Das Boot: Wolfgang Petersen

There are certain films which so masterfully explore their subject matter that they become a kind of default by which all others are judged. If I mentioned the boxing genre, people would immediately think of Rocky (1976) or Raging Bull (1980). Historical epics? Ben-Hur (1959) or Lawrence of Arabia (1962). Submarine thrillers? Wolfgang Petersen's Das Boot. The film has become synonymous with the genre. It has even become one of those extremely rare foreign language films that American audiences will not only tolerate, but celebrate. That's especially impressive considering that it's well over three hours long and about a Nazi U-Boat. The film follows the crew of German submarine U-96 during a lengthy patrol in late 1941. There are certainly many scenes where the crew holds their breath as they are hunted by destroyers and depth charges. And these scenes easily rank as some of the most intense and suspenseful ever captured on film. Peterson did a magnificent job capturing the atmosphere of intense claustrophobia that must accompany any submarine crew. But many of the best scenes in Das Boot aren't about actual fighting. Instead, they are about the crew trying to adapt and survive to living in a cramped metal tube for months on end. Jürgen Prochnow gives the performance of his career as Der Alte, the U-boat's cynical and battle-weary Kapitänleutnant. His talents truly shine during a scene where he reluctantly orders his crew to not rescue survivors of a destroyed British tanker. He claims that he was following orders to not take prisoners. But we suspect Prochnow has other reasons...Das Boot is a stunning film. Brutally honest and mercilessly intense, Das Boot is simply one of the greatest German films ever made.

9/10