. What I do know is that this extended set piece near the end of the movie is awesome.
This tense cat-and-mouse game played by the American submariners and the German destroyer has everything you’d want in a battle but also enough deviation from the norm to offer something fresh. At times loud and chaotic and others quiet and unnerving, this scene has it all.
The S-33 Sinking Sequence Is Just So Chaotic
Another great sequence comes about halfway through the movie when the American crew of S-33 attempts to board U-571 in an attempt to steal the enigma machine and complete the mission. Everything goes to hell in a handbasket when another German submarine shows up in the middle of a nighttime storm and fires a torpedo at the American sub. I honestly had to go back and rewatch this scene another time to make sense of the chaos and figure out who lives and who dies during the explosion.
You could say this chaos and uncertainty is a bad thing and takes you out of the movie, but this scene is something else. From the great work of the late Bill Paxton telling the crew to leave him behind and save themselves on U-571, to Matthew McConaughey finally getting his moment to shine, to people getting hit with massive pieces of debris in the dark of night, there’s just so much going on.
Watching U-571 Again Was A Surprisingly Nostalgic Experience
Overall, watching U-571 for the first time in decades was a surprisingly nostalgic experience, one that took me on a trip down memory lane. A lot has changed since my childhood best friend’s mom dropped us off at the theater, both in my life and the way movies are made.
It was fun to go back and experience a movie that very much feels like a product of its time – an almost simpler movie that lays it all out in the early goings without a need to be overly complex with its story. Sure, it’s not as epic or thought-provoking as something like All Quiet on the Western Front, but it’s still great. And who knows, maybe you’ll text that old buddy of yours and talk about other movies you used to watch back then like Valentine and The Skulls. Oh, the memories.
If you’re looking for a great way to spend a couple of hours and watch a war movie that takes some creative liberties when it comes to historical events, U-571 is going to do the trick. The movie is currently streaming for anyone with a Netflix subscription, so give it a shot.
