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June 15, 2025
Submarines in Movies
I've always loved movies centering on submarines for reasons unclear to me.
Perhaps it started back when I was around 10 years old and toured the captured German submarine U-505 (below)
at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.
I recall being amazed and rapt at everything I saw: how could a large crew of men live in such tight spaces for extended periods of time deep under the ocean surface, knowing they could be blown to smithereens out of the blue anytime?
I went at least once, perhaps twice more, before I moved west for college, each visit as exciting as the first.
Below, my Top 10 List of submarine movies, in descending order, best up top.
..................................
Das Boot (1981)
The Hunt for Red October (1990)
Crimson Tide (1995)
Run Silent, Run Deep (1958)
K-19: The Widowmaker (2002)
The Wolf’s Call (2019)
Hunter Killer (2018)
The Enemy Below (1957)
Phantom (2013)
Black Sea (2014)
...................................
Note: "Das Boot" has been remastered in a Director's Cut in 1080p HD. It runs 3:28 (the original ran 2:29) and is available to rent or buy here.
June 15, 2025 at 04:01 PM | Permalink
Comments
U.S. Naval Institute asked submariners "What is the Most Realistic Submarine Movie Ever Made?"
Posted by: bookofjoe | Jun 18, 2025 10:33:24 AM
Comment from IMDB:
10/10
Take it from a real submariner-
on modern "boats" life isn't easy- but compared to the living hell that the German U-Boats were, modern submariners have nothing to complain about. People in certain professions don't like to watch movies about those professions (Doctors and Nurses shy away from hospital dramas, for example). Submarine sailors are different. We love to watch every submarine movie ever made, from "Run Silent, Run Deep" and "Destination: Tokyo" to "The Hunt For Red October", "Crimson Tide" and "U-571". Why? Because we can always use a good laugh.
For those in the know, submarine movies are usually absolutely hilarious.
Except this one.
After being in the Navy for four years, serving with around 350 different men, and being acquainted with a further 200-300, all of them submarine sailors, I think that I can state with absolute certainty that this film is the ONLY submarine movie that ALL submariners take seriously. And that is the highest praise a movie like this can possibly get.
Posted by: nonom | Jun 17, 2025 11:35:20 PM
@Penny Tanz
Joe specifically said that list was his Top Ten. I inferred that Ice Station Zebra did not make his Top Ten. FWIW ISZ does not make my Top Ten either.
Me?
1. Das Boot;
2. Crimson Tide;
3. The Enemy Below;
4. Run Silent, Run Deep;
5. 20,000 Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1954);
6. Operation Petticoat;
7. Up Periscope!;
8. Greyhound;
9. The Hunt for Red October (I hated Alec Baldwin before he became a murderer); and
10. On the Beach.
Posted by: antares | Jun 16, 2025 11:34:12 AM
You skipped Ice Station Zebra, another great submarine movie
Posted by: Penny Tanz | Jun 16, 2025 10:37:45 AM
I toured U-505 about 45 years ago.
I was amazed at the beautiful woodwork
in an otherwise purely industrial setting.
Posted by: Luke | Jun 16, 2025 6:30:57 AM
Das Boot is one of my favorite movies. Have it on DVD in German. Outstanding performance by Jürgen Prochnow as the submarine commander.
Posted by: antares | Jun 15, 2025 10:19:13 PM
