Distributed by

Columbia TriStar

Cat.no: CDR 95358

Cert: 15

Running time: 200 minutes

Year: 1985, 1997 (Director's Cut)

Pressing: 1998

Region(s): 2, PAL

Chapters: 66 plus extras

Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Surround

Languages: English, German (both DD 5.1)

Subtitles: 6 different languages available

Widescreen: 1.85:1

16:9-Enhanced: Yes

Macrovision: Yes

Price: £19.99

Extras : Scene index, Theatrical trailer, Featurette, Director's Commentary

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Director:

Wolfgang Petersen (Air Force One, In The Line Of Fire, Outbreak)

Producer:

Gunter Rohrbach

Director's Cut Producer:

Ortwin Freyermuth

Screenplay:

Wolfgang Petersen (based on the novel by Lothar-Gunther Buchheim)

Music:

Klaus Doldinger

Cast:

The Captain: Jurgen Prochnow (Air Force One, Body Of Evidence, Das Boot, Dune, The English Patient, In The Mouth Of Madness, Judge Dredd, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me)
Lt. Werner / Correspondent: Herbert Gronemeyer
Chief Engineer: Klaus Wennemann
1st Lt. / Number One: Hubertus Bengsch
2nd Lt.: Martin Semmelrogge

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La Rochelle, France. Autumn, 1941. Germany's vaunted U-boat fleet, with which Hitler hoped to blockade and starve out Britain, is beginning to suffer its first major setbacks. British freighters are now sailing the Atlantic with stronger and more effective destroyer escorts, inflicting heavy losses on the U-boats.

Nevertheless, the German High Command orders more and more U-boats, with even younger crews, into battle from their ports in occupied France. The battle for control of the Atlantic is turning against the Germans.

40,000 German sailors served on U-boats during World War II.
30,000 never returned.

Das Boot is Wolfgang Peterson's film that follows the daring patrol of U-96, one of the German U-Boats known as 'The Grey Wolves'. Prowling the North Atlantic, they challenged the British Navy at every turn. The crew aboard the U-96 is portrayed in a desperate life-and-death struggle, coping with the endless, claustrophobic boredom at sea, which gives way to terror when confronted by the enemy.

Originally nominated for six Oscars, Das Boot began life as a six-part television series approximating five hours in total. For too long, the only version available on video was a widescreen film in English subtitles lasting 123 minutes. Now, though, we have Das Boot: The Director's Cut, at 200 minutes and in widescreen format, but you can choose whether to watch it with English or German dialogue and an extended choice of subtitles if required. Purists, of course, will opt for German dialogue and English subtitles.

Like the script, the acting and the set design, the picture quality is first-rate. An artifact-free picture is what this film needs and it's what we've got. The film is presented in its original widescreen ratio of 1.85:1, is enhanced for 16:9 widescreen televisions - thus allowing for higher resolution - and the average bitrate is a fairly good 4.59 Mb/s, peaking at around 8 Mb/s.

From the sound of explosions underwater through to the shuddering tension as the crew of U-96 sit and await their fate, the atmosphere will suffocate you. The sound comes in Dolby Digital 5.1 - which will benefit all of those with the suitable hardware - and Dolby Surround for everyone else.

Extras :

Chapters/Theatrical Trailer :

Languages/Subtitles :

Other extras :

Menu :

Upon selecting the "Start Movie" option, you'll first see a "Sony Pictures DVD Center" logo, followed by the Dolby Digital helicopter demo, the copyright logo and then the film itself.

Overall, this is one of the best films ever made on the best format available - not forgetting the excellent picture and sound quality - and as such makes this an essential purchase, not to mention the fact that this DVD contains 66 chapter stops compared to the Region 1 DVD's 31.

FILM	 		: *****
PICTURE QUALITY		: *****
SOUND QUALITY		: *****
EXTRAS			: ***
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OVERALL			: ****½

Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 1999.