IMDb > Das Boot (1981)
Das Boot
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Das Boot (1981) -- The claustrophobic world of a WWII German U-boat; boredom, filth, and sheer terror.
Das Boot (1981) -- Sinematurk - Trailer (Flash)

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Overview

User Rating:
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 8% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers:
Contact:
View company contact information for Das Boot on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
10 February 1982 (USA) more
Genre:
Tagline:
This is the story of 42 raw recruits caught up in a war they didn't understand, and the Captain who must lead them in their struggle to survive. more
Plot:
The claustrophobic world of a WWII German U-boat; boredom, filth, and sheer terror. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Nominated for 6 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 4 nominations more
User Comments:
15 years and I'm still thinking about it more (346 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Jürgen Prochnow ... Capt.-Lt. Henrich Lehmann-Willenbrock - Der Alte
Herbert Grönemeyer ... Lt. Werner - Correspondent
Klaus Wennemann ... Chief Engineer Fritz Grade - Der Leitende-Der LI
Hubertus Bengsch ... 1st Lieutenant - Number One-1WO
Martin Semmelrogge ... 2nd Lieutenant - 2WO
Bernd Tauber ... Kriechbaum - Chief Quartermaster-Navigator
Erwin Leder ... Johann
Martin May ... Ullman
Heinz Hoenig ... Hinrich (as Heinz Hönig)

Uwe Ochsenknecht ... Chief Bosun
Claude-Oliver Rudolph ... Ario
Jan Fedder ... Pilgrim
Ralf Richter ... Frenssen (as Ralph Richter)
Joachim Bernhard ... Preacher
Oliver Stritzel ... Schwalle
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
The Boat (Philippines: English title) (USA) (dubbed version)
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MPAA:
Rated R for some war violence and brief language. (director's cut)
Runtime:
149 min | 209 min (director's cut) | 293 min (uncut version)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Fujicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital (director's cut) | Dolby (original release) | SDDS (director's cut)
Certification:
Iceland:12 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | South Korea:15 | Brazil:14 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:12 | Netherlands:16 (director's cut) | Norway:15 (director's cut) | Norway:16 | Portugal:M/12 (original rating) | Portugal:M/16 (director's cut) | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:12 (dubbed directors cut) | UK:15 (subtitled directors cut) | USA:R | USA:Unrated (original uncut version) | West Germany:12 (w)
Filming Locations:
Company:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Three scale models were built for special effects work. The first, a 35 foot remote controlled model, could sail in high seas and dive; the other two, 18 feet and 8 feet in length, were used for underwater shots. Scale models of tankers, destroyers and other ships were also built to complete the armada. more
Goofs:
Crew or equipment visible: When the planes are attacking the harbor, a charge that is meant to simulate the explosion of a bomb dropped from the sky is visible on the water in a wide shot. more
Quotes:
Captain: Our patrol planes! Where are they? Answer that one, Herr Goering! The British have plenty of them! Talking big is all he's good for, that fat slob. more
Movie Connections:
Featured in Submarines: Sharks of Steel (1993) more
Soundtrack:
Sing Nachtigall Sing more

FAQ

What type of submarine is U-96?
Is there a TV version of the movie?
I want this on DVD. Which edition should I buy?
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312 out of 320 people found the following comment useful.
15 years and I'm still thinking about it, 8 September 1999
10/10
Author: susy-7 from Southwestern Indiana

Das Boot is not just a great war film: it's a great film period. Maybe it is true that epic themes make the greatest novels and films. Here is a movie that explores heroism, duty, patriotism, hope, fear and the futility of war--all grand themes--explored in the confined, and collapsing, spaces of a German u-boat.

I saw this film when I was a freshman in college during a weekend that I later dubbed my "depressing movie festival." (The Wall and Apocalypse Now were the other weekend "entries.") Of these films, it was Das Boot that haunted me--when I laid down at night, I saw Jurgen Proctow's pained blue eyes. When I woke in the morning, I felt as if I were escaping through the hatch of the submarine. I could not shake the images, and now some fifteen years later, I still remember how completely meaningless the movie made everything seem, and the nihilistic message stayed with me for a long, long time. How few films are there which affect the viewers on this level. To say this film is "powerful" seems so weak a description.

Part of the "power" of the film comes, I think, from a certain restraint in the direction. So often, films which aspire to move the audience quickly fall into melodrama, over-acting, and overblown images. Too much. These often succeed in the immediate response (usually crying) but fail to impact the viewer on anything more than a surface level. Here, it is the small moments which fill the screen. Everywhere, all around is War, but for these men as we witness them, war does not begin with a capital "W". It is reality, not a grand concept. The director lets the story shock and horrify the audience, not by forcing it, but by letting the story just tell itself. Drama, tension and resolution occur naturally in Das Boot, which contributes to the very real impact of the film.

Story is a 10, direction is a 10, acting is a 10 and the cinematography is a 10. One of the all-time greatest films.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Das Boot (1981)
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