Why Denzel Washington vs Gene Hackman thriller Crimson Tide remains relevant 30 years on
This is the latest instalment in our From the Vault feature series, in which we reflect on culturally significant movies celebrating notable anniversaries.
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Thirty years after its release in May 1995, Tony Scott's submarine thriller feels terrifyingly timely.
The film that saw one of the last great roles for Gene Hackman,
who died in February , posits a world on the verge of World War III because of a conflict in Eastern Europe. Swap civil unrest in Chechnya for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and it could have been plucked from today's headlines.
Scott (1944-2012) was a British filmmaker known for testosterone-fuelled action films such as
Top Gun , also produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer.
Although Crimson Tide retains the team's usual trademarks – hyperactive editing, fetishised military hardware, lots of men shouting at each other – they are always in service of the story.
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