1941 and the Battle of the Atlantic - German U-boats versus freighters supplying Britain - is underway. We see this struggle from the side of a German U-boat crew, U-96. We see them relaxing and having fun in port, the boredom of patrol, the tension of stalking a convoy and the sheer terror when they become the hunted.
This is the 5-hour mini-series version of the 2.5-hour movie released in 1981. It's essentially the original film with many of the edited-out scenes added back in. In 1997 director Wolfgang Petersen released a 209-minute Director's Cut of the movie.
The 1981 movie is a brilliant military drama. Probably the most accurate depiction of wartime submarine life you'll ever see and surely one of the most realistic war dramas ever made. Incredibly tense at times and extremely enthralling.
Superb plot, great action scenes, especially for its time, and solid performances. The film is also quite novel for its time in that it is a WW2 story told from the German perspective.
Incredibly difficult to find any fault with the film: a masterpiece in every respect.
With all this in mind I was a bit sceptical as to how the mini-series would compare. The film seemed so perfect: surely adding in scenes would only diminish its quality. Turns out, no, it doesn't. In fact, it seems to make it better.
It's been a while since I watched the movie so I can't say exactly, on a scene-by-scene basis, what has been added to turn it into a mini-series. However, it seems that, while the plot and action scenes are largely untouched, in the mini-series we get to spend more time meeting the crew, seeing their daily routines, seeing the relationships and niggles between them and seeing the effect of combat on them. This increases the engagement factor substantially (not that the movie isn't engaging already - far from it).
The 5-hour running time does even matter: it just speeds by, such is the level of engagement and enthrallment. I watched all 5 hours in one go and couldn't tear myself away.
Overall I'd rate the mini-series even better than the movie (and I didn't think that was possible).
This is the 5-hour mini-series version of the 2.5-hour movie released in 1981. It's essentially the original film with many of the edited-out scenes added back in. In 1997 director Wolfgang Petersen released a 209-minute Director's Cut of the movie.
The 1981 movie is a brilliant military drama. Probably the most accurate depiction of wartime submarine life you'll ever see and surely one of the most realistic war dramas ever made. Incredibly tense at times and extremely enthralling.
Superb plot, great action scenes, especially for its time, and solid performances. The film is also quite novel for its time in that it is a WW2 story told from the German perspective.
Incredibly difficult to find any fault with the film: a masterpiece in every respect.
With all this in mind I was a bit sceptical as to how the mini-series would compare. The film seemed so perfect: surely adding in scenes would only diminish its quality. Turns out, no, it doesn't. In fact, it seems to make it better.
It's been a while since I watched the movie so I can't say exactly, on a scene-by-scene basis, what has been added to turn it into a mini-series. However, it seems that, while the plot and action scenes are largely untouched, in the mini-series we get to spend more time meeting the crew, seeing their daily routines, seeing the relationships and niggles between them and seeing the effect of combat on them. This increases the engagement factor substantially (not that the movie isn't engaging already - far from it).
The 5-hour running time does even matter: it just speeds by, such is the level of engagement and enthrallment. I watched all 5 hours in one go and couldn't tear myself away.
Overall I'd rate the mini-series even better than the movie (and I didn't think that was possible).