K-19: The Widowmaker (2002) on Netflix
PG-1320022h 18mDramaHistoryThriller
The Soviet Union launches the nuclear submarine K-19 under Captain Alexei Vostrikov, with executive officer Mikhail Polenin aboard. When it malfunctions, the crew must prevent a nuclear disaster.
- Netflix3.6/5
- IMDb6.7/1072,958 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes60%
Trailer
Plot summary
It's the height of the 1960's Cold War, and Russia launches the K-19, a flagship nuclear submarine. Aboard this submarine are Captain Alexei Vostrikov and popular executive officer Mikhail Polenin. Tension can easily be felt between the two, as they constantly clash, but both share the unwavering patriotism. When the vessel's nuclear reactor system begins to leak, the two men and their crew must become brave countrymen and work together before all is lost.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about K-19: The Widowmaker (2002)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The nickname “The Widowmaker” was used only in the film. In real life the submarine had no nickname at all until the nuclear accident on July 3, 1961, after which it was known as “Hiroshima”.
- K-19 was portrayed in the film by K-77, a Soviet submarine launched in the 1960s. After the production the K-77 was opened as a museum ship in Providence, Rhode Island, until it sank in a storm in 2007.
- The producers made efforts to work with the original crew of the K-19, but the veterans took exception to the first version of the script available to them and called for an end to Russian cooperation with the filmmakers.
- The film cost between $90 and $100 million and was not financed by a major studio, National Geographic Films was a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Geographic Society, which made it one of the most expensive independent films to date.
