Das Boot

Starring: Jurgen Prochnow, Herbert Grunemeyer, Klaus Wennemann
Directed by: Wolfgang Peterson
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, War
1981

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: The crew of a German U-boat during World War II experiences the boredom of living under water as well as the sheer terror of battle.

Review:

Tim: This is one of the most realistic submarine movies ever made. Director Wolfgang Peterson wanted us to feel like we were on the sub with the crew- and we do feel the claustrophic feeling associated with tight surroundings, the boredom of the inactive times, and the terror of battle. Das Boot conveys all of these experiences perhaps better than any other film- this movie puts you on the German U-boat and you truly sympathize with what the men had to suffer through.

The transformation of the men is remarkable, from the happy, close-shaven men in the beginning to the exhausted, emotionally-fatigued, bearded men in the conclusion.

This film is remarkably intense. The close surroundings of the submarine make us a bit nervous to begin with, and the tension escalates as the crew does battle and fights to survive. The best moments are the tense ones as the crew waits while explosions occur all around them, shaking the U-boat to the core.

I watched the Director's Cut, which adds in 50 additional minutes. This makes for a very long movie at 209 minutes, but only here can you get the total effect of the movie and this is the version I recommend.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: U-571, The Perfect Storm, Enemy Mine, The Hunt for Red October