Review of Das Boot (1981) by Jennifer G — 13 Dec 2009
One of the best films made about war, period. Wolfgang Peterson's masterpiece follows the tour of duty of a German U-boat crew as they navigate the Atlantic during World War II. It is a perilous journey with the enemy either miles ahead, above or below.
The confines of a submarine seem to be the perfect setting for an engaging drama about humanity, the ills of war and the goodness in camaraderie. We soon realize that whatever the allegiance, all soldiers are human beings at first.
Experiencing this through the eyes of our "enemies" puts things into a much maligned perspective. Jurgen Prochnow leads a sterling cast of actors in what was, at the time, one of the most expensive films in the history of German cinema.
Cinematographer Jost Vacano put hand held camera work on the map for the breathless shots tracking men running from one end of the boat to the other. At 3 1/2 hours, Das Boot is a work that goes a lot deeper (literally and figuratively) than the standard "blood and guts" war film.
This review of Das Boot (1981) was written by Jennifer G on 13 Dec 2009.
Das Boot has generally received very positive reviews.
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