K-19: The Widowmaker

In 1961 the coolant system fails on K-19, one of the Soviet Union's first nuclear submarines. The crew have to go into the reactor and make repairs by hand without proper protection, taking fatal doses of radiation. Kathryn Bigelow directed. Harrison Ford plays Captain Vostrikov and Liam Neeson the former captain Polenin. Ford later named it among the roles he is proudest of. The real crew were the hardest part of the production. Surviving K-19 veterans objected to an early draft and called for Russian cooperation with the filmmakers to end. Fifty-two of them attended the Russian premiere in October 2002 and praised the film, and Ford's performance in particular, while noting the historical and technical compromises. There is also the name. After the accident on 3 July 1961 the boat was actually nicknamed Hiroshima, not The Widowmaker. Against a budget between 90 and 100 million dollars it grossed 65.7 million worldwide, and was one of the most expensive independent films made to that point. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 60 percent and CinemaScore audiences gave it a B. Who it is for: viewers who like submarine films and decisions made under institutional pressure. Who it is not for: anyone bothered by Russian characters speaking accented English. That is the film's most criticised choice.