Director: Wolfgang Petersen

Wolfgang Petersen made Das Boot in Germany before moving to Hollywood, and the submarine film remains the reference point for confined-space tension. The camera runs the length of the boat repeatedly, and the sound design does most of the frightening.

His American work stayed with pressure and enclosure: In the Line of Fire, Air Force One, The Perfect Storm and Poseidon all put competent people in a container that is failing.

Das Boot exists in several cuts, and the longest, near five hours, is the one that best delivers the boredom the film is partly about.