EssenceStory Well Deserved Praise

NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Flyerplesys Perfectly adorable

Sienna-Rose Mclaughlin The movie really just wants to entertain people.

ma-cortes However incredible they may seem the events narrated in this picture actually occurred and starred by Bernhard Rogge (Van Heflin), captain of the German raider at that time called Atlantis . It deals with the sensational 665-Day chase of the Killer-Ship Atlantis captained by Bernhard Rogge pursued by the British staff commanded by Admiral Russell (Charles Laughton ) ; including an intrigue upon secret agent (Alex Nicol) robbing documents by means of a dangerous mission .This interesting war movie contains suspense , thrills, sea battles and historical events . It's an European co-production lavishly and mostly produced by the great Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis . Exceptional cast formed by European actors as Italian as Gian Maria Volonte , Eleonora Rossi Drago ,Folco Lulli , Corrado Pani , American as Van Heflin ,Alex Nicol ,Walter Barnes , French as Mylene Demongeot , British as Charles Laughton , Cecil Parker , Ralph Truman , and German as John Ericson ,Peter Carsten , Gerard Herter , Helmut Schmid , Diete Eppler . Very good musical score by the classic Nino Rota , with tunes similarly composed to the subsequent The Godfather . Atmospheric cinematography by Aldo Tonti , though is necessary a fine remastering and contains several stock-shots . The motion picture is well directed by Duilio Coletti .The picture is based upon events which actually occurred during a series of naval actions in 1940-41 and carried out by Bernhard Rogge (1899-1982) exceptionally played by Van Hefiln . Rogge was one of many German officers who were forced to apply for a German Blood Certificate, that would allow their racial background to be overlooked (he had a Jewish grandparent).He was awarded a Japanese ornate Samurai sword and the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his actions as the commander of the Hilfskreuzer (auxiliary cruiser) Atlantis . Rogge became a Vizeadmiral (vice-admiral) by the end of World War II, and eventually became a Konteradmiral (rear-admiral) of the West German Bundesmarine. Rogge also was one of the few German officers of flag rank who was not arrested by the Allies after the war. This was due to the way he had exercised his command of Atlantis.The skipper of the British vessel, City of Baghdad, which the Atlantis sunk in July 1941, stated, "His treatment of prisoners left respect, instead of hatred". Admiral Karl Dönitz, who was prosecuted for war crimes at the Nuremberg Trials, cited his own support of Rogge in an effort to clear himself of the charge of being antisemitic. Rogge was later a German officer for Nato in the territorial Allied Naval Forces .

farne There were a number of good films made about the Second World War at sea in the 1950s and 60s. Sadly, this isn't one of them. Starring Van Heflin as probably the nicest and most reluctant German sea captain of the war, and a blustering Charles Laughton as the British Admiral out to sink him, this surprisingly shoddy film mixes stock footage, old bits of newsreel, obvious models and a shipload of Italian extras as British and German sailors with poorly dubbed American accents. The fact that it was made in Rome by Italian producers probably explains the film's hopelessly confused loyalties, trying to show the war from both the British and German sides. Unfortunately, being so fair to both sides renders the film's attempts at suspense completely redundant, and makes it hard for the audience to work up much interest either way. Although allegedly based on a true story, much of the film is so heavily fictionalised it often loses touch with reality altogether. At one point it even turns into a third rate James Bond rip-off, with the British getting an American soldier to undergo plastic surgery to make him the double of a German officer so he can steal top secret plans. All in all, you would be better off watching The Cruel Sea, Sink the Bismarck or Battle of the River Plate than wasting your time on this dismal offering.

carolted It has been many years since I saw this film but I remember it to be interesting with a differant view of the war through the eyes of the captain of the german raider, Atlantis. He is shown to be compassionate in saving as many lives as he can from the ships that he sinks and is not at all in agreement with Hitler's policies but his country is as war and so he obeys his orders. It is a shame that this film is not available on tape or otherwise as it depicts the other side of German officers not in "lock step" with Hitler.

lobo1955 This is truly a classic! It portrays war at sea, as a deadly game of hide and seek. Cause as much havoc and destruction, without being identified or located. In this movie, the enemy(the British) has no idea what kind of ship(s) or submarine(s)are sinking vital merchant ships. It is a raider ship,with a clever Captain that can change the appearance of his ship as quickly as changing clothes! Nationalities were no obstacle. It also showed that all German officers were not followers of Hitler. This one, in real life, went on to serve as a NATO naval officer. This ship's crew should have lots of war stories for the grandchildren.