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 »
The star of "Whiskey Cavalier" divulges top-secret information about her favorite TV couple, and who should play James Bond.
Related News
-
Imhoof's bee doc gets Oscar buzz
28 September 2013 | ScreenDaily
Share this Rating
Title: Das Boot ist voll (1981)
Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.
Learn more
More Like This
Europa Europa
(1990)
Drama
|
History
|
War
Director:
Agnieszka Holland
Stars:
Solomon Perel,
Marco Hofschneider,
René Hofschneider
Train of Life
(1998)
Comedy
|
Drama
|
War
Director:
Radu Mihaileanu
Stars:
Lionel Abelanski,
Rufus,
Clément Harari
Amen.
(2002)
Biography
|
Crime
|
Drama
Director:
Costa-Gavras
Stars:
Ulrich Tukur,
Mathieu Kassovitz,
Ulrich Mühe
Cairo Station
(1958)
Comedy
|
Crime
|
Drama
Director:
Youssef Chahine
Stars:
Farid Shawqi,
Hind Rustum,
Youssef Chahine
Muddy River
(1981)
Drama
Director:
Kôhei Oguri
Stars:
Takahiro Tamura,
Mariko Kaga,
Nobutaka Asahara
Three Brothers
(1981)
Drama
Director:
Francesco Rosi
Stars:
Philippe Noiret,
Michele Placido,
Vittorio Mezzogiorno
The Last U-Boat
(TV Movie 1993)
Drama
|
War
Director:
Frank Beyer
Stars:
Ulrich Mühe,
Ulrich Tukur,
Kaoru Kobayashi
Edit
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 |
Edit
Plot Summary
|
Add Synopsis
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? Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>
Parents Guide:
View content advisory »
Edit
See full technical specs »
Details
Language:
GermanRelease Date:
18 December 1981 (West Germany) See more »Also Known As:
The Boat Is Full See more »Company Credits
Production Co:
Limbo Film AG, Schweizer Fernsehen (FS), Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (ZDF) See more »
Show more on
IMDbPro »
Technical Specs
Sound Mix:
MonoColor:
ColorAspect Ratio:
1.66 : 1
Edit
Did You Know?
Trivia
Switzerland's official submission to the 1982's Oscar in the Best Foreign Language Film category. See more »Connections
Featured in Sneak Previews: Cannery Row/The Boat is Full/Soldier Girls/Making Love (1982) See more »Frequently Asked Questions
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.Contribute to This Page
Watch Hollywood hits and TV favorites for free with IMDb Freedive. Start streaming on IMDb and Fire TV devices today!
Explore popular action and adventure titles available to stream with Prime Video.
When the von Trapp family make it over the border to Switzerland, their ordeal is over and all is well (or so "Sound of Music" implies). Not so with the six forlorn refugees of "The Boat is Full." Having reached Switzerland after a perilous escape from Nazi Germany, their ordeal has just begun. They end up in a small village where an innkeeper couple take them in and try their best to provide food, clothing, shelter, and protection from the authorities.
The movie examines the attitudes of the Swiss towards refugees who were escaping Germany and seeking safety in their country. It provides a good insight not only into the official policies regarding which refugees were allowed to stay and which were forced to be repatriated, but also the attitudes of the common people. Some were openly hateful, most were indifferent and callous, many genuinely compassionate and kind.
The overall arc of the story is less important with this movie than the individual scenes and episodes that take place. Each conveys a particular pathos and engraves itself in one's memory with indelible force. The acting is almost totally transparent: you feel these are real people going through real events. The refugees' blank, despondent expressions, the gradual transformation of the innkeeper husband from suspicion to tolerance to outright kindness, the harsh authoritarian attitudes of the policeman, these all contribute to the film's effect.
It's a stark film to watch: there is no score, the colors are heavily muted and drab, and there are few points of comfort or cheer. One is left with a profoundly ambivalent view of the Swiss and Switzerland, which apparently was known as the "lifeboat" of central Europe (hence the irony in the title). The film is basically examining where the line could/should have been drawn between compassion and the need to maintain Swiss neutrality and protect its own borders and feed its people.