NOVA - Hitler's Lost Sub

List Price: ~~$19.95~~
Our Price: $17.99
You Save: $1.96 (10%)
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Buy Used: from $10.29 (click here)
Category: DVD
See more DVD details

Buy this DVD movie at online store in your country
Canada

DVD details

DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 120 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-11-09
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: WGBH Boston

DVD Reviews of NOVA - Hitler's Lost Sub

DVD Review: A Truly Stunning Documentary
Summary: 5 Stars

"Hitler's Lost Sub" is one of the best "Nova" productions in history. The episode traces the quest to determine the identity of a German U-Boat that had been sunk off the coast of the US during World War Two, and was heretofore completely unknown.

The documentary details the history of the German underwater boat program, and introduces the viewers to the perils of deep water diving. (Three divers died on this wreck.) The principal divers profiled are veterans John Chatterton and Richie Kohler who explain their methodical plans for exploring the wreck to determine the identity of the U-Boat. Both divers took extreme care not to disturb human remains (which were plentiful) although doing so would have likely lead them to a much quicker wreck identification, as personal artifacts commingled with the remains are often the easiest to trace.

The question of which U-Boat it is turns out to be extraordinarily difficult to answer, and ultimately requires the divers, and particularly Chatterton to take extraordinary risks to answer the question. Eventually the wreck turns out to be U-869, supposedly sunk off North Africa, though in fact it is very close to New Jersey. The divers research the chain of events that lead the U-869 to a place neither the Germans nor the allies knew it was. Also expounded on is the most likely methodology of the sinking, although the documentary makes clear that in some people's minds the exact cause of the U-869's death is still in question.

This episode of "Nova" is superb both in compelling storytelling and in technical explanations, and I was particularly impressed with the sensitive handling of interviews of relatives of the U-869 crew. I was even more impressed that the divers took it on themselves to personally contact the families and inform them of the fate of their loved ones, a fate that they had not known since World War Two.

I recommend that viewers read the fine book "Shadow Divers" by Robert Kurson, which is equally gripping and covers this material in greater detail, preferably prior to watching the documentary. This is an example of what documentary films should be, and I recommend it to everyone.

DVD Review: Great Stuff
Summary: 5 Stars

A lot of incredible detective work and diving went into learning about this sub. Even if you're just a fan of how people dig up information on WW 2, you'll enjoy this. Throw in the diving, underwater footage, etc., and you've got some great stuff.

DVD Review: Entertaining and Informative Documentary
Summary: 4 Stars

This is a very entertaining NOVA documentary which tells the story of Hitler's Lost Sub, U-869. The film examines the history of the submarine(or Unterseeboot) which the Nazi German Army believed had been lost off of the coast of Gibraltar. When an American diving team discovers the U-boat off the coast of New Jersey, they become determined to discover the origins of the wreck. Through their efforts, they discover not only the identity of the ship but also a survivor! The only down side to the NOVA production is the team's highly foolhardy diving practices and behavior that is enough to give any archaeologist nightmares for a week. First of all, they don't have a decompression chamber onboard. As a result, one of the divers dies from the bends. The water they are diving in is much too deep to be so negligent. Also, the divers have no excavation plan or methodology behind their examination of the ship. None of them are archaeologists: indeed they are more akin to treasure hunters, damaging portions of U-869 in their quest for evidence (This also results in a death). In one scene on the salvage boat's deck, a diver throws an artifact back into the water after failing to find any clues to the U-boat's identity on it. This leaves one to speculate on what the the outcome of the expedition would have been had professionals excavated the ship in a methodical fashion. It would likely have been less tragic for the divers and a lot more educational.

DVD Review: Hitler's Lost Sub
Summary: 5 Stars

This documentary follows the book quite well. It is a fascinating story, The research, the hard work, following the clues that flew in the face of accepted facts. Well done, with good footage on all aspects right up to the end. Very well done. - Don Jacobson

DVD Review: A "Must Have" DVD
Summary: 5 Stars

This is a very well prepared and documented real life account behind the story from the book, Shadow Divers. If you've read the book, you'll be intriqued by how this DVD correlates to some of the story line in the book. But beyond the comparison to Shadow Divers, this DVD details the events leading up to the verification by John Chatterton and Richie Kohler of the wreck of the U-869 and what happens after this fact is made known.

This documentary not only presents the events involved with diving to the U-869 but also mixes in the history of this sub and the circumstances leading up to its ultimate demise. It also gives personal glimpses about its crew and the families that were left behind.

Whether you're a scuba diver, a Shadow Divers fan, or a U-boat history buff, you'll thoroughly enjoy this documentary. I know I was.

Description of NOVA - Hitler's Lost Sub

The true story behind the cataclysmic World War II naval battle that took place just off American shores.

1941. America had just entered World War II, but terrifying unseen weapons were stalking US targets, sinking over 400 ships just miles from American shores in the worst naval defeat in United States history. The stealthy predators were German U-boats, Hitler's deadly warships of the deep. It was cataclysmic-with bodies and wreckage washed ashore on the eastern seaboard. But the Allies ultimately triumphed, sinking over 700 enemy submarines.

Fifty years later, the personal drama behind this wartime state of siege resurfaced when a team of divers discovered an unidentified German U-boat deep in the waters off the New Jersey coast. What boat was it? And what secret mission brought it there? The divers embarked on a dangerous, six-year quest to uncover the secret of the mysterious wreck. Three divers lost their lives in the search, but the clues uncovered have shed remarkable new light on the struggles and triumphs from this undersea war.

There's more in this spectacular two-hour video journey. Trace the history of submarines and undersea warfare from the American Revolution through World War II, and tour the sophisticated-and cramped-interior of a captured U-boat. Dive in dangerous waters with deep sea detectives as they attempt to retrieve clues that will reveal the decaying U-boat's identity. See how the breaking of secret Nazi codes by the Allies altered the outcome of the war-and helped unravel the mystery behind this German U-boat. And finally, travel to Germany with the divers as they rewrite a part of World War II history, bring closure to families of the lost crew and discover how one man's life was spared.

General DVDs

DVD Video

Bestsellers in General DVDs

Man on Wire
Release date: 2008-12-09; DVD
Best price: $13.37
Price in other shops: ~~$26.98~~

Blue Planet: Seas of Life (Special Edition)
Warner Brothers; Release date: 2007-10-02; DVD
Best price: $17.59
Price in other shops: ~~$59.98~~

Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed
Release date: 2008-10-21; DVD
Best price: $8.44
Price in other shops: ~~$26.99~~

Planet Earth & The Blue Planet Seas of Life (Special Collector's Edition)
Planet; Release date: 2007-10-02; DVD
Best price: $52.97
Price in other shops: ~~$119.98~~

The Beales of Grey Gardens - Criterion Collection
Image Entertainment; Release date: 2006-12-05; DVD
Best price: $13.60
Price in other shops: ~~$19.95~~

A Haunting in Connecticut
Release date: 2008-09-30; DVD
Best price: $3.53
Price in other shops: ~~$6.99~~

Grey Gardens - Criterion Collection
Image Entertainment; Release date: 2001-08-14; DVD
Best price: $25.20
Price in other shops: ~~$39.95~~

Religulous
Lions Gate; Release date: 2009-02-17; DVD
Best price: $10.20
Price in other shops: ~~$29.95~~

The BBC Natural History Collection featuring Planet Earth (Planet Earth/ The Blue Planet: Seas of Life Special Edition/ Life of Mammals/ Life of Birds)
Warner Brothers; Release date: 2008-04-01; DVD
Best price: $85.99
Price in other shops: ~~$199.92~~

Planet Earth - The Complete BBC Series
Warner Brothers; Release date: 2007-04-24; DVD
Best price: $19.49
Price in other shops: ~~$79.98~~

Similar DVDs, VHS Video, Audio CDs

Shadow Divers Exposed: the Real Saga of the U-869
by Gary Gentile
Bellerophon Bookworks; Published: 2006-05-29; Paperback; Book
Best price: $20.71
Price in other shops: ~~$25.00~~

Grey Wolves: U-Boats 1943-1945
Release date: 2005-07-26; DVD
Best price: $7.73
Price in other shops: ~~$14.95~~

Grey Wolves: U-Boats 1942-1943
Release date: 2005-07-26; DVD
Best price: $7.47
Price in other shops: ~~$14.95~~

NOVA: B-29 Frozen in Time
WGBH BOSTON VIDEO; Release date: 2006-10-24; DVD
Best price: $10.95
Price in other shops: ~~$19.95~~

Deep Descent: Adventure and Death Diving the Andrea Doria
by Kevin F. McMurray
Atria; Published: 2002-06-25; Paperback; Book
Best price: $2.00
Price in other shops: ~~$15.00~~

The Last Dive: A Father and Son's Fatal Descent into the Ocean's Depths
by Bernie Chowdhury
Harper Paperbacks; Published: 2002-03-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.70
Price in other shops: ~~$13.95~~