Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

Das Boot

Play trailer Poster for Das Boot R Released Sep 17, 1981 2h 30m War Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
98% Tomatometer 57 Reviews 96% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
A German submarine patrols the Atlantic Ocean during World War II, manned by a crew that must contend with tense conflicts and long stretches of confined boredom. While war correspondent Werner (Herbert Grönemeyer) observes day-to-day life aboard the U-boat, the grizzled captain (Jürgen Prochnow) struggles to maintain his own motivation as he attempts to keep the ship's morale up in the face of fierce battles, intense storms and dwindling supplies.
Watch on Fandango at Home Buy Now

Where to Watch

Das Boot

Das Boot

What to Know

Critics Consensus

Taut, breathtakingly thrilling, and devastatingly intelligent, Das Boot is one of the greatest war films ever made.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View All (57) Critics Reviews
Wael Khairy RogerEbert.com ...enough nerve-wracking suspense to make your heart pound against your chest like depth charges rupturing a submarine's hull. Jul 30, 2023 Full Review Dwight Brown Sepia Das Boot's actors look like they have lived through every sneak attack and painful claustrophobic moment in this film. Aug 10, 2022 Full Review Scott Cain Atlanta Journal-Constitution This is the finest submarine movie ever made. Although director Wolfgang Petersen emphasizes the claustrophobia of undersea life, his above-surface scenes are powerful as well. Nov 9, 2021 Full Review Erick Estrada Cinegarage The outcome, no matter how you look at it, confirms that it's futile to return to war but that it's also impossible to escape it. [Full review in Spanish] Jun 21, 2023 Full Review Judy Stone San Francisco Examiner Director Wolfgang Petersen has rigorously discarded war movie clichés, both American and those of the Nazi regime, to show the very human fears and real courage of Germans who battled for, and lost, supremacy of the seas. Rated: 3/4 Nov 11, 2021 Full Review Tom Cassidy Common Sense Media Effective as an anti-war movie and as thrilling as any disaster flick, Das Boot is a humanistic masterpiece. Rated: 5/5 Jun 21, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (1000+) audience reviews
Magnus A Fantastic movie! Very well made considering that it's from the 80's. Love it!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/19/24 Full Review Audience Member DAS BOOT is top notch in ✨every✨ sense (especially for its early 80s production period). Some scenes are mesmerizing suspence and others are almost "jump outta your seat" intensity. Probably the most intense part about DAS BOOT is that the story's basis and its different scenes are based in something that actually did occur. GREAT flick...!!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/04/24 Full Review Samppa S Absolutely one of the best war films ever made. The claustrophopic atmosphere under the sea is descriped and made to feel to the audience. And it gives the feeling of heroics of war just in order to make it clear how much the whole war is a waste of human life. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/01/24 Full Review Wyatt E The best WW2 submarine film ever made Rated 5 out of 5 stars 05/29/24 Full Review Aender S A masterpiece of a war film, letting the audience literally feel the claustrophobia from the insides of a submarine. Due to its tension it doesn't become boring a single moment. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 04/16/24 Full Review Ron M The absolute best and most realistic submarine movie ever!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 04/16/24 Full Review Read all reviews
Das Boot

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

Show Less Cast & Crew Show More Cast & Crew

More Like This

View All Best Movies to Stream at Home
Apocalypse Now 90% 94% Apocalypse Now Watchlist The Deer Hunter 86% 91% The Deer Hunter Watchlist Cross of Iron 71% 87% Cross of Iron Watchlist Platoon 89% 93% Platoon Watchlist Apocalypse Now Redux 93% 91% Apocalypse Now Redux Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Related Movie News

View All Related Movie News
Mel Rodriguez’s Five Favorite Films Sam Raimi Has Been Discussing "Hobbit" Plans Critical Consensus: "Poseidon" Sinks, "Luck" Is Lacking
View All Das Boot photos

Das Boot

Das Boot (1981) Das Boot (1981) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis A German submarine patrols the Atlantic Ocean during World War II, manned by a crew that must contend with tense conflicts and long stretches of confined boredom. While war correspondent Werner (Herbert Grönemeyer) observes day-to-day life aboard the U-boat, the grizzled captain (Jürgen Prochnow) struggles to maintain his own motivation as he attempts to keep the ship's morale up in the face of fierce battles, intense storms and dwindling supplies.
Director
Wolfgang Petersen
Producer
Günter Rohrbach, Ortwin Freyermuth
Screenwriter
Lothar G. Buchheim, Wolfgang Petersen, Dean Riesner
Distributor
RCA/Columbia, Columbia Pictures, Columbia TriStar Home Video
Production Co
Bavaria Film, Westdeutscher Rundfunk, Radiant Productions
Rating
R
Genre
War, Drama
Original Language
German
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 17, 1981, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
May 1, 2012
Runtime
2h 30m
Sound Mix
Dolby, Dolby Digital, SDDS, Surround
Aspect Ratio
1.66:1
Most Popular at Home Now