*SPOILER ALERT*
War movies are almost a dime-a-dozen these days. The genre has been around in the film industry for well over 60 years. The genre didn't really pick up steam again until Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan hit theaters in 1998 and it hit hard. Realistic, emotionally engaging and well-acted, Saving Private Ryan brought the War movie genre to the front lines. But there is a sub-genre that people have overlooked recently: The submarine movie. I'm talking about recent movies like U-571, K-19 Widowmaker, Crimson Tide and The Hunt for Red October. But the one movie that I believe truly stood out among all others was Wolfgang Peterson's Das Boot(The Boat).
Taking place in a German U-Boat in 1942, Das Boot follows the crew of a submarine just heading out to sea. Lead by Captain Willenbrock(Jurgen Prochnow), the young crew sets out to face enemy warships during the Battle of the Atlantic. Truth be told, there really isn't much to more to be said about the story, as it would spoil things, but Das Boot basically shows what life is like 100 feet below the surface of the ocean on board a German U-boat. It's claustrophobic and cramped with long stretches of boredom, but when the action hits, it's literally jarring and extremely violent when hit by depth charges. Das Boot is perhaps the most realistic submarine movie I have ever seen, with authentic sets aboard an actual U-Boat. What's also unique about this film is that it's told from the perspective of the Germans during World War II. Mind you, it's not about the holocaust or the atrocities happening in Germany, because from the perspective of the sailors, they had no idea what was going on back home, and the film takes that into consideration and allows the audience to get to know the crew aboard the submarine and doesn't even mention what's happening in Germany. Throughout the film, you get to see the crews as best friends and some tensions do rise, but that's to be expected in such a cramped environment. But the one guy that holds it all together is the captain played by Jurgen Prochnow in of his most memorable roles. Jurgen's character exudes confidence, strength and the will do what needs to be done to win the war and get his crew home. But as the film progresses, you begin see doubt cross not only HIS face, but his crew as well, and after attacking a warship and they surface to finish the job, they finally witness the horror of war with their own eyes and it really drives home the fact that while the sailors are German soldiers, they're human too, and it's not something they want to remember.
In Das Boot, a lot of the film takes place inside the submarine. You get to witness day-to-day life among the crew as they have their ups-and-downs, and you get to see them have hope that they will make it home to see their loved ones. There's a lot of these character moments in this film, but that's not to say there isn't any action, because there is. But a lot of it isn't seen. Instead you get to witness the sailors being rattled by depth charge explosions and the sparks and leaks and the chaos that erupts in a submarine during a violent confrontation. That makes the film far more intense than you would expect it to be. You really begin to root for this crew and you hope that they make it home alive. And that makes the ending of the film so effective. But I won't say anymore on that. I'm reviewing the Director's Cut of Das Boot on Blu-Ray which runs about 3 and a half hours in length. The theatrical cut ran 2 and a half hours and there's an uncut version that runs nearly 5 hours. Despite the film's length, it doesn't actually feel that long at all, as the pace is almost perfect. There's enough time between action scenes to allow for character development, and when the action hits, it hits hard and it lasts. It's truly chaotic.
Das Boot was released in 1981, so it didn't have the "benefit" of CGI. The special effects that you did see were all practical and done with miniatures, and for a film like this, released when it was, makes for a more convincing experience. And an experience it is. Das Boot is highly regarded as one of the best films ever made, and it's very hard to argue that sentiment. Far as I'm concerned, it's the best submarine movie ever made. That's not to say that the other movies that I mentioned were bad: Not at all. They were very good movies, but none of them managed to truly capture the detail of what it was to be on a submarine during World War II. Das Boot did just that, with excellent performances across the board, engaging musical score and a story that is riveting and dramatic. It doesn't get any better than this. Das Boot gets a perfect 10/10. On a side note: The film was made in German, so that's the best way to see it, with English subtitles. Das Boot comes easily recommended.
