Das Boot ist voll (1981)

During World War II, Switzerland severely limited refugees: "Our boat is full." A train from Germany halts briefly in an isolated corner of Switzerland. Six people jump off seeking asylum: ... See full summary »

Director:

Markus Imhoof

Writers:

Alfred A. Haesler (book), Markus Imhoof

Stars:

Tina Engel, Hans Diehl, Martin Walz

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 7 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tina Engel	...	Judith Krueger
Hans Diehl	...	Hannes Krueger
Martin Walz	...	Olaf Landau
Curt Bois	...	Lazar Ostrowskij
Ilse Bahrs	...	Frau Ostrowskij
Gerd David	...	Karl Schneider
Simone	...	Gitty
Laurent	...	Maurice
Renate Steiger	...	Anna Flueckiger
Mathias Gnädinger	...	Franz Flueckiger
Michael Gempart	...	Landjäger Bigler
Klaus Steiger	...	Reverend Hochdorfer
Alice Bruengger	...	Frau Hochdorfer
Otto Dornbierer	...	Otti
Monika Koch	...	Rosemarie

Storyline

During World War II, Switzerland severely limited refugees: "Our boat is full." A train from Germany halts briefly in an isolated corner of Switzerland. Six people jump off seeking asylum: four Jews, a French child, and a German soldier. They seek temporary refuge with a couple who run a village inn. They pose as a family: the deserter as husband, Judith as his wife, an old man from Vienna as her father, his granddaughter and the French lad, whom they beg to keep silent, as their children. Judith's teenage brother poses as a soldier. The fabrication unravels through chance and the local constable's exact investigation. Whom will the Swiss allow to stay? Who gets deported?

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Plot Keywords:

switzerland | refugee | inn | children | deserter | 

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

Switzerland West Germany Austria

Language:

German

Release Date:

18 December 1981 (West Germany)

Also Known As:

The Boat Is Full

Filming Locations:

Diepoldsau, Kanton St. Gallen, Switzerland

Company Credits

Production Co:

Limbo Film AG, Schweizer Fernsehen (FS), Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

User Reviews

Demystification of one's own history

The anxiety of an attack from Hitler-Germany was real in Switzerland during WW II. Why should Hilter not integrate German-speaking Switzerland into his "Reich" to which already belonged Germany and Austria? After all, the "Grossdeutsches Reich" was based on the common language spoken, so Northern Switzerland was considered once lost from the "Grossreich" like Mussolini considered the Italian speaking parts of Southern Switzerland as "terre irridente". Why Hitler did not conquer Switzerland stays one of the big enigmas of history up to today.

The Swiss population that lived close to the German border - in "Das Boot ist voll" it is Siblingen, Canton of Scaffusia - realized much more of what is going on on the other side of the river Rhein. Everyday immigrants crossed the Swiss border illegally. However, what did "illegal" mean in regard of immigrant-laws that had become criminal themselves? That the population must have reacted confused when it was confronted actually with a group of immigrants like the six persons in the movie, is clear. The wish to help them hide and feed them went along with the fear to be detected and to go to prison. The boat was not full, of course, and the title of the movie is cynically meant, but Switzerland did not want to provoke Germany by giving their Jewish population asylum.

I think, films like "The Boat is Full" are necessary, but not because Switzerland had loaded more guilt upon herself than other states during WW II did. The opposite is true. But Switzerland had started to construct a very strange self-image of alleged neutrality and interwoven it with her history back to Wilhelm Tell which consists exclusively of fairy-tales. Middle-aged people like me still had to learn in school that a handful of Swiss soldiers defeated "the Habsburgian army" in "battles" whose names do not even occur in Austrian history and are not even to find in Swiss geographic maps.