'Greyhound': Tom Hanks war flick has action, but little else

If there’s anything Americans can agree on right now, it’s that Tom Hanks starring in a World War II movie is a great idea. Hanks, unscathed by sexual scandals or ancient Twitter bigotry over his 40-year career, is one of Hollywood’s last universally beloved good guys. In his new film, “Greyhound,” he’s fighting America’s last universally beloved war — echoes of his acclaimed turn in 1998’s “Saving Private Ryan.” Adding to the promise of “Greyhound,” Hanks also wrote the screenplay, working from C.S. Forester’s 1955 novel “The Good Shepherd.”

“Greyhound” is a just-the-facts recreation of life on a Navy destroyer in 1942. Hanks has cast himself perfectly as Ernest Krause, an end-of-career officer suddenly put in charge of the USS Keeling, code-named Greyhound. For his first-ever command, Krause is sent smack into the middle of the Atlantic to protect Allied transport ships from Germany’s diabolical U-boats.

Initially, the film has an old-fashioned appeal. Krause, a prayerful man who keeps his own counsel, quickly reveals a built-in radar. When an elusive U-boat disappears from every screen, Krause guesses its course, drops a depth charge and is rewarded when a mess of oil (and what might be human gore) floats to the ocean’s surface. “Fifty less Krauts!” one soldier bellows. “Fifty less souls,” Krause corrects him.

Soon, though, we get a sinking feeling about “Greyhound.” As Krause and his men chase a German sub confusingly nicknamed Grey Wolf, we realize this is all there is: torpedoes, evasive maneuvers and occasional explosions. The action is capably directed by Aaron Schneider (“Get Low”), but Hanks’ screenplay shows little interest in its characters. Aside from an early scene involving Krause’s pragmatic new lover (Elisabeth Shue), the movie has eyes only for equipment and ammunition. The dialogue is limited almost entirely to military-speak (“Zigzag 20 degrees left standard rudder”) and so we learn virtually nothing about Krause’s men. Only Stephen Graham, as executive officer Charlie Cole, manages to convey a sense of warmth and familiarity.

“Greyhound” adds little to Hanks’ short track record as a screenwriter, following the joyful “That Thing You Do!” and the barely there “Larry Crowne,” both of which he also directed. Weighing in at a skimpy 91 minutes, “Greyhound” could have easily spent another 25 developing its characters and not overstayed its welcome. Instead, it focuses mostly on boats and torpedoes tracing geometric patterns in the water — the mechanics of war, and not much else.