Rating: 
Summary: A brilliant must-see of life in a sub
Review: Das Boot is a classic submarine movie of WW2 starring Jürgen Prochnow. Its title in English is simply The Boat. The movie was originally six separate parts of 45 minutes each, a long mini-series. Even the shorter version has immense power, though, as it tells its tale. You start with a fresh crew of sailors, eager to be out on an exciting mission in a submarine. The sub is full of food, the crew is full of good cheer, and everybody is optomistic. Over time, the crew settles into a routine. The food gets old and mouldy. The sicknesses set in. Being in cramped quarters with the same group of people starts to grate on nerves. And blowing up the enemy is no longer so much fun when you realize the nasty perils of war on the seas - of the long, slow death of drowning. The crew tests its skills to every limit - plunging to unheard of depths as the ship threatens to implode on them, going to the ends of the earth. Soon the crew can think of nothing but getting back to a safe harbor, but there is yet more asked of them. Jurgen Prochnow is brilliant as the captain of this sub, trying to keep his crew together and fulfill his mission. Wolfgang Peterson is brilliant as a director, really drawing you into this world that few people have experienced, building up the claustrophibia and pressure and close-contact situation until you can truly believe in it. While some movies build excitement with violent bloody scenes and gigantic car chases, Das Boot does it in a far more meaningful way - with intense pressure and situations that you can really relate to. There aren't gigantic aliens drooling slime here. There are men trapped in a sub, thousands of feet beneath the surface of the water, and the only air they have to breathe is the air in the tiny metal container they live in. It really makes you appreciate being up in the world, able to walk down the street, able to breathe fresh air. We should all give a tip of our hats to the sailors and submariners of the world, and the things they go through. The Germans were not "the enemies" here - they were just soldiers, doing their duty, and hoping to get home alive in the end.
Rating: 
Summary: REAL, POWERFUL DESPITE CRAMPED FEEL & CHEESY DUBBING
Review: Be warned, regardless of the paeans you've heard sung to the movie, it is very 80s. It will begin VERY slowly, and won't let up until the end. A quasi-documentary format doesn't really do much to assuage the expectations you may have from a real Movie either. We watch like bystanders as a German crew steers a U-Boat into the war. The movie is almost entirely indoors (inside a U-Boat, i.e.) which lends it an extremely cramped feel. Filmed in steadycam, the picture moves straight across the claustrophobic hall of the submarine. There is barely enough place for one man to stand and this feeling is expertly conveyed to film thanks to Jost Vacano's excellent cinematography. As you may imagine with any movie of this general cadre, the theme actually couches a strong anti-war message. Our protagonist Capitain may have been under the reign of Hitler, but he didn't really look up to him. Barbs at almost everything related to the Fuerer abound. The strongest message is delivered in the film's denouement when the crew of our U-Boat faces the biggest dilemma: to save the drowning enemy men because they are human beings, or to let them shrivel and die because they are enemies. Poignant! Caveats: (1) A lot of the miniseries look blatantly filmed in a studio, nearly like like the opening sequence of Gilligan's Island. As much as I admire the realism, these cheesy effects do bring down the movie. (2) If you don't mind subtitles, then watch the movie in its original Deutsche with English subtitles. The English dubbing is horrendous. (3) Like all documentaries, there isn't much place for character development. Most of the characters are basically one-note and have little to no personality. None of this undermines the sheer power of the movie's message, and the claustrophobia conveyed on film. I wonder if the flick is as legendary as it is toted to be, but it's a must-have gem in any true war-movies collection.
Rating:
Summary: Das Boot
Review: Das Boot is a very impressive and very, very intense study of human nature in a time of unrelenting, merciless stresses. The generally somewhat quiet yet clearly very deeply intense experienced captain plays well against the crew of boys turning into old men under the stress of their optimistic "of course we'll win, let's do it!" spirit being dumped to the bottom of the sea via plentiful, capable and merciless British destroyers unchecked by any significant U-boat support. I've seen "Run Silent, Run Deep", "K-19", "U-571" and "The Hunt for the Red October", and without insulting those admirable works I do have to say the deep intensity, sheer tension and realism of Das Boot remains unparalleled. The characters of Das Boot come across as truly real humans reacting as real humans would to, say, living jammed together in a rather small, unventilated, frequently attacked semi-fragile pipe for months on end often surrounded by possibly excessive water depth pressures, which pretty much sums up the environment for most of the film. One truly, genuinely wants to use the between-discs intermission (yes, it's that long, but it's worth it) to simply breathe and verify that yes, there are lovely trees and possibly bright natural light right outside the window, but you know that would interrupt the film's intensity. The ending is highly ironic and completely appropriate for anyone familiar with modern German views of war. As with any modern German film, it is an effective demonstration of the tragic folly of seemingly unending war. An English-language track is on the American market DVD (along with the original German), and almost entirely original actors did the English overdubs. The mouth movements correspond quite well actually to the English-language overdubs, which along with its being such a quality overdub means you could be persuaded it was originally filmed in English. For a study of humans under way too much tension for way too long, I don't think it can be beat.
Rating: 
Summary: Original Cut Remains Superior
Review: Like most "Director's Cut" editions, this one simply adds scenes and sequences omitted quite wisely from the original theatrical release. Though not uninteresting, the added segments are long and mostly digressive, effectively diluting the edge, pacing and power of an otherwise exquisite film. Stick with the "Producer's Cut."
Rating:
Summary: A Stunning Achievement
Review: This film is amazing. I served in the US Navy's submarine force, and Petersen's movie is the closest you can get to being in a sub without actually signing enlistment papers. This is one of the few war movies that is not relentlessly propagandistic. Petersen presents a story of humans--not stereotypes, not jingoistic misrepresentations of sailors. By the end of the film, you'll probably find yourself cheering for the Kriegsmarine crew, or at least hoping that they get home safely. As an American, raised after World War Two, I grew up with nothing but negative images and stereotypes of WWII Germany and Germans. Petersen and his cast do an amazing job of breaking through those representations and portraying a story of young, proud men who defy the odds and the elements and do what they perceive of as their duty, even though they find no glory--just despair. I would recommend that you read Herbert Werner's memoir Iron Coffins in addition to watching this movie, especially if you are unfamiliar with the Battle of the Atlantic. Also, after the end of the movie, you should go outside, stand in the sunshine, and be glad that you are.
Rating:
Summary: Not for everyone, but it should be
Review: A classic. Must have for a film buff. The movie opens with the graphic - 40,000 German submariners went out on U boats during WWII. 30,000 never came back. Das Boot explains why. At 200+ minutes, Das Boot can drag at times. As can life on a submarine. I've heard is best described as "Long Periods of boredom broken up by moments of shear terror". Filmed inside a WWII submarine (no cutaway sets) the film gives the veiwer a feeling of the closed in space that I've never seen.
The sound was pretty good on the home theater and the depth charges probably woke the neighbors.
Rating:
Summary: Das Boot Version Changes
Review: Das Boot remains likely the best war film ever made.
I suggest purchasing the photo essay UBoat War as a companion, and also reading the novel Iron Coffins before watching the film.
After doing so, you will agree the film is a truthful retelling of the facts. I still enjoy the very first edition im deutsch mit subtitles, especially as the language isn't bastardised or 'toned down'(for whatever reason I do not know) Especially the most recent edition, regardless of which way you watch, english alone, deutsch mit subtitles, oder just in german, each one is slightly different with regard to colloquialisms; the english only obviously being the most americanised?? Either way however, the experience through fabulous photography and sound effects transports you into the bowels of the mighty U-96, where you can only celebrate the triumphs of surviving, enjoy some Christmas cakes in Vigo, and curse the aircrafts at the end. One to watch time and time again. Also, you can see how Petersons experiences in making DasBoot impacted him in making the Perfect Storm. Favourite characters: Captain, and Martin (different speeches about der fuhrer in each edition also??), the Chief, and of course Johann. However it is all the others that make the above such great characters, especially as we know they are real heroes of history and not made up Bruce Willisers.
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Summary: Surround sound a MUST!!
Review: Brilliant when watched with widescreen tv and surround sound.
Great detail, from German navy personnel singing 'It's a long way to Tipperary' to the problems with LICE, eeek. The sound of the Depth charges with a woofer is sweeeet.
Characters in film are great and the views achieved in U-boat is awesome and realistic. Flawless.
Rating: 
Summary: Hours of boredom, tedium, and unpleasantness
Review: The makers of this film did an amazing job. Most of the movie takes place in a cramped submarine. It feels very real. I did not enjoy the movie very much, though, because the theme it explores, namely life on a submarine during WWII, is thoroughly unpleasant. Things I didn't like:
- The first part of the movie is about the boredom of being on a submarine. Since I think of movies as a form of entertainment, they ought to be very careful about spending an hour on the theme of boredom.
- The constant attacks on the submarine grew tiresome for me. It does a good job showing how unpleasant it is to be under constant attack.
- The German crew shows more contempt for their own government than the enemy. The fact that they say nothing positive about the Nazi government makes them more likeable and makes it more unpleasant to see them suffer.
- The ending was unpleasant. I don't see how it added anything to the film. I recommend this movie for people who think that war is fun. It's a realistic movie that shows the boredom, tedium, and unpleasantness of war. Those are not qualities I look for in a movie, but if you want realism this movie is first-rate.
Rating:
Summary: BECAUSE IT IS DUBBED
Review: This is a great movie. WHY did they dub it. I would like to get a copy of the original German version with subtitles.
Dubbed movies destroy the feeling. The rhythm is all lost!
This is as bad as Ted Turner colorizing all of the great black and white movies!
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