Peterson with the director's cut version of the film
In 1981, the Bavarian Film Studio in the Federal Republic of Germany, west Germany, launched a classic submarine-themed film – Attack from the Bottom of the Sea. The screenplay of the film is based on the novel of the same name by the German Lothar-Guntz Buchheim, and mainly tells the story of the German submarine U-96 during World War II. From October to December 1941, Buchheim witnessed the 7th patrol of the submarine U-96 as a reporter accompanying the army. Therefore, although attacking from the bottom of the sea is a novel, it is also based on facts, and most of the plot in the movie is based on real events.
The original German name of this film is "Das Boot", which literally translates to "that ship", which is equivalent to the English "The Boat".
Directed by Wolfgang Peterson, Peterson became the first person to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director for a German-language film in its second year of release.
Buchheim (left) and Peterson are in the submarine studio, both of whom are screenwriters for the film
Director Peterson recalled that when the film was screened in the United States, a total of 2,000 people were invited, including many Jews. They initially thought the film was about the Nazis, so they were hostile. When the opening credits mentioned that 40,000 people served in the submarine force in Germany in World War II, and 30,000 people never returned, these audience members applauded warmly. Peterson thought, Oh my God, this is terrible. However, as the film aired, the audience became quieter and quieter, and when the film was over, the production staff stepped up to the front desk, and the audience actually saluted them standing up. Peterson said it was a major victory, really incredible.
There are several versions of Attack from the Bottom of the Sea, there are 3 common ones, the first is a 149-minute theatrical version, the second is a 209-minute director's cut version, and the third is a 293-minute uncut version.
Several versions of the film were released in the following order: in 1981, the 149-minute theatrical version was released, the United Kingdom and Germany launched a 300-minute miniseries version 3 years and 4 years later, respectively, in 1997, the 209-minute director's cut version was released, and the final release was the 2004 unedited version, which was 293 minutes long.
Director Peterson's own opinion is: "The miniseries version does everything. "The miniseries version is great, but in fact it's a little too long. In 1990, Peterson decided that "there should be a perfect version, somewhere between the original theatrical version and a long miniseries version." After the funds were in place, the production team was busy from the summer of '96 to the spring of '97, and finally launched the director's cut version in April of that year. In addition to re-editing, this version also re-produced the audio, except for the German dialogue, the other sound effects and soundtrack are remade.
Peterson, who is working on a director's cut
Compared with the director's cut version, the uncut version and the miniseries version use the extra time to make the image of some supporting characters plump. Another difference is that the unedited version and the miniseries version have a lot of Lieutenant Warner's narration. The content is mainly from Warner's perspective on the interpretation of U-96. On the whole, the added content and narration are mostly dispensable for the main plot.
At the end of the film, U-96 is sunk in port. But in fact, it was sunk by American aircraft in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, on March 30, 1945. The film moved the event forward to the end of 1941.
Historically, the U-96's captain at the time was named Heinrich Lymann Willenbrock, who belonged to the German ace captain No. 6. After World War II, Willenbrock was sentenced to one year in prison for participating in unrestricted submarine warfare. In 1980, he participated as a consultant in the filming of the film Attack from the Bottom of the Sea, and later died in 1986 at the age of 74.
The person in the middle of the photo is Willon Bullock
In an era when there were no computer effects, there were only two options for submarine props, real submarines or models. Because there were no conditions to shoot with a real submarine, the crew made 3 models of Type 7C submarines, including 1 1:1 large model, 1 11 meter long and 1 small model nearly 6 meters long. The 1:1 model is 67.2 meters long, it sails slowly, can not dive, and can only play the role of the U-96 in a still water state, in the final scene, this model is blown in two and then sunk to the bottom of the sea. The 11-meter-long model is fast and is responsible for playing the role of a submarine that sails at high speed in the wind and waves, but it cannot dive, and the underwater U-96 is played by the small model that is nearly 6 meters long.
The interior of U-96 was done in a studio. The crew built a studio on a syringe according to the internal structure of the Type 7C submarine, which can rely on hydraulic power to achieve shaking, vibration and other actions, which is extremely realistic.
The Germans built a photo studio based on the drawings of the Type 7C submarine, the same below