PRODUCTION INFORMATION
Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson star in a thrilling drama about what
many believe to be the most dangerous time in global history. Not
unlike today, it was a time when the only mechanism for peace was
mutually assured destruction, and people around the world felt tension
on a daily basis. The story is inspired by a chilling event that happened
in 1961 during the Cold War when the Soviet Union had enough nuclear
weapons to destroy the world two times over and the United States
had the nuclear power to destroy the world ten times over. As schoolchildren
were taught to “duck and cover” under their desks and parents
built bomb shelters in their backyards, each nation continued to add
to its nuclear stockpile…waiting for who would strike first.
“K-19:
The Widowmaker” is not a film about war but about the courage
it takes not to go to war. It is about military muscle, mind and
heart. It is also about a world in which technology is king and
sacrifice in the name of national security is common. It exemplifies
the duty a soldier feels toward his nation and his countrymen, and
lays bare the burden of responsibility a leader feels for those
under his command. And finally, it is about how easily tragedies
can occur in wartime or anytime by accident, by machine malfunction…or
by human error.
Inspired
by a true story, the film follows the heroism of Captain Alexei
Vostrikov (Harrison Ford) who, at the height of the Cold War, is
ordered to take command of the nuclear missile submarine K-19 away
from its original commander Captain Mikhail Polenin (Liam Neeson).
Vostrikov’s mission is to quickly ready the ill-prepared sub
for her maiden voyage -- no matter what the cost.
But
Vostrikov, Polenin and K-19’s loyal crew can never imagine
all that is expected of them. Neither can they fathom what the price
of failure might be for them and for the world when a nuclear reactor
malfunctions, threatening a core meltdown and an explosion that
will certainly kill all aboard. As they glide beneath the Arctic
seas, it is the crew’s collective bravery and Vostrikov’s
daring embrace of his duty toward his country and his men which
will ultimately save K-19. . . and stave off what surely would have
been a nuclear disaster.
ABOUT
THE STORY
Loved
and trusted by his men, respected as the most experienced submarine
captain in the Soviet Navy, Captain Mikhail Polenin (Neeson) is
removed from command of K-19 when the Soviet leadership decides
he isn’t readying their flagship sub fast enough for her maiden
voyage. In his place, the naval brass summons Captain Alexei Vostrikov
(Ford), a strictly “mission-oriented” officer with an
iron will, who takes K-19 out to sea precisely on schedule at 1600
hours on June 18, 1961.
Polenin,
due to his practical knowledge of the sub, remains on board as Vostrikov’s
executive officer, and the two clash repeatedly. They do, however,
have one thing in common: Each is dedicated to the Navy and to the
country they serve.
Once
under way, Vostrikov tests K-19 and the crew to the utmost degree,
conducting drill after drill, driving the submarine and the men
to the edge by plunging toward maximum diving depth, then beyond,
barely short of the fatal “crush depth,” nearly 1,000
feet under the sea.
At
last the mentally, emotionally and physically taxing sea trials
end with the successful launch of a test missile. Then a fateful
order comes from Moscow: K-19 is to head westward, slipping past
NATO bases to take up its Cold War patrol station a mere 400 kilometers
off the U.S. coastline…between Washington, D.C., and New York.
Unaware
that the submarine has been crippled, steadfast Captain Vostrikov
obeys the Motherland, taking K-19 and his men on what could be their
last voyage. For on July 4, 1961, with the patrol mission scarcely
under way, a disaster of global magnitude strikes: the atomic submarine’s
reactor cooling system springs a leak, and the reactor core slowly,
relentlessly heats up. If it reaches 1,000 degrees the reactor could
melt, with catastrophic results. Sealed and intensely radioactive,
the reactor compartment, if opened, would send massive amounts of
radiation throughout the ship. And yet, it must be done, for an
eruption of the reactor could set off missile warheads, and a nuclear
explosion so close to a NATO base could trigger World War III.
THE PRODUCTION
According to director/producer Kathryn Bigelow, the story of what
happened to K-19 and her crew had everything an action-thriller
needed built right into the actual events as they took place during
the Cold War. And, since that war was fought on a mental battlefield
rather than a physical one, the film, drawn from public sources
and historical record, is that much more intriguing and unique.
“The
story had all the elements for a dramatic movie,” says Bigelow,
who went to Russia prior to filming to talk with K-19’s survivors
and their families. “It had a built-in ‘ticking clock’
suspense factor; that is, a nuclear submarine with an impending
reactor meltdown that could cause catastrophic global repercussions.
It had, at its center, a ferociously dedicated and charismatic captain,
whose bold decisions under pressure saved the boat and its crew.
And above all, it had the courageous young submariners themselves,
who knowingly subjected themselves to a lethal dose of radiation
to repair the damage and fend off disaster.”
Caught
up in making “K-19: The Widowmaker” for five years, Bigelow
says that she feels privileged to have conducted extensive research
with the people whose lives were touched by the K-19 disaster, and
she was inspired by their stories to make a film that shows their
compelling sacrifice and humanity.
“Our film examines the heroism, courage and prowess of the
Soviet submarine force in ways never seen before,” adds Bigelow.
“It is a fascinating tale of ordinary people who became heroes
when faced with a tragic situation. Capturing the nobility of their
sacrifice has been the primary motivation for everyone involved
in making this film.”
Approximately
50 actors were assembled to portray the crew of K-19 and the Soviet
military leaders. In order to show faces reflective of the diverse
nationalities that made up the Soviet Union, Bigelow drew on talent
from Canada, Iceland, England, Russia and Hollywood, making the
cast uniquely international.
According
to Harrison Ford, who stars as Captain Alexei Vostrikov, a character
inspired by an actual Captain aboard K-19, what initially interested
him in the project is that it depicts the Russian experience during
the Cold War, something that he believes Hollywood has never seen.
“There
are no good guys versus bad guys in this story, no politics,”
says Ford. “Our goal was to have audiences come to an appreciation
of those who served on K-19. As in any group, there were all kinds
of people on board. But when threatened with a terrible situation,
they came together with heroic and selfless behavior. When the time
came, they did their duty.”
Co-star
Liam Neeson, who plays Mikhail Polenin, a character inspired by
the acting Executive Officer of K-19, agrees, adding that “K-19”
afforded the cast an opportunity to portray heroism in a timeless
way.
“There
are great human dynamics in this story,” says Neeson. “Under
incredible stress, faced with death, these men summon a sense of
duty and commitment to each other and to all of humanity.”
“K-19:
The Widowmaker” was filmed in Moscow during February of 2001.
Happily, however, because of the post-Cold War thaw in Russian-American
relations, the production team was allowed access to film inside
government buildings and public spaces, with cooperation from Russian
authorities and assistance from the country’s military establishment.
In addition, a former Soviet submarine captain joined the crew through
principal photography, working alongside a naval technical adviser
to lend maximum authenticity to portrayals of naval practice and
shipboard operations.
While
filming was under way, costume designer Marit Allen worked under
great time pressure to complete more than 400 naval uniforms worn
by the ill-fated submarine’s crew. So many uniforms were necessary
because each actor required several changes of costume, from full-dress
uniform to shipboard working dungarees. Made by Russian workers,
the uniforms were identical to those used during the Cold War, right
down to the fabric.
When
filming in Russia was completed, the production moved directly to
Canada’s Lake Winnipeg for two days. There, the frozen lake’s
surface provided a convincingly harsh stand-in for the Arctic Ocean
ice pack. The cast and crew then moved to Toronto, where the submarine-interior
sequences were filmed. Additional location shooting took place at
Halifax, Nova Scotia, where the snow-covered Halifax Shipyards facility
served as the Soviet naval base at Murmansk.
Following
more interior work in Toronto, the production went back to Halifax,
which served as a base for shooting in the open North Atlantic.
Principal photography was completed in June 2001, after which director/producer
Bigelow returned to Los Angeles for post-production editing and
special effects work.
RECREATING HISTORY
Although “K-19: The Widowmaker” is first and foremost
a human story of courage, duty and impossible decisions, its roots
in historical fact presented exceptional challenges. Recreating
the actual nuclear submarine was a feat unto itself. Toward that
end, precisely detailed reproductions of ten submarine compartments
were built. Authentic down to the smallest knob and dial, K-19’s
interior is replete with Russian-language label plates and a maze
of pipes. To achieve even more authenticity, production designers
Kalli Juliusson and Michael Novotny went so far as to commission
a Toronto company to create a complete set of dinnerware when a
full complement of real naval dishes was unavailable.
But
extremely authentic interior scenes alone were not enough. The exterior
of the K-19 had to be thoroughly true to life as well. Since “the
actual K-19 lies in a Russian ship graveyard, poisonous and decaying,
unable to be revived even by Hollywood,” according to producer
Edward S. Feldman, a new one had to be “cast” to play
the role of the ill-fated sub. Producer Joni Sighvatsson began negotiations
to borrow an old Soviet submarine on display in St. Petersburg,
Florida.
“It
became very confusing,” says Sighvatsson. “When I told
people on the phone I was in St. Petersburg, they never knew if
I was in Florida trying to secure the sub or in St. Petersburg,
Russia, doing research. Ultimately, the deal went through and we
towed the ship from Florida to maritime Canada. We faced so many
major hurdles before the cameras even began to roll.”
As
producer and Executive Vice President of Production for National
Geographic Feature Films Christine Whitaker notes, “The Florida
submarine was smaller and a different class of submarine than K-19,
but by the time our production designers did their magic, it looked
like the genuine item.”
Filming
at sea required director/producer Kathryn Bigelow to become a makeshift
admiral, with an armada of almost 20 vessels and an army of marine
experts under her command. In addition to the newly built replica
of the K-19 itself, other important ships in Bigelow’s production
fleet were a decommissioned Canadian sub, reconfigured to play the
Soviet vessel that was dispatched to rescue the K-19, and the Canadian
ship Terra Nova, cast as the American destroyer USS Decatur. Also
under Bigelow’s command was the barge supporting a replica
of the K-19 conning tower, a huge lifeboat, five tugs, a camera
boat, two catering vessels, a fast transfer boat, six speedy Zodiacs,
two large crafts for production personnel and a boat for the art
and special effects departments – literally a flotilla of vessels
all important for a successful shoot.
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