The verisimilitude is (presumably) immaculate; I have never been aboard a U-boat, and after watching "Das Boot," I am quite thankful that I was not a young German in the Kriegsmarine during World War II! Seriously, though, "Das Boot" is movie-making at its finest. Watch it. Watch the Uncut Version. (It is not much more explicit, just longer, bringing some sequences to near-real-time.) Spend half your day watching the movie, and the other half contemplating the depth of what you have just seen.
Every aspect of this production is genuinely superb: from Klaus Doldinger's leitmotif that has variations ranging from doleful dirges to rousing fanfares, always with the same music; to Juergen Prochnow's restrained and dark, but ultimately cynical and reasonable acting; to the claustrophobic camera angles filmed in a period-accurate "iron casket" with no removable walls. The diegetic (occurring in the story) music is memorable and well-chosen, including the out-of-control jazz music in the La Rochelle nightclub, the "Tipperary song," and the Captain's personal favorite song.
With movies such as this one, "Downfall," and "Das Leben der Anderen," German cinema has shown a level of admirable candidacy and skilled artistry in depicting the modern country's distant but troubled origins.
Even if you don't like war movies or submarine movies, even if you don't speak a word of German, WATCH "DAS BOOT," because it is legitimately powerful, genuine, and impressive. 10/10.
Every aspect of this production is genuinely superb: from Klaus Doldinger's leitmotif that has variations ranging from doleful dirges to rousing fanfares, always with the same music; to Juergen Prochnow's restrained and dark, but ultimately cynical and reasonable acting; to the claustrophobic camera angles filmed in a period-accurate "iron casket" with no removable walls. The diegetic (occurring in the story) music is memorable and well-chosen, including the out-of-control jazz music in the La Rochelle nightclub, the "Tipperary song," and the Captain's personal favorite song.
With movies such as this one, "Downfall," and "Das Leben der Anderen," German cinema has shown a level of admirable candidacy and skilled artistry in depicting the modern country's distant but troubled origins.
Even if you don't like war movies or submarine movies, even if you don't speak a word of German, WATCH "DAS BOOT," because it is legitimately powerful, genuine, and impressive. 10/10.