DVD Review - Das Boot: The Director's Cut (SuperBit)

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Site created 12/15/97.

review added: 2/21/03

Das Boot: The Director's Cut
SuperBit - 1981/1997 (2003) - Bavaria Film GmbH (Columbia TriStar)

review by Bill Hunt, editor of The Digital Bits

Film Rating: A-

Disc Ratings (Video/Extras): A-/F

Audio Ratings (DD/DTS): B+/A

Specs and Features

210 mins, R, letterboxed widescreen (1.85:1), 16x9 enhanced, 2 single-sided, RSDL dual-layered discs, keep case packaging with SuperBit slipcase, SuperBit-branded menus, scene access (Disc One - 35 chapters, Disc Two - 30 chapters), languages: German (DD & DTS 5.1) and English (DD 2.0 Surround), subtitles: English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean and Thai, Closed Captioned

In 1981, an extraordinary mini-series appeared for the first time on German television. Directed by Wolfgang Peterson (Outbreak, Air Force One), Das Boot was a 6-hour television epic that told the story of the crew of a German U-boat during World War II. A theatrical film version of the miniseries was released in the U.S. in 1982, edited to a length of 145 minutes, which earned no less than 6 Oscar nominations. And in 1997, Peterson revisited the project to create the ultimate theatrical version of Das Boot - this 210-minute Director's Cut.

Jürgen Prochnow (The English Patient) stars as the submarine's legendary Captain, a seasoned veteran of war who knows his duty and does it better than anyone. But he also fights an internal struggle - he suspects that the war is a doomed effort and he derides the fanatic ideology of the Nazi leadership. This is a man who knows he's on a dangerous course, fighting a losing battle. And yet he manages to lead his crew and even to inspire them in the face of the greatest odds.

Few of the supporting cast here is well-known in the West. In fact, probably the most recognizable supporting player is only seen a few times - Otto Sander (Wings of Desire) as Thomsen, the Captain of another U-Boat. But the fact that so many of these young actors are unfamiliar is part of what makes the film work so well. These young men could be any typical sons of war. You can immediately empathize with them - with their fears and anxiety.

But the brunt of the film's success lies with the production design and the deft direction by Peterson. This film was shot in absolutely authentic sets, recreating the interior of a German U-Boat down to the last screw. The camera is often handheld, and few interior shots are wider than a small group of men. The U-Boat is a cramped, claustrophobic environment, and you're right there in the middle of it, elbow to elbow with the crew. The result is that Das Boot is a terrifying battle, not just with the enemy but also the psychological demons of war.

When Das Boot first appeared on DVD in late 1997, it was a very exciting release. But by today's standards, it left a lot to be desired. The digital video compression was abysmal, resulting in an anamorphic picture that was absolutely riddled with MPEG-2 artifacting. The remixed Dolby Digital 5.1 audio was very good, but you definitely got the impression that the disc could have looked and sounded better. And now it does.

When Columbia TriStar first announced their SuperBit line of DVDs, THIS was the film I was most hoping would be revisited. And when it was finally announced a few months ago, I couldn't wait to get my hands on it. I'm pleased to say I wasn't disappointed in the slightest.

Compared to the original DVD, the anamorphic widescreen video quality here is absolutely superior in every respect. The film is been split over two discs to maximize quality, and it benefits tremendously from the higher bitrate that both the SuperBit approach and the added disc space allows. You will be very hard pressed to spot ANY kind of digital compression artifacting, which is an achievement given the fact that so much of this film takes place in the moody darkness of the submarine, or the murky ocean depths through which it passes. That's not to say that there aren't still picture issues... but it does mean that they're all related to the quality of the print itself. You will see the occasional bit of dust or nick on the emulsion. And there's light to moderate grain visible throughout the film. But that's entirely acceptable given the nature of the film and what we've seen previously on disc.

The colors in this film range from muted to vibrant, but they're always accurate. This is true of everything from the green ocean depths, to the lush reds and blues of emergency lighting, to even the ever more pasty flesh tones of the crew. And the contrast! The blacks here are deep and solid without ever looking muddy or losing detail. So much of this film takes place in the dark nooks and crannies of the sub interior, but you'll never want for detail. Given the print itself, this is really stunning anamorphic video.

The audio is also superior, given what you'd expect from the SuperBit line. You're given 5.1 sound options (in the original German) in both Dolby Digital and DTS flavors. The DTS is, of course, absolutely the recommended choice. But fans without DTS will be plenty happy with Dolby Digital. The DTS features a smoother, more natural soundstage and better resolution of the subtler aspects in the mix. But both tracks feature incredible dynamic range and a very wide soundstage. Sound is SO important to this film, and you'll hear every little nuance of the mix, particularly in the DTS. From the faint gurgle of the ocean moving past the hull, to the pinging of sonar, the popping of rivets and the bone-jarring blast of depth charges... this is an extremely rich and layered DVD audio experience. I daresay this disc is going to be a serious challenger for BEST DVD - AUDIO in next year's Bitsy awards.

Das Boot: The Director's Cut - Special Edition

There's no doubt that the original Columbia TriStar special edition release of Das Boot (pictured at left) was inferior in terms of video quality. And it was a flipper disc. But it featured a couple of nice extras, including a full-length audio commentary (with director Wolfgang Peterson, star Jürgen Prochnow and Director's Cut producer Ortwin Freyermuth), a short "making of" featurette (that briefly addresses the making of the film and the creation of the Director's Cut) and an insert booklet with liner notes by Peterson. Unfortunately, in order to accommodate high bitrate anamorphic video and both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 soundtracks, this new SuperBit DVD doesn't include either the commentary or the featurette, and the liner notes didn't carry over either.

To be sure, that's disappointing. It means that true fans of this film are definitely going to want to own both versions, because the audio commentary is a superbly entertaining listen. But I can absolutely appreciate why Columbia TriStar omitted these extras on the new DVD, and I agree fully with the decision. The goal here is absolutely top video and audio quality - the best possible for this film on standard DVD. And I think Columbia TriStar has achieved that in spades.

While it's not the original 6-hour miniseries version (which I confess I've never seen), I suspect this film's picture and sound restoration enhances the impact of the story greatly. Whichever version you choose to watch, Das Boot is an extraordinary film experience. In my opinion, it ranks highly among the best war films ever made. It's an extremely satisfying experience that's well worth your time. And my thanks to Columbia TriStar for finally revisiting the title on DVD in the kind of quality it so richly deserves. Don't miss it.

Bill Hunt
billhunt@thedigitalbits.com

Das Boot: The Director's Cut (SuperBit)

Das Boot: The Director's Cut (Original Special Edition)