The Commander (15)

Subtitled

Edoardo de Angelis’ patriotic true story of non-fascist Italian decency during the Battle of the Atlantic.

WWII marine officer Salvatore Todaro (Pierfrancesco Favino) commands the Italian Royal Navy submarine Cappellini. He is a reluctant soldier, more at home on the sea than in the chaos of war. When his submarine unexpectedly engages an unknown enemy and sinks what turns out to be the Belgian vessel Kabalo, Todaro makes the decision to rescue the surviving Belgian crew. He brings them aboard the Cappellini and sets course for a safe location, despite the risks involved.

It’s an engaging, straightforward narrative, less intense than Das Boot and closer in tone to The Cruel Sea. Favino brings a natural, powerful masculinity to his role and it is very much his film. The choice to selectively highlight a moment of selfless heroism, portraying an Italian officer who defied fascist orders to help the enemy, demonstrates the complexity of individual moral courage amidst wartime and neatly sidesteps what could otherwise be seen as whitewashing Italy’s fascist past. A sturdily made, well-minded film that gets the job done