U-571
OVERALL:
ASPECT RATIO(S)
16x9 Widescreen (2.35:1)
SOUND MIX
FEATURES
STUDIO
RECOMMENDATION
Dolby Digital 5.1
DTS 5.1
- Audio Commentary with Director ��Jonathan Mostow
- Spotlight on Location Featurette
- Creating and Constructing U-571 ��Featurette
- Inside the Enigma Featurette
- Interviews
- Newsreel Footage
- Theatrical Trailers
- Production Notes
- Cast & Crew Bios
Universal
Buy it!
GRADING SCALE
Film 
Features
Audio
Video
Without getting too much into the plot, Matthew McConaughey is a young Lt. who's been passed over to command his own sub. Eventually, he and some of his crew members manage to get on board damaged German U-boat, which has an Enigma machine that is used to cypher messages. McConaughey and his men have disguised themselves as German officers and must take over the sub before the German rescuers arrive.
And now they have ceased control of the sub, a large German destroyer heads fast for the now-American sub. As the crew dodges cannons, and diving underwater, praying that the hundreds of depth charges the Nazis are throwing overboard doesn't blast them to bits, you begin to feel the intensity at full throttle.
Mostow should have been credited more for his BREAKDOWN, which combines not only action, but just sheer suspense. He also succeeds with this movie, even more. You will appreciate more for being a big budget action film rather than a DAS BOOT type film. The movie's total lack of glamour was also very nice to see, as most of Hollywood's action movies are ruined by all the gloss.
Features
The success of "U-571" garnered it the collector's edition treatment from Universal. What we get here are 3 featurettes on the film. All are interesting. We also get a full-length commentary from Jonathan Mostow, who really put alot of heart in making this picture. No deleted scenes here, which is a minor drawback.
Audio
Who cares about features when you get to pick between DD 5.1 and DTS tracks. I've listened to the DTS track and can easily say it is one of the noisest, loudest, deepest, fullest mixes I have ever heard. There is sound constanly going on in this movie. The depth charges' explosions is murder on your ears, the ocean water's sound pans from left to right in the rear section, and the machine gun firing will have you diving overboard. This is truly a great sounding movie and the dvd is reference quality. One of the top 3 audio demonstrations on this format. Excellent.
Video
The audio will get all the glory, but the video isn't too shabby either. We're treated to a terrific looking picture, with solid coloring and a print that is free of dust. This is a dirty picture, but it doesn't lose any resolution or detail. Flawless.
Overall
This is another of those must-have dvds. A very exciting story combined with a great picture and one of the greatest sound mixes easily makes this a recommendation. Experience U-571 in all its DTS glory. Buy it now!