Synopsis for
Das Boot (1981) More at IMDbPro »

In 1941, the Battle of the Atlantic is finally starting to turn against the Germans. At La Rochelle, a forward base on the French coast, the crew of the U-96 are reveling before heading out for another patrol. This voyage will be special, as a War Correspondant, Lt. Werner (Herbert Grönemeyer) will be joining them to document their brave exploits. After a rousing send off at a local caberet/officer's club, the young Lieutenant joins the boat's Captain (Jürgen Prochnow) and mostly-young, yet already war-hardened veteran crew.

Unfortunately, their patrol is short on ship sightings, and they are almost killed when a destroyer depth-charges them. They are blown off course in a storm, and nearly collide with another German submarine. The whole situation has the crew depressed and the Captain very frustrated. Short on fuel and supplies, they suddenly receive word that a nearby U-Boat has contacted an Allied convoy. Vectoring in at maximum surface speed, the U-96 manages to release several torpedoes, and scores hits. She is driven deep by Allied escort vessels, but is not seriously damaged.

Surfacing hours later, the horrified submariners learn that a blazing tanker still has men aboard. The Captain is upset that the English haven't rescued their merchant sailors, but he is driven by two directives: he must sink the enemy ship, and he cannot take prisoners (there is literally no room on his boat for them). A coup de grace is delivered, causing the tanker to slip beneath the waves as the remaining crew leap into the flaming water.

The U-96 heads back toward La Rochelle when a super-secret message arrives by radio. The boat is redirected to Vigo, a port in (neutral) Spain. Here, they take on fuel and food, while the pampered officers on an interned German freighter fawn over the "grey wolves." The boat is to slip through the Straits of Gibralter (crawling with British ships and aircraft) and make its way to Italy. The Captain has a plan, but much depends on luck.

Unfortunately, their luck runs out fairly quickly. The U-Boat is attacked by patrol planes, and has to dive deep. Heavily damaged, they are left stranded in the bottom, over 300 feet down. If various major repairs cannot be effected before the air runs out, they will die. The veteran crew does everything in its power to patch up the boat, and they barely make it to the surface in time

Limping back to La Rochelle, the crew prepares to disembark when a British air-raid hits the port. In the attack, various members of the crew are killed, and it appears the Captain is as well. As he sinks to he knees, blood coming from his mouth, he watches the U-96 sink beneath the water at its mooring.