Dangers in the Deep

Greyhound (2020) – An inexperienced captain leads a small task force to protect a World War II convoy across the Atlantic. Repeated attacks from a wolf pack of Nazi submarines interrupt the watchful daily routine.

Directed by Aaron Schneider

Starring Tom Hanks, Elisabeth Shue

Why I Liked It – Low key tension makes this a subtler kind of thriller, where the heroes are every day men doing the best they can.

As a Tom Hanks fan, I notice every movie of his as a general rule. This one slipped under my radar somehow. It should have been doubly tempting since I still enjoy movies about the war, a staple in the years I was growing up. But the COVID-19 outbreak delayed and then canceled the movie’s debut in June of 2020. It was then sold to Apple TV and premiered shortly thereafter. That combination of events led to its disappearance for most of us. Which is too bad, because this is a fine little movie.

Hanks plays U.S. Navy Commander Ernest Krause, the commanding officer of a small multi-nation task force protecting a 37-vessel convoy across the North Atlantic to England. In front of the convoy is the “Black Pit”, a section of the ocean where the convoy is too far from land to get air cover. German U-boats lurk there, waiting to destroy as many of the vessels as they can. Krause has no combat experience prior to this run, and faces decision after decision that place his convoy and the crew of his ship, the “Greyhound”, in mortal danger. It’s a wonderful, low-key thriller that gradually increases the tension relentlessly. When the commander of the wolf-pack that pursues the Greyhound taunts Krause on the radio (a completely unlikely event in real life, but a chilling addition to the movie), the hair stood up on the back of my neck.

The story of the convoys and their destroyer escorts is not well known outside history buff circles. Once the United States entered the war, the most important goal was to increase supplies of food, weapons, fuel, and troops. The most effective way was by ship, and the gap in air cover was a very real danger. Over 3,500 convoy vessels, 175 warships, and more than 72,000 military and merchant seamen died. The Germans lost over 700 submarines, eventually forcing the end of the U-boat campaign. The game of cat and mouse in the dark waters of the Atlantic was a pivotal time in the war. Whoever won at sea would win the war.

This isn’t the epic war movie I grew up watching. Instead, it offers a realistic look at the hours of tension filled quiet, interrupted by noise, fire and death. The heroes here are quiet men doing a thankless, brutal job. There’s even a nod to the absurd, racist attitude towards black navy personnel and their contributions to their ships.

The combination of all the above moves this movie into the discussion of my favorite war movies. It’s a brilliant reminder that the common soldier/sailor/flyer wins more wars than the “big heroes” everyone remembers. It is their effort, and far too often their blood, that turns the tide.

“Greyhound” is a wonderful testament to them all.

Rating – **** Recommended