Advantages: A good war film with a different perspective, a well made film, well directed
Disadvantages: At 3 hours and 20 minutes the film is quite long

...well directed and put together by film director Wolfgang Petersen he uses certain shots in the film with great effect in helping to involve the audience. The extras in the DVD include being able to watch the film with directors commentary so you can see what Petersen was trying to achieve with certain techniques used in the film. A great effort has been made to make the film as realistic as possible, apparently a replica U-Boat was built in which the cast of actors had to live for a year. The result of this is that the actors end up with very pale skin due to the lack of daylight and they all grow beards because shaving would have been difficult aboard a submarine. The mission of the crew aboard the U-Boat, U-96 is to try and torpedo ships carrying supplies to Britain from USA across the Atlantic. The ships however are normally... Read review

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Advantages: A TRUE MASTERPIECE
Disadvantages: SUBTITLES

...on the U-96,one of the famed German U-boats known as The Grey Wolves is captivating and as the film proceeds you will begin to enjoy the entrancing ride of these sailors as they launch torpedos and endure heavy depth charges in retaliation (make sure you've got the volume up). All the German crew and especially the Capt-Lt Henrich Lehmann-Willenbrock (Jurgen Prochnow) give truly enthralling performances. This film really does take you on a journey with many edgy moments including an emotional trip to the sea bed when they are hit by a depth charge. THE DIRECTING The director Wolfgang Petersen does an outstanding job to keep you inches from the action inside the submarine,all the cameras are in the right places at the right time. The panning shots that follow the crew running from one end of the submarine to the other are breathtaking. I... Read review

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Advantages: The best submarine drama to date
Disadvantages: Very long

...you’re up to your arse in depth-charges!) The film is so good at portraying the squalid and cramped conditions on board U-96 that you feel you are living through all this deprivation with the crew. It’s all there, the sweat, jokes about farting, quite literally hairy food, constant soaking in salt water and itchy beards. This is all interspersed with a liberal sprinkling of highly tense moments, e.g. after engaging a Royal Navy-protected convoy and waiting for the inevitable “Wasserbomben” or when they are practically sent to good old D.J’s Locker for ever in the Straits of Gibraltar, with the depth gauge off the scale and only enough air to blow the ballast one more time. However, since I am writing more specifically about the DVD, I won’t spoil the plot any further. Now for the techie bit... Read review

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