I think using Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” in a movie about a fatal submarine accident is a little harsh, is all I’m saying.
The Kursk was a Russian sub that sank in the Barents Sea in 2000, eventually killing all 118 sailors aboard. Two explosions from a faulty dummy torpedo killed 95 immediately, but inactivity on the part of the Russian government likely led to the deaths of the others over the next few days. When divers from Norway and Russia were finally sent to the sub 9 days after the explosions, they found the bodies of the survivors crammed into one of the boat’s compartments, along with a list of their names.
This sad tale has been covered in numerous books, documentaries, and TV/feature films over the years. Director Thomas Vinterberg (Far from the Madding Crowd) now gives us the big-money version, with Robert Rodat (Saving Private Ryan; The Patriot) adapting the screenplay from Robert Moore’s book A Time to Die. This English-language version of the story focuses on the families’ efforts to save their loved ones as time is running out. Stars include Matthias Schoenaerts, Léa Seydoux, Colin Firth, and the ever-welcome Max von Sydow.
The Command/Kursk will be released in the US on June 21, after premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival last September.
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