Hunter Killer

Deep under the Arctic Ocean, American submarine Captain Joe Glass (Gerard Butler) is searching for a sunken U.S. submarine when he hears distress sounds emanating from a nearby Russian sub that has been sabotaged from within. After a daring mission that rescues Captain Andropov (Michael Nyqvist), Glass discovers that the destruction of both the U.S. and Russian subs was part of a coup, a power ploy by the Russian Defense Minister (Mikhail Gorevoy), who is holding their president (Alexander Diachenko) hostage. Meanwhile in the Situation Room at the White House, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs (Gary Oldman) is urging the president (Caroline Goodall) to retaliate, an impetuous move that might start World War III. But Rear Admiral John Fisk (Common), supported by the NSA advisor (Linda Cardellini), has another idea. If Glass and a crack team of black-ops Navy SEALS can kidnap the Russian president and bring him safely back on the American sub, a nuclear catastrophe will be avoided. So Glass and his apprehensive crew will try to sneak through a booby-trapped Russian fjord under Captain Andropov’s guidance. Based on the 2012 novel Firing Point, director Donovan Marsh’s Hunter Killer is both cliché-ridden and hampered by Butler’s usual wooden performance. Optional. (S. Granger)