Titanic (1943)

Of the various cinematic versions of the Titanic story none is odder in its very existence then the version made in Nazi Germany during World War II. Not merely a pet project but rather an obsession of Nazi propaganda minister and self styled film buff Joseph Goebbels, the desire was to make a high end epic film that would rival anything to come out of Hollywood and to use it as a propaganda metaphor for the doomed course of the greedy American and British societies. Filmed during 1942 and 1943 at a time when even the German population was living largely on rations, the film cost an astonishing 4 million reichmarks, or the modern equivalent of roughly $180,000,000 making it the most expensive German produced film ever made up until that time. No expense was spared, the sets were ornate, some specials effects shots so good that they were reused in the British Titanic film A Night to Remember made a decade and a half later, Goebbels even forced the German navy to turn a ship over to him for production. Cost and production over runs were so extensive that Goebbels had its director Herbert Selpin executed. By the time the film was ready to be distributed the course of the war had turned and the film was barred from distribution in Germany proper, on account that the scenes of human suffering it depicts would have been demoralizing to a home front audience that had lost so many in war. The movie was distributed in the occupied territories however, where deprived of American and British film product it evidently did decent business.

But how is it as a movie you might ask? Well not very good. One problem is its hard to find anybody to route for as the plot consists chiefly of American and British rich dudes on the boat attempting to manipulate the stock price of The White Star line by telegraph in an effort to wrest or maintain finical control of the Titanic. When they are not engaged in insider trading these characters occupy their time chiefly by being unfaithful to their lovers and not seeing the danger they have put the ship in by attempting to break a speed record through iceberg territory. In fact the only character who really seems to get the trouble the ship could be in is of course the lone German officer on the crew, who is a completely fictional character. Even the handful of likable characters, chiefly crew people and ill fated denizens of the steerage class, one can't help but be suspicious of because in the back of your mind you know that the people who played these characters were on good enough terms with the Nazi party to appear in their prestige production. The film looks nice but rings hollow and is chiefly of interest for being the historical oddity it is. But if you'd like to see the film you can here on YouTube,  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsFamcBHdwA**