This is an amazing achievement, and it's obvious because it is one of the only German language films to receive widespread distribution in American theaters since the silent era. It was just that good! When it came to America, the movie was cut down a little from it's original HUGE length and it was released in both dubbed and subtitled versions.
The film is about a single WWII German U-boat and it follows it through a very hazardous mission until it eventually makes it back to port. While this may not sound very interesting, it certainly is, as the movie is less a traditional movie but an experience meant to instill in the audience the daily life and horror of serving on one of these submarines. For example, when the sub is being pursued, you find yourself tense, on edge and feeling the claustrophobia of the crewmen. Viscerally, it is an amazing film and remains a true and faithful film--the crew is extraordinary but they are hardly romanticized--they are just men doing their best to stay alive! To top all this off, when the movie concludes, there is the most fitting and inspired ending I have seen in a war film. Like anything you've seen from Hollywood? No way--this is like real life in all its starkness and terror.
The film is about a single WWII German U-boat and it follows it through a very hazardous mission until it eventually makes it back to port. While this may not sound very interesting, it certainly is, as the movie is less a traditional movie but an experience meant to instill in the audience the daily life and horror of serving on one of these submarines. For example, when the sub is being pursued, you find yourself tense, on edge and feeling the claustrophobia of the crewmen. Viscerally, it is an amazing film and remains a true and faithful film--the crew is extraordinary but they are hardly romanticized--they are just men doing their best to stay alive! To top all this off, when the movie concludes, there is the most fitting and inspired ending I have seen in a war film. Like anything you've seen from Hollywood? No way--this is like real life in all its starkness and terror.