Tom Hanks in Greyhound

[samsnee]

Tom Hanks on surviving coronavirus: 'I had crippling body aches, fatigue and couldn't concentrate'

“But Greyhound has been an especial labour of love for him, one he sweated over for almost a decade, and it is one of those sweeping war movies that really should be seen on the big screen. So the change in plans has been, he says, “an absolute heartbreak. I don’t mean to make angry my Apple overlords, but there is a difference in picture and sound quality.”

 

[DKDetective]

Something about this looks a little cheap and Emmerich-esque for some reason.

Is this the first time Tom Hanks has written a movie?

Also I can't quite take Hanks seriously saying hard-ass lines like "we'll rain hell down from on high".

I'm a huge WWII buff though, and there's not many about the war in the Atlantic, so I'll check it out.

Necro-reply, but it seems your gut instinct was right on in terms of the film based on the reviews:
Greyhound - Movie Reviews
The percentage of fresh reviews is surprisingly high, but most of them are in the 2.5/5 or 3/5 range.

Mine was much the same, but I was hoping for it to be good because I love submarine/naval dramas. My favourite film of all time is Das Boot and Sink the Bismarck is also a favourite (which is an adaptation of a C.S. Forester book as well). It seems it is a 90 min CGI extravaganza without much character development, which is really disappointing because the novel is very much a character study of the captain. Sadly, I had a bad feeling as soon as I saw the trailers. The over the top CGI and action was just not a good fit for a serious naval thriller. It shows too much. Submarine drama work best when you can see little. It is all about the tension. I'm also sick of our ADHD culture. Large ships did not speed and bounce around like fighter planes. They move relatively slowly with a lot of weight and inertia. (A big problem with the Abrams and post-Abrams Star Trek.)

Hanks does have a decent screenwriting track record for television in addition to the other examples listed. He wrote a good chunk of the acclaimed miniseries From the Earth to the Moon as well as one of the episodes of Band of Brothers. He also was the showrunner for Band of Brother and I believe The Pacific (if I'm not mistaken) so his writing credits are respectable.

 

[Mysteryman]

So, has anybody here seen it? How is it?

 

[samsnee]

Yeah it was a snooze fest. Definitely won’t rank in the top 5 of submarine thriller movies

 

[DarkKnight88]

I had a fear it would be when they just dumped it on streaming instead of delaying its theatrical release.

 

[KaijuDude1992]

I mean at the end of the day I didn't think it was anything special either, but I wouldn't call it boring. There is plenty of action throughout and it moves at a great pace and the acting isn't too bad either with Tom Hanks doing most of the heavy lifting and carrying it pretty well, but other than the well done battle sequences this is kind of a forgettable film honestly. You are probably just better off re-watching films like Saving Private Ryan or The Hunt For the Red October which are obviously some of the best films in the war/submarine genre.

7/10

 

[DKDetective]

I mean at the end of the day I didn't think it was anything special either, but I wouldn't call it boring. There is plenty of action throughout and it moves at a great pace and the acting isn't too bad either with Tom Hanks doing most of the heavy lifting and carrying it pretty well, but other than the well done battle sequences this is kind of a forgettable film honestly. You are probably just better off re-watching films like Saving Private Ryan or The Hunt For the Red October which are obviously some of the best films in the war/submarine genre.

7/10

Nah, for great submarine action, Das Boot, has no peer. For a great film about a US destroyer escort against German U-Boats, The Enemy Below, is a classic for a reason.

 

[DarkKnight88]

Can’t go wrong with either Das Boot OR Hunt for Red October. I also love, while lesser than those two, Crimson Tide.

It’s hard to make the inside geography and look of a submarine exciting. Many have come off very dull. Hats off to any filmmaker that pulls it off.

 

[SPO2 Dalisay]

Nah, for great submarine action, Das Boot, has no peer. For a great film about a US destroyer escort against German U-Boats, The Enemy Below, is a classic for a reason.

As Greyhound is not a submarine movie but a movie focusing on the sub hunters fighting an enemy striking out of nowhere I would nominate The Bedford Incident even if it was supposed to be the Cold War only or The Cruel Sea for fighting the mostly unseen enemy.

For looking at both sides as mostly honorable foes I can't remember which I saw first The Enemy Below of the Balance of Terror on Star Trek

 

[KaijuDude1992]

Never heard or seen Das Boot, but hearing you guys mention it has definitely piqued my interest. The only submarine films I have seen and enjoyed are The Hunt for the Red October, Crimson Tide, U-571, K-19 and Below which is actually pretty damn good horror submarine film from the director of Pitch Black.

 

[SPO2 Dalisay]

Never heard or seen Das Boot, but hearing you guys mention it has definitely piqued my interest. The only submarine films I have seen and enjoyed are The Hunt for the Red October, Crimson Tide, U-571, K-19 and Below which is actually pretty damn good horror submarine film from the director of Pitch Black.

Back in the day even though Das Boot began life as a TV miniseries it was seen as ground breaking as Saving Private Ryan in its day. In trying to drill down a miniseries to a movie and subtitled at that it seemed longer than the old epics like Lawrence of Arabia. being able to break it up for a home viewing worked better than a straight theatrical watch.

 

[DKDetective]

Never heard or seen Das Boot, but hearing you guys mention it has definitely piqued my interest. The only submarine films I have seen and enjoyed are The Hunt for the Red October, Crimson Tide, U-571, K-19 and Below which is actually pretty damn good horror submarine film from the director of Pitch Black.

It is quite literally my favourite film of all time. @SPO2 Dalisay is quite right to say it is the Saving Private Ryan of naval war films. It changed everything. The director's cut is the best version to watch. It is a pretty great compromise between the longer miniseries version and the theatrical version and I would say the definite version of the film. Here is a great trailer to get you psyched:


The one thing I would mention is that the seeming length and deliberate pacing is intentional. Part of the film's greatness is that it shows the slow, tedium of being out on patrol at sea during war. War at sea is characterized by long, boring periods of inactivity punctuated by sudden moments of action. I think it works wonderfully well in a single sitting, theatrical style viewing. The soundtrack is also brilliant. Such wonderful use of just iconic leitmotifs.