DAS BOOT (1981) C widescreen 150m dir: Wolfgang Petersen

w/Jurgen Prochnow, Herbert Gronemeyer, Klaus Wennemann, Hubertus Bengsch, Martin Semmelrogge, Bernd Tauber, Erwin Leder, Martin May, Heinz Honig, U.A. Ochsen, Otto Sander

From Variety's review of the film: "Produced at a cost of DM25 million (circa $12 million), Wolfgang Petersen's The Boat is far and away the most expensive German film made since World War II, possibly in the history of German cinema. It's based on a bestseller by Lothar-Gunther Buchheim and it's a two hour-plus action film on the fate of a German U-Boat in 1941.

"Everything described in the film is authentic: it's the story of a single mission in the Atlantic, from the departure of the boat from LaRochelle in Occupied France to its return to port some months later. In between, it's constantly a question of life or death, give or take, kill or be killed --- a descent into the pit of hell with slim odds of ever returning.

"When Buchheim joined one of these boats as a photo-journalist during the war, he was a kid among equals. His experiences on missions were later compiled into an autobiographical book. The captain, tagged the 'old man' (Jurgen Prochnow), already wears an iron cross for bravery in action. So does an another drunken U-Boat officer, Thomsen (a strong cameo by Otto Sander), who nearly incites a riot in the Bar Royal by speaking his mind on both the war and its Fuhrer in vividly blunt terms. Then comes the dull, monotonous early days at sea followed by some initial skirmishes and hide-and-seek games with the enemy. At last, about midway through the film, the first opportunity to strike presents itself, and the real action begins. Then come orders to brave the Strait of Gibraltar and enter the Mediterranean for further seek-and-kill operations.

"Two model subs were constructed for shooting at La Rochelle and the Bavaria Atelier in Munich. All the actors are, with a few major exceptions, unknown faces to the German film and TV scene.

"[Pic was also made as a six-hour TV miniseries. A 207-min. Director's Cut was released theatrically and on homevideo in 1997.]"

From The Movie Guide: "Decidedly anti-Nazi in tone, THE BOAT presents the crew as individual warriors upholding their own brand of honor and sneering at Hitler's Reich. The chief attraction of this film, however, is the incredible camera work. Racing through the sub, squeezing through tiny openings, director Wolfgang Petersen's camera brilliantly evokes the claustrophobia and clamor of undersea battle. A technical marvel, THE BOAT is a breathtaking and powerful portrait of war and death. Though the film was originally released on videocassette as the subtitled DAS BOOT, most copies now available are dubbed into English."

DAS BOOT was nominated for Oscars for Best Director, Adapted Screenplay (Petersen), Cinematography (Jost Vacano), Editing (Hans Nikel), Sound (Milan Bor, Trevor Pyke, & Mike Le-Mare), and Sound Effects Editing (Le-Mare).