It is difficult to portray several days of events in two hours of TV, but "Hostile Waters" captured most of the emotions of the situation. It is not a documentary, nor even a docu-drama, but a dramatisation of events that actually occurred. Once again I was impressed with the quality of Rutger Hauer's craft in his portrayal of the Soviet captain who earned the respect of his crew by simply being "the Captain" in every respect (in fact, since the film did depart from the real events far enough, it might have better been titled "The Captain"). I was not wildly impressed by the character portrayed by Martin Sheen: either the director deliberately portrayed the pampered US nuke drivers as insecure martinets, or Sheen acted badly. The juxtaposition of the living conditions aboard the US submarine and the Soviet submarine was obviously done to make a point, but what that point is I do not know, and this is what will make this film a classic for those who want to interpret characterisations in the light of the director's perceived aims.