The realism here is among the best you will ever see in any film. The characters, the sets, the script, the action...nothing seems contrived. It is like you were there. This film set the bar for subsequent "action" films, in terms of getting the details right, but few if any of its imitators have measured up to the story and the acting here.

The U-boat crew become so familiar, so human and fallible to us that one cannot help sympathizing, and hoping they survive. The author of the book of the same name, on which it is based (Lothar-Gunther Buchheim), was unhappy with this film as he felt it did not adequately portray the anti-war sentiment of his book. But by no means is this film pro-war, it really highlights the futility, and the senseless waste of life.

Watch it in German language with subtitles! Watching it in dubbed English seemed completely unrealistic, plus there is so much noise and confusion in many scenes that you can't hear what is being said. With the subtitles you miss nothing.

How much did I like it?...I have the DVD Director's cut, plus the Superbit edition, have ordered the new Blue-Ray release, and bought copies of the DVD for both my adult kids. They need to see what war was like: ugly, gritty, tragic, senseless. Plus they will see some of the best acting in moviedom.