14 Member Reviews
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5
by Rotoguy
When you look at all modern submarine films - The hunt for Red October, Crimson Tide, U571 - and then watch this film it becomes obvious where a big amount of inspiration comes from. Sure there were... Read more
also some earlier films such as Run Silent, Run Deep but for atmosphere and gritty reality Das Boot (The Boat) is the original submarine film.Helmed (pardon the pun) by Wolfgang Pedersen (The Neverending Story, Air Force One, The Perfect Storm, Poseidon) it tells the true story of a German UBoat and what the men who operated those boats lived like during their time at sea. This is the directors cut which adds close to an hour to the original length but this hour simply cements the incredible frustration and boredom that would have been part of their everyday lives. Then there is the terror. Of being traped inside a thin metal tube 150 metres below the surface as above sonar pulses lash the hull and depth charges explode shattering machinery and mens nerves.
I have to say that although this is the dubbed version I did prefer the all German subtitled verson better - it added another layer of authenticity. Most of the cast are generally unknown with the exception of the Captain played by Jurgen Prochnow (The Sixth Sign, Beverly Hills Cop 2, Judge Dredd) but all do a fantastic job in portraying the unbelievable tension and fear.
In the end you cant help but be caught up in it as the depth guage dips well into the red and the bolts in the hull start firing like bullets....
5
by Stevo22
A fantastic movie. Dubbed in English but easy to stick with. This film gave me a real insite into what it must have been like in the U Boat service... horrible! The only issue is that it seems there... Read more
should be a second DVD because the movie just finishes in what seems to be mid stream...
4
by Gissy girl
Yip its a good in even with the bad english accents they have used as the speech overs, it is old and it is slow, I think they wanted the viewer to actually experience for themselves the boredom of... Read more
long hours on a submarine, contrasted with the high emotion when they go into battle.
5
by Peter Time Traveller
Well worth watching, true it does run more than 3 hours, the length adds to the realism, as if you were part of the crew, after all how do you condense 60 days into 100 minutes which is what lots of... Read more
movies do, and leaves you the feeling that its just acting, not real.Real U-Boats, as well as the Allied submarines, spend weeks on patrol, with only a few hours of action in between, Das Boot portrays very well life on a U-Boat during WW2
3
by Wolftones
Good suspence but movie could be reduced, some of the scenes go on for longer than needed.
3
by sez
Gritty, real, brings to life the old lie 'Dulce decorum est....' I kind of kept feeling sorry for them, then I'd remember they were the enemy! :) Well worth watching if you're a WWII fan like my father.... but far too long and tense for me.
4
by Phil110
Its a great movie and I watched the original at the movies as a kid. The movie version is a 5 out of 5 BUT the directors cut is way to long and dragging which is why I gave it a 4. An hour and a half... Read more
should have been cut as it drags and drags. In fact they should cut it back to the original. Still it is the best foreign film I have watched ever.
2
by Peter
If you don't like 10 minute movies spread over 3 or 4 hours then this film isn't for you. This is Lawrence of Arabia but in a boat. If you watch this film make sure you enjoyed Lawrence of Arabia. I... Read more
can't stress this enough.P.S. I didn't enjoy Lawrence of Arabia.
5
by Herr
Das Boot is a movie to watch if you are into WWII.
What I like is that Wolfgang Petersen paid alot of attention to reality, the actual cast were not allowed out of the studios until the movie... Read more
was finished so they looked tired and pale like real German submariners.Long and dragging from time but still one not to miss !
Also see STALINGRAD from the same producersteam that made this movie.
5
by cnielsen
Simply the best submarine movie ever made, if not the best war movie ever made. No pretentious acting, stupid love stories to keep north american viewer happy, etc. For best impact, have the sound... Read more
come through your stereo and leave it in german, using english subtitles.
