In Wolfgang Petersen’s classic Das Boot, claustrophobia, boredom and the fear of death combine to form an ominous mixture Excitement drives into the unbearable. The classic from 1981 is one of the best German films ever and has lost none of its fascination to this day.
Today on TV: What is Das Boot about?
1941, the Second World War is raging, and the Nazi propaganda machine is running at full speed on the home front. The war correspondent Werner (Herbert Grönemeyer) therefore goes on board U-96, a submarine with the task of to sink English transport ships in the Atlantic. Roughneck Kaleun (Jürgen Prochnow) is in command on board. Werner is to report to the home front about the exploits of the captain and his crew.
Check out the trailer for Das Boot:
Das Boot – Trailer (German)
But everyday life looks different than expected. Werner quickly realizes that the hunter has become the hunted, and The Atlantic turns out to be a wet and cold hell for the crew. A nightmare of claustrophobia and fear of death begins.
the Story of The Boat is based on the novel of the same name by Lothar-Günther Buchheim and although the author later expressed dissatisfaction with the adaptation, efforts were made to ensure authenticity during the production. Elaborate sets, expert advice and an ensemble around Prochnow, Grönemeyer, Heinz Hoenig, Martin Semmelrogge and Uwe Ochsenknecht, who worked crammed together for months, guaranteed a hitherto rare insight into submarine life (and death).
Why is the masterpiece still worthwhile today?
The director’s cut of Das Boot, which Wolfgang Petersen published in 1996, is running on BR today. This is the best Movieversion of the classic. With a longer running time than the original theatrical version, it gives a better impression of everyday life in a confined space, but never loses sight of the tension. The Director’s Cut of Das Boot wird zum extremely draining claustrophobic war film with a cast full of characters and a catchy title theme by Klaus Doldinger.
You should definitely take these almost 200 minutes for a film that also – pardon the pun – made waves internationally. The then most expensive West German film received six Oscar nominations.
If you want the full Das Boot experience, which is a little closer to the book, you have to six-part series version look at. This dives more intensely into the dead time on board the submarine, i.e. the perfidious boredom of everyday wartime life. The 300-minute series version is currently streaming on Netflix.
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