History Film / Titanic1943

* AnAesop: Greed is bad! Capitalism is bad! Stock speculation is bad! And the British are bad! The closing title card calls the sinking "an eternal condemnation of England's endless quest for profit." The image of Britain as a land of greedy plutocrats was a frequent staple of Nazi propaganda films.

While some scenes of heavy-handed propaganda compromise the quality of the film, it is still of historical interest for anyone studying Nazi cinema or cinematic portrayals of the ''Titanic'' disaster, and has proven to be surprisingly influential on future ''Titanic'' movies. Stock footage from this film has been recycled many times in various ''Titanic'' themed television productions and a few brief clips even show up in the vastly superior ''Film/ANightToRemember''. While Creator/JamesCameron never admitted taking any inspiration from this film, some of the plot points in his ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' --suspected theft of a blue diamond, an innocent man being locked in the master-at-arms' cabin, where he sees water flooding in before he's liberated by his comrade with the aid of an emergency axe; a young woman headed for an ArrangedMarriage who rejects that idea after falling in love on the ship; a First Class couple arguing in their cabin over the woman's alleged infidelity before being interrupted by a crew member informing them to put on lifebelts; an arrogant first class passenger trying (and failing) to bribe his way onto a lifeboat; and a scene where the female lead is forced by the hero to board the last lifeboat, where she dramatically watches her lover disappear behind the railing as the lifeboat is lowered-- resemble moments in this film. Additionally, this film's concepts of interweaving fictional stories of passengers with the true story of the sinking and of portraying J. Bruce Ismay as the villain solely responsible for the disaster have been repeated in many subsequent dramatizations of the sinking.

* ActorAllusion: [[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0773525/?ref_=tt_ov_st Sybille Schmitz]] essentially plays the same character she portrayed four years earlier in ''[[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031446/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_2 Hotel Sacher]]'', a similar [[EnsembleCast ensemble drama]] set during early 1900s with an [[EvilBrit anti-British tone]]. In both films, Schmitz portrays an alluring Russian socialite who serves as a the main love interest for the German male protagonist.

** Senior wireless operator Jack Phillips was only 25 years old at the time of the sinking, but in the film he is portrayed as a middle aged man with gray hair.

* ArmorPiercingResponse: When Officer Petersen argues with Ismay over sailing ''Titanic'' at a dangerous speed in ice infested waters.

* ArrangedMarriage: Hedy the manicurist has been committed to marry the neighbors' son, but she refuses him after meeting Franz the violinist and falling in love.

* AsYouKnow: The film opens with Ismay addressing the board of the White Star Line and explaining a lot of things about the cost overruns of ''Titanic'''s construction and how it resulted White Star Line stock price to plummet, all things that the board would already have known.
* BigDamnHeroes: First Officer Petersen, the sole (fictional) German crew member, is the only one who knows it's dangerous to sail full speed through an ice field and, later, single handedly organizes the evacuation of the ship. He only survives the sinking because he rescues a little girl by swimming with her to the nearest lifeboat.

* BrickJoke: When Petersen meets Sigrid in the lounge, he tells her officers are forbidden to visit passengers in their staterooms. Later in the film, he lets himself in Sigrid's stateroom in order to persuade her into convincing Ismay to slow down the ship.

* CassandraTruth: No one takes Petersen’s warnings about sailing full speed through an ice infested area of the North Atlantic seriously.

* DirtyCoward: John Jacob Astor and all the other First Class men who try to buy their way onto lifeboats. Also Ismay, who demands and gets a place on a lifeboat. This was actually a common belief regarding Ismay's survival amongst the general public after William Randolph Hearst used the sinking as an opportunity to run a smear campaign against Ismay via his media empire due to a long running feud between the two men, so this film is hardly unique in this portrayal of Ismay and his subsequent survival. In Astor's case, the historical record clearly establishes him as facing his fate with dignity after ensuring his pregnant wife's survival in a lifeboat.
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: Stone faced crew members are seen barking orders at the confused and frightened steerage passengers, [[USefulNotes/TheHolocaust who are then forced apart and lined up according to age and gender]].
* DoomedByCanon: Adding a heroic German Officer that knows about the dangers of ice infested waters doesn’t really achieve much of anything; ''Titanic'' still hits an iceberg and sinks, killing over 1,500 people.

** Professor Bergmann stays behind to die on the ship after handing his life’s work to his young protege and telling him save himself.

* GorgeousPeriodDress: Like the subsequent Titanic films that followed it, the 1943 version showcases the First Class female passengers wearing various glamorous gowns, fur coats and stoles, elaborate hats and headdresses, while the male passengers strut around in expensive tailored tuxedos and leisure suits.

* {{Irony}}: This Nazi propaganda film portrays American multi-millionaire John Jacob Astor as a [[HistoricalVillainUpgrade villainous]] [[AdaptationalNationality British]] [[AristocratsAreEvil aristocrat]], but in reality the Astor Family stemmed from an old line of minor German nobility that immigrated to the United States in the late 1700s.

* MaybeEverAfter: Sigrid is seen seated next to Petersen at the disaster inquiry, but the film remains ambiguous wether they pursued a romantic relationship after surviving the sinking.

* NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed: The Duchess who befriends Sigrid seems to be based on a real life First Class passenger named Edith Corse Evans, an American socialite who was terrified of the sea because she once received a fortune reading that stated she will die on water. Because of this, she refused to board a lifeboat and was one of only four women in First Class who perished in the sinking.
* OhCrap: Ismay when he realizes the ship is sinking and all the stock speculation was for naught. Also Astor, when he finally comprehends that the sinking isn't just a ruse by Ismay and there are not enough lifeboats to accommodate the men onboard.

* ActorAllusion: [[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0773525/?ref_=tt_ov_st Sybille Schmitz]] essentially plays the same character she portrayed four years earlier in ''[[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031446/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_2 Hotel Sacher]]'', a similar [[EnsembleCast ensemble drama]] set during early 1900s with an [[EvilBrit anti-British tone]]. In both films, Schmitz portrays an alluring Russian socialite who serves as a the main love love interest for the German male protagonist.

* HiddenHeartOfGold: After antagonizing Petersen and refusing to help him influence President Ismay, Sigrid does in fact try to use her influence to convince Ismay to slow ''Titanic'' down while sailing through an ice field. [[ForegonaConclusion Not that it did much good]].

* ActorAllusion: [[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0773525/?ref_=tt_ov_st Sybille Schmitz]] essentially plays the same character she portrayed four years earlier in ''[[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031446/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_2 Hotel Sacher]]'', a similar [[EnsembleCast ensemble drama]] set during TheEdwardianEra with an [[EvilBrit anti-British tone]]. In both films, Schmitz portrays an alluring Russian socialite who serves as a DesignatedLoveInterest for the German male protagonist.

* DesignatedLoveInterest: Sigrid Olinsky seems to exist solely to provide Officer Petersen with something else to do besides constantly chastising Ismay.

While some scenes of heavy-handed propaganda somewhat compromise the quality of the film, it is still of historical interest for anyone studying Nazi cinema or cinematic portrayals of the ''Titanic'' disaster, and has proven to be surprisingly influential on future ''Titanic'' movies. Stock footage from this film has been recycled many times in various ''Titanic'' themed television productions and a few brief clips even show up in the vastly superior ''Film/ANightToRemember''. While Creator/JamesCameron never admitted taking any inspiration from this film, some of the plot points in his ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' --suspected theft of a blue diamond, an innocent man being locked in the master-at-arms' cabin, where he sees water flooding in before he's liberated by his comrade with the aid of an emergency axe; a young woman headed for an ArrangedMarriage who rejects that idea after falling in love on the ship; a First Class couple arguing in their cabin over the woman's alleged infidelity before being interrupted by a crew member informing them to put on lifebelts; an arrogant first class passenger trying (and failing) to bribe his way onto a lifeboat; and a scene where the female lead is forced by the hero to board the last lifeboat, where she dramatically watches her lover disappear behind the railing as the lifeboat is lowered-- resemble moments in this film. Additionally, this film's concepts of interweaving fictional stories of passengers with the true story of the sinking and of portraying J. Bruce Ismay as the villain solely responsible for the disaster have been repeated in many subsequent dramatizations of the sinking.

* DeathOfAChild:

* ActorAllusion: [[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0773525/?ref_=tt_ov_st Sybille Schmitz]] essentially plays the same character she portrayed four years earlier in ''[[https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0031446/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_2 Hotel Sacher]]'', a similar [[EnsembleCast ensemble drama]] set during The EdwardianEra with an [[EvilBrit anti-British tone]]. In both films, Schmitz portrays an alluring Russian socialite who serves as a DesignatedLoveInterest for the German male protagonist.

''Titanic'' is a 1943 film that, as the name implies, is an adaptation of the RealLife story of the UsefulNotes/RMSTitanic, which sank in the early-morning hours of April 15, 1912, at the cost of some 1,500 lives. What makes this version unique is that it was a German production made by UsefulNotes/NaziGermany, right in the middle of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, as a piece of anti-British propaganda [[BackedByThePentagon under the auspicious of propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels]]. In this version, White Star Line president Bruce Ismay is pushing Captain Smith to sail at unsafe speeds because Ismay wants the ''Titanic'' to win the Blue Ribbon award for the fastest Atlantic crossing. This will push up the price of White Star stock and help Ismay, who is deep in debt, fend off a hostile takeover from John Jacob Astor. Capt. Smith ignores both the ice warnings and the advice of his honest, brave, and entirely fictional German First Officer Petersen, and the ''Titanic'' sails to its doom.

While some scenes of heavy-handed propaganda somewhat compromise the quality of the film, it is still of historical interest for anyone studying Nazi cinema or cinematic portrayals of the ''Titanic'' disaster, and has proven to be surprisingly influential on future ''Titanic'' movies. Stock footage from this film has been recycled many times in various ''Titanic'' themed television productions and a few brief clips even show up in the vastly superior ''Film/ANightToRemember''. While Creator/JamesCameron never admitted taking any inspiration from this film, some of the plot points in his ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' --suspected theft of a blue diamond, an innocent man being locked in the master-at-arms' cabin, where he sees water flooding in before he's liberated by his comrade with the aid of an emergency axe; a young woman headed for an ArrangedMarriage who rejects that idea after falling in love on the ship; a First Class couple arguing in their cabin over the woman's alleged infidelity before being interrupted by a crew member informing them to put on lifebelts; an arrogant first class passenger trying (and failing) to bribe his way onto a lifeboat; and a scene where the female lead is forced by the hero to board the last lifeboat, where she dramatically watches her lover disappear behind the railing as the lifeboat is lowered-- resemble moments in this film. Additionally, this film's concept of interweaving fictional stories of passengers with the true story of the sinking and portraying J. Bruce Ismay as the villain solely responsible for the disaster have been repeated in many subsequent dramatizations of the sinking.

While some scenes of heavy-handed propaganda do somewhat compromise the quality of the film, but it is of historical interest for anyone studying Nazi cinema or cinematic portrayals of the ''Titanic'' disaster, and has proven to be surprisingly influential on future ''Titanic'' movies. Stock footage from this film has been recycled many times in various ''Titanic'' themed television productions and a few brief clips even show up in the vastly superior ''Film/ANightToRemember''. While Creator/JamesCameron never admitted taking any inspiration from this film, some of the plot points in his ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' --suspected theft of a blue diamond, an innocent man being locked in the master-at-arms' cabin, where he sees water flooding in before he's liberated by his comrade with the aid of an emergency axe; a young woman headed for an ArrangedMarriage who rejects that idea after falling in love on the ship; a First Class couple arguing in their cabin over the woman's alleged infidelity before being interrupted by a crew member informing them to put on lifebelts; an arrogant first class passenger trying (and failing) to bribe his way onto a lifeboat; and a scene where the female lead is forced by the hero to board the last lifeboat, where she dramatically watches her lover disappear behind the railing as the lifeboat is lowered-- resemble moments in this film. Additionally, this film's concept of interweaving fictional stories of passengers with the true story of the sinking and portraying J. Bruce Ismay as the villain solely responsible for the disaster have been repeated in many subsequent dramatizations of the sinking.

While some scenes of heavy-handed propaganda do somewhat compromise the quality of the film, but it is of historical interest for anyone studying Nazi cinema or cinematic portrayals of the ''Titanic'' disaster, and has proven to be surprisingly influential on future ''Titanic'' movies. Stock footage from this film has been recycled many times in various ''Titanic'' themed television productions and a few brief clips even show up in the vastly superior ''Film/ANightToRemember'. While Creator/JamesCameron never admitted taking any inspiration from this film, some of the plot points in his ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' --suspected theft of a blue diamond, an innocent man being locked in the master-at-arms' cabin, where he sees water flooding in before he's liberated by his comrade with the aid of an emergency axe; a young woman headed for an ArrangedMarriage who rejects that idea after falling in love on the ship; a First Class couple arguing in their cabin over the woman's alleged infidelity before being interrupted by a crew member informing them to put on lifebelts; an arrogant first class passenger trying (and failing) to bribe his way onto a lifeboat; and a scene where the female lead is forced by the hero to board the last lifeboat, where she dramatically watches her lover disappear behind the railing as the lifeboat is lowered-- resemble moments in this film. Additionally, this film's concept of interweaving fictional stories of passengers with the true story of the sinking and portraying J. Bruce Ismay as the villain solely responsible for the disaster have been repeated in many subsequent dramatizations of the sinking.

The heavy-handed, crude propaganda keeps this from being a very good movie, but it is of historical interest for anyone studying Nazi cinema or cinematic portrayals of the ''Titanic'' disaster, and has proven to be surprisingly influential on future ''Titanic'' films. A few brief clips from this film were used as stock footage in the vastly superior ''Film/ANightToRemember''. Creator/JamesCameron has never admitted taking any inspiration from this movie, but some of the plot points in his ''Film/{{Titanic 1997}}'' --suspected theft of a blue diamond, an innocent man being locked in the master-at-arms' cabin, where he sees water flooding in before he's liberated by his comrade with the aid of an emergency axe; a young woman headed for an ArrangedMarriage who rejects that idea after falling in love on the ship; a First Class couple arguing in their cabin over the woman's alleged infidelity before being interrupted by a crew member informing them to put on lifebelts; an arrogant first class passenger trying (and failing) to bribe his way onto a lifeboat; and a scene where the female lead is forced by the hero to board the last lifeboat, where she dramatically watches her lover disappear behind the railing as the lifeboat is lowered-- resemble moments in this film. Additionally, this film's concept of interweaving fictional stories of passengers with the true story of the sinking and portraying J. Bruce Ismay as the villain solely responsible for the disaster have been repeated in many subsequent dramatizations of the sinking.

''Titanic'' is a 1943 film that, as the name implies, is an adaptation of the RealLife story of the UsefulNotes/RMSTitanic, which sank in the early-morning hours of April 15, 1912, at the cost of some 1,500 lives. What makes this version unique is that it was a German production made by UsefulNotes/NaziGermany, right in the middle of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, as a piece of anti-British propaganda under Joseph Goebbels. In this version, White Star Line president Bruce Ismay is pushing Captain Smith to sail at unsafe speeds because Ismay wants the ''Titanic'' to win the Blue Ribbon award for the fastest Atlantic crossing. This will push up the price of White Star stock and help Ismay, who is deep in debt, fend off a hostile takeover from John Jacob Astor. Capt. Smith ignores both the ice warnings and the advice of his honest, brave, and entirely fictional German First Officer Petersen, and the ''Titanic'' sails to its doom.

* HistoricalDomainCharacter: A surprising amount for a heavily fictionalized nazi propaganda film. Bruce Ismay, Captain Smith, Officers Murdoch & Lightoller, wireless operators Phillips & Bride, and the Astors all appear in this film.

** Professor Bergmann stays behind to die on ship after handing his life’s work to his young protege and telling him save himself.