Reply With QuoteHave to agree. One of my absolute favourites. You really feel for the crew. If you don't have the DVDs, what are you waiting for?
Made "Mit BBC",this epic production was one of the best productions of the 1980's. The story of a German U-Boat was probably one of the best depictions of life at sea during the Second World War. Whilst it was a portrayal of "the enemy",it could have been a reflection of a Royal Navy submarine.
Even my dad,who was in the Merchant Navy during the war,enjoyed it.
It had humour,drama,tension and because it was so well made,it went down well in this country. The crew were seen as not toadying up to the Nazi regime,but men at war and the scene where they torpedoed a British boat,a U-Boat crew member burst into tears at what they had done.
At the end,when the captain and most of his crew were killed,you felt for them.
Director Wolfgang Petersen went on to a succesful Hollywood career with In The Line Of Fire,Air Force One,The Perfect Storm and I once read he was contemplating making a film about the USS Indianapolis disaster.
Ta Ta
Marky B
Have to agree. One of my absolute favourites. You really feel for the crew. If you don't have the DVDs, what are you waiting for?
We do have the video version,but which is abridged and also dubbed. I preferred the full saga in subtitles.
Ta Ta
Marky B
I watched Control recently and was surprised to discover it was Herbert Gronemeyer's first feature since Das Boot - apparently a favour to Corbijn.
Haven't watch the 'full' Das Boot since it aired on BBC2, just the 2hr (ish) version.
name='DB7']I watched Control recently and was surprised to discover it was Herbert Gronemeyer's first feature since Das Boot - apparently a favour to Corbijn.
Haven't watch the 'full' Das Boot since it aired on BBC2, just the 2hr (ish) version.
It must be due for a re-run,with all that digitally remastering,director's cut.
Another programme from that era that should be repeated,the British made Kennedy with Martin Sheen.
Ta Ta
Marky B
It's certainly the best WW2 submarine movie ever made!
I have an early "English-dubbed" version on VHS (NTSC) that I dearly love because it is the complete movie and even includes some scenes that the original German release didn't contain!
Saw the mini series on BBC2 many years ago and was hooked. Not being terribly fluent in German, I normally go for the subtitles rather than the dubbed version. Classic TV!
[quote]name='NappieB']It's certainly the best WW2 submarine movie ever made!
Taken from BBC website today:
Engineers have started a month-long operation to break up the only World War II German U-Boat in the UK to turn it into a new tourist attraction.
U-534, which is being moved to Mersey Ferries' Woodside ferry terminal in Birkenhead, will be split into four pieces using a diamond wire cutter.
The sections, each weighing up to 240 tonnes, will each take a day to move.
Visitors will be able to walk through sections of the U-boat when the exhibition opens in July.
The submarine currently stands at Mortar Mill Quay, near Birkenhead, where it formed part of the Historic Warships Museum, which closed last year.
Merseytravel, which owns and operates Mersey Ferries, bought the vessel to turn into a tourist attraction at its terminal.
The first of the four sections to be removed is a 23-metre (75.4 ft) length of the bow, which will be moved by floating crane across the water.
The Imperial War Museum (IWM) confirmed there are only four full-size WWII German U-Boats in existence, and that U-534 is the only one in the UK.
The submarine, launched on 23 September 1942, was used as a training vessel in the Baltic, according to the IWM.
U-534 was sunk on 5 May 1945, in the Kattegat, North-West of Helsingor, Denmark, by depth charges dropped by an RAF Liberator.
The boat was salvaged in 1993 and brought to the UK in May 1996, before becoming a popular tourist attraction in Seacombe.
Freddy
I was on a US Navy WWII submarine in San Francisco in 1993. It was amazing to see the cramped conditions they had to live in. A bigger submarine is in Gosport,launched in 1945. With a tour guide,he puts on the sound of a ship ridng above,with the "ping","ping","ping" sound. Even though it was only a sound effect,you are still looking up.
Ta Ta
Marky B
name='Freddy']Taken from BBC website today:
Engineers have started a month-long operation to break up the only World War II German U-Boat in the UK to turn it into a new tourist attraction.
U-534, which is being moved to Mersey Ferries' Woodside ferry terminal in Birkenhead, will be split into four pieces using a diamond wire cutter.
The sections, each weighing up to 240 tonnes, will each take a day to move.
Visitors will be able to walk through sections of the U-boat when the exhibition opens in July.
I went on the tour around the Russian (Soviet) sub that was moored by the Thames barrier for some time - it's now been moved to Folkstone.
I've also been on a tour, including a dive, around Portsmouth & Gosport harbour from an RN sub on one of their Navy Days. That was probably back in the 1960s
Neither of those is for the claustrophobic.
Steve
At the Film Park at the Bablesburg Studios in the suburbs of Berlin there is a U Boat Ride.It is very effective and worth a visit.
I got the full series on DVD yesterday at Borders in a sale. Well worth the butchers if anyone is interested.
Ta Ta
Marky B
The Directors cut ( 3hours 20mins) of 'Das Boot' is on Saturday the 22nd March courtesy BBC2 at 23.00hrs. Miss it at your peril.
Anyone near Gosport Hampshire should go to the Royal Navy Submarine Museum where you can go in a genuine sub complete with sound effects (as mentioned earlier).
If you want to hear about a British submariner POW on the late John Peels Radio 4 programme 'Home Truths' you should go to BBC - Radio 4 - Home Truths
I should add to the above that when you reach that page go to the top centre of the page and click on 'Listen to the Item'.
name='Freddy']Taken from BBC website today:
Engineers have started a month-long operation to break up the only World War II German U-Boat in the UK to turn it into a new tourist attraction.
U-534, which is being moved to Mersey Ferries' Woodside ferry terminal in Birkenhead, will be split into four pieces using a diamond wire cutter.
The sections, each weighing up to 240 tonnes, will each take a day to move.
Visitors will be able to walk through sections of the U-boat when the exhibition opens in July.
The submarine currently stands at Mortar Mill Quay, near Birkenhead, where it formed part of the Historic Warships Museum, which closed last year.
Merseytravel, which owns and operates Mersey Ferries, bought the vessel to turn into a tourist attraction at its terminal.
The first of the four sections to be removed is a 23-metre (75.4 ft) length of the bow, which will be moved by floating crane across the water.
The Imperial War Museum (IWM) confirmed there are only four full-size WWII German U-Boats in existence, and that U-534 is the only one in the UK.
The submarine, launched on 23 September 1942, was used as a training vessel in the Baltic, according to the IWM.
U-534 was sunk on 5 May 1945, in the Kattegat, North-West of Helsingor, Denmark, by depth charges dropped by an RAF Liberator.
The boat was salvaged in 1993 and brought to the UK in May 1996, before becoming a popular tourist attraction in Seacombe.
Freddy
Does this story depress other posters? One of only four remaining in existence is being carved into bit sized chunks. As stated elsewhere, these things were claustrphobic and that will experience will be lost.
I went on this U-boat 4 years or so ago and all of it is rust. Still there were shoes as they had been left when it went down (no-one was killed) and it was an amazing experience. Realising how complicated it was just to flush the loo, with certain valves having to be opened in a certain order; valves all in different sizes so that, if struck by a spanner, they were each a different 'note' so the sub wouldn't be sunk by opening the wrong valve...
In addition this sub was, possibly, unique as it had a 'snorkel' that ran half the length of the deck, meaning that air could be taken in without surfacing.
Two other things I can remember.
1. One of the engine batteries was removed after the sub was recovered (sunk for 40 years). The manufacturers got the thing working without too much difficulty.
2. Light bulbs were still in place and they thought they would remove one to see what state it was in....it still worked!! I have always bought Osram bulbs since
I think the phrase is Vorsprung Durk Technick!!!
While watching Jools Holland last night I thought Herbert Gronemeyer's face was very similar to the journalist's in Das Boot. One and the same, appears he is very popular in Europe, still acting as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ww4pPOOiKtc
I saw Das Boot when it was released in California where the audience cheered at the very beginning when they read that 75% of German submariners perished.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1j3ug4Nflfs
Possibly more important to know what they were doing at the end.Originally Posted by Heinrich
It was first shown in England on TV, as a Mini Series, to my memory.
It was shown in the early eighties iirc but I forget which came first on UK tv, Das Boot or Heimat, both of which were examples of first class German tv.
It is sad about the reaction of the audience to the start of the film and let's hope their attitude was changed by the end. When Saving Private Ryan came out there were reports of people in British cinemas laughing about the opening scenes of the D Day landing.
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