Customer Reviews

Sink the Bismark

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I watched an advance review copy of this DVD tonight and really enjoyed it. In addition to the movie, the DVD features not only the trailer for the main feature, but also a vintage 1941 MovieTone newsreel of the real battle to sink the Bismark and trailers for the other movies in the upcoming spate of "Fox War Classics" ("The Blue Max", "The Enemy Below", "Heaven Knows Mr. Allison", "The Desert Fox" and "13 Rue Madeleine."
Based on a book of the same name, which was in turn based on the real incidents in World War 2, the movie "Sink the Bismarck" retells the tale of the dogged effort by the British Royal Navy to track down and attempt to destroy the German battle cruiser Bismarck.
Much of the movie takes place at the Admiralty in London where the superb British actor Kenneth Moore surveys the ships as would a chess player on a large board, in an attempt to second guess and outmaneuver the German vessel.
The DVD is in fine shape and I did not notice any artifacts or nicks. Considering the age of the picture it is surprising that it should be so well prsented here, so full marks must go to 20th Century Fox. I have seen this movie before on television and I do not believe I have ever seen it looking as crisp and focused as it does on this DVD.
Altogether, this is easy to recommend especially considering the low price.

This is one of the best WWII movies out there. The British command center stages the chase dramatically and the action at sea on the ships is engrossing. This does a great job of following the crews of the allied and the German ships involved in the sinking of the Bismarck. The cast, sets, and music are all first class. With the recent release of the James Cameron documentary on the discovery of the Bismarck we may see a remake by him of this movie sometime in the near future. I have a VHS copy of this original movie and I have pre-ordered the DVD that is coming out 5/20/03.

This movie is a good telling of the Bismarck's ill-fated cruise in May 1941. There are a few fictional elements added: two Swordfish being shot down (in reality none were lost), a British destroyer being sunk on the last night (only British loss was Hood), and Lutjens being a Nazi (Admrial Raeder actually sacked officers who were Nazis and made sure officers with Jewish blood were protected). The SFX are acceptable for the time the movie was made (1960), but it's easy to tell that the ships are models in a studio tank. With the discovery of the Hood's wreck and James Cameron's dive on the Bismarck wreck this movie comes back into focus. This is one movie that OUGHT to be remade today-and with today's SFX, it would be easy to show the ships-Bismarck, Prinz Eugen, Hood, Prince of Wales, King George V, Rodney, Norfolk, Suffolk, Dorsetshire, Victorious, Ark Royal, Sheffield, and the Tribal-class DDs of the 4th DD Flotilla (under a man whose career deserves a movie of his own-then CAPT Philip Vian).
All that's missing from this movie is Johnny Horton's song.

The British have made war and historical movies with an unrivaled consistency of quality, and Sink the Bismarck is no exception. The details are meticulous, the casting first-rate (except for a hokey voice-impersonation of Churchill), and the battle sequences marked by accuracy and fine special effects.

This otherwise fine film is marred, however, by the false depiction of one of the major characters, Admiral Lutjens, commander of the Bismarck. In the film, he is stereotyped as the typical Nazi - a Hitler sycophant, careerist and wild-eyed fanatic. This was most certainly not the historical Lutjens, who was by no means a Nazi fanatic. Lutjens was a naval hero from World War I, who served out of duty and dedication, not Nazi conviction. (Lutjens protected Jews under his command, and members of his family were in trouble for their anti-Nazi views.) This is at complete odds with his depiction in Sink the Bismarck, which I find inexcusable, given that the above information was certainly available to the production. In fact, an accurate depiction of Lutjens would have, in my opinion, added interest to the plot.

Nevertheless, Sink the Bismarck is eminently watchable and a fine addition to any war movie collection, if you bear in mind the above caveat.

SINK THE BISMARCK was produced as a factual account of the epic battle, overlaid with a thin patina of fiction involving a couple of the characters in order to put the events into human perspective. Specifically, Kenneth More stars as Captain Shepard, the new Director of Operations in the Admiralty's War Room, and Dana Wynter as his assistant, Lt. Anne Davis. It's Shepard's enormous bad luck that the German's decide to send the new battleship Bismarck on its first combat sortie (Operation Rheinübung) into the Atlantic during his initial day on the job. And, though Wynter is positively stunning in her "Wren" (WRNS, Women's Royal Naval Service) uniform, the acting, at least in the War Room, shows a distinct British reserve unlikely to elicit more than a tepid "Good show, what" from any viewer. But, after all, the story is principally about the great ships involved, and ships' models don't get considered for Oscars.

As far as it goes, the film's narrative is commendably consistent with the facts surrounding the Bismarck's departure from its home waters, its detection between Iceland and Greenland, the catastrophic destruction of HMS Hood, the pursuit by assorted ships of the Royal Navy, the Bismarck's ultimately fatal crippling by air attack, and the last battle when the Home Fleet finally brought its quarry to bay. However, there were several departures from accuracy as perceived in a recent PBS television presentation concerning deep dives to the wrecks of the Hood and the Bismarck, and other sources:

1. In the film, two British Swordfish torpedo bombers were destroyed by anti-aircraft fire during two attacks on the Bismarck. In fact, none of the planes were lost, a fact I find amazing since the obsolete biplanes appeared so slow that they could have been brought down by well thrown rocks.

2. The film has a destroyer, the HMS Solent, being sunk by the Bismarck late in the pursuit. In fact, no other ship other than the Hood was sunk by the German battleship during the chase. Moreover, I could find no record of such a named ship in other descriptions of the battle where all ships are accounted for.

3. The German fleet commander Admiral Lütjens (Karel Stepanek) aboard the Bismarck is portrayed as an ardent Nazi, who stands in awe when Hitler sends him birthday congratulations. In fact, according to the Admiral's son in the PBS presentation, Lütjens had so little regard for Hitler that he (Lütjens) refused to give him (Hitler) the Nazi salute, but rather the traditional military salute of the German Navy.

SINK THE BISMARCK also gives the false impression that the Bismarck's end was fairly quick. Rather, the last battle lasted for 74 minutes, during which time four heavy British warships pounded their prey with 2,876 shells. Lastly, and most sadly, the film fails to show the roughly 700 German sailors (of the 800 that got off the Bismarck alive) that the Royal Navy left in the water to die. The British ships had to suspend rescue operations prematurely in fear of the German U-boats reported to be in the area. On the other hand, the film does leave the audience with the apparently accurate view that the Bismarck, by then a burning hulk, was sent to the bottom by destroyer-launched surface torpedoes. It's been reported that the ship's commander, Captain Lindemann, had ordered the vessel to be scuttled when its guns were rendered inoperative, and this is what ultimately sent the battleship to the bottom. Video of the hull taken by the submersible sent to the wreck in 2001 supports the contention that the torpedoes inflicted enough damage to do the job with or without Lindemann's help.

SINK THE BISMARCK is an above average depiction of that once-upon-a-time in naval warfare when the big ships could, and did, duel it out with heavy guns within sight of each other. The fact that this film is also the only one that I know of which deals those events of May 1941 certainly doesn't hinder my award of 4 stars. It's worth seeing by World War II buffs.

A magnificent film. Human interest and the tale of finding the Bismark. The only fault I find is the sterotypical representation of the fleet commander. He is seen as the typical Nazi, wanting to say, "heil Hitler", and, "that is good", too many times. The WW II German fleet was served by many fine men. They were not SS.

Our family (w/boys ages 9,8) enjoy this film for its realistic depiction of a naval battle. It vividly depicts the strategy involved at a time when computers, satellite communications and smart bombs were not a part of military actions. Although lacking in the valor of a John Wayne film, Bismarck shows that battle impacted not only those actively involved in it, and that many people were needed to aid in the war. This is the type of war film I want my sons to view, and to see that war does have it's human toll. When the Hood is lost, it is very apparent how destructive war is.

By far the best naval battle movie ever produced. When I was in grade school I wrote a book report on the Bismark and have been interested in it ever since. The movie is not on television that much and all I can remember is seeing it once. I have been looking for it for over seven years now. I had found it on E-Bay but used copies were selling for over thirty dollars. I then found Amazon.com and was surprised to find a new tape for a lot less money. The time of shipping was excellent and I am very pleased with the movie. Why buy used when you can get new for a cheaper price. Keep up the good work Amazon.com.

Honorable Men in Desperate Battle

In May 1941, Britain stood alone against Nazi tyranny. The German blitz had devastated much of the English industrial base. The lifeline to America across the North Atlantic was critical to England's survival. In an effort to cut this lifeline, Hitler built the Bismarck, the fastest and most powerful battleship the world had ever seen. "Sink the Bismarck" is the story of a desperate 6-day naval engagement to find and destroy the German battleship. The British initially dispatched the pride of the Royal Navy, the H.M.S. Hood, to intercept the Bismarck. A single shell from the Bismarck penetrated a magazine on the Hood, instantly destroying the British ship.

The film depicts the subsequent efforts of the Royal Navy to locate and attack the Bismarck with overwhelming fire power. As often happens in war, the most unpredictable bad luck was counterbalanced by miraculous good fortune. The film evokes the grim resolution, the desperate gambles, and the professional skills of the British command to bring the Bismarck to bay. Kenneth More is well-cast in the role of Captain Jonathan Shepard, a man who conveys both iron will to duty, yet vulnerability to personal human loss in his pursuit of the Bismarck. The film teems with excitement and suspense as it records one of the great naval battles ever fought.

Well made movie about the hunt to sink German battleship 'Bismarck' is told from the point of view of the British Naval commanders. Action scenes showing ship versus ship combat are well done considering the movie was made in 1960. Not that accurate though. If you want a classic war drama, then this is it. If you want an accurate depiction of the hunt for the Bismarck, watch a good documentary about it.