A 2004 American Submarine War Drama directed by Tony Giglio that has an American submarine crew being taken prison by a German U-boat while also dealing with a meningitis outbreak.
The movie stars William H. Macy, Til Schweiger, Scott Caan, Thomas Kretschmann, Lauren Holly, Connor Donne, Clark Gregg, Carmine Giovinazzo, Sam Huntington, Jeremy Sisto, and Ian Somerhalder.
It was released on February 25, 2004.
Tropes for the film:
- All Germans Are Nazis: Zig-Zagged. Jonas and Ludwig are both disillusioned with how the war is going for their country. However, U-1221 prominently features the Nazi war ensign in the boat's control room, indicating its captain's fanatical devotion.
- Anachronism Stew:
- The poster features an Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine, which weren't introduced until the 1980s.
- One of the German sailors wears the uniform of a modern Bundeswehr artilleryman.
- Anyone Can Die: Both due to both WWII and the meningitis outbreak, many characters die with the German U-boat losing two thirds of their men, and Sullivan, Goodman, and several other American characters dying as well.
- Artistic License – History:
- One of the American crew mentions all the things the Germans will do to them, including gassing them like the Jews. The existence of the gas chambers and the full extent of the Holocaust did not become known until the liberation of the camps by Allied troops in 1945.
- None of the vessels featured operated anywhere near each other. USS Swordfish operated in the Pacific, where she was the first American submarine to sink a Japanese ship. U-429 was commissioned in July 1943 and served as a training boat. U-821 made only two war patrols in 1944 before being sunk. U-1221 only made one patrol in 1944. USS Logan was actually an attack transport rather than a destroyer.
- After the Laconia incident in September 1942, German U-boats were ordered not to rescue survivors. Even before then, the Germans were unlikely to take prisoners simply due to the limited space on board, though they occasionally gave aid such as water, medical care, and a compass bearing to land.
- At the end of the film, the destroyer captain orders Travers to capture the Enigma machine and all code books. The fact that the Allies had broken the Enigma code was one of the most classified secrets of the war, and even if the captain had been aware of it, he certainly wouldn't have referred to it by name on an open radio channel where the Germans could possibly overhear.note
- Mrs. Travers's car doesn't have an A, B, or C gasoline rationing sticker on the windshield.
- Artistic License – Military:
- The Germans address their officers and NCOs as "Herr [name]." Both past and present German military protocol has subordinates addressing their officers as "Herr [rank]."
- The Admiral addresses Travers by his first name "Nate." Given that Travers is an enlisted sailor many rank grades beneath him, this would be an enormous breach in US Navy protocol.
- Artistic License – Ships:
- The film involves submarines fighting each other with torpedoes. Out of the thousands of hours logged by submarines on all sides during the war, there is only one recorded incident of a submarine sinking another with torpedoes.
- The submarines spend most of their time submerged. A diesel-electro boat of World War II could only spend about twenty hours submerged before surfacing to replenish their oxygen and recharge their batteries. Both German and American submarines spent most of their time surfaced, as they were much faster on the surface than submerged, and only dived to evade attacks. The introduction of the Schnorchel allowed U-boats to remain underwater indefinitely by replenishing their oxygen while submerged, but they weren't introduced until 1944.
- The U-boat makes several communications while deeply submerged. At the time, submarines could only send and receive messages while surfaced or at periscope depth.
- The American and German crews smoke inside the U-boat, which was an extreme fire hazard due to oil vapor and hydrogen. Smoking was only done on the observation platform while surfaced.
- Bittersweet Ending: A small number of the American and German sailors survive, though the latter are soon captured and placed in a POW camp.
- Blatant Lies: After being ordered to capture the Enigma code machine, Travers claims they are sinking fast due to a massive crack in the hull.
- Death of a Child: Jonas learns that the Allies bombed Hamburg and one of them hit his daughter's school with no survivors.
- Enemy Mine: With most of the German crew and the American survivors dead from meningitis, the remaining sailors have to work together to operate the boat, and in the end, they fight against U-1221.
- Everybody Smokes: Travers and Ludwig share a moment where they talk about how much they smoke, with the American smoking a pack a day and the German rationing his pack to last two months. When meeting at a POW camp, Travers give Ludwig back his cigarettes.
- Hot Sub-on-Sub Action: The plot features several undersea battles with American and German submarines in the closing days of World War II.
- Period Piece: Takes place in 1942, 1943, and 1944.
- Smart People Play Chess: Jonas and Ludwig enjoy a game, in which the Captain easily beats his watch officer.
- Tagline: "Courage, trust and honor. In a time when ordinary men had no choice but to become extraordinary heroes".
