Sink the Bismark! (1960) Brief Details and Film Review

Sink the Bismark! (or Bismarck) is a world war two story of the British effort to locate and sink the most powerful ship in the German Navy. The film stars Kenneth More as Captain Jonathan Shepherd who leads the chase from British naval command headquarters in the Admiralty, London, Dana Wynter as a beautiful naval officer and his most able assistant, and Carl Mohner as the German Captain Lindemann of the battleship Bismark.

In the early days of world war two the German battleship Bismark breaks out from her German naval base and heads into the north Atlantic with the intention of commerce raiding - preying on defenceless allied merchant shipping and less powerful allied warships. The Bismark, which carried eight 15 inch guns as well as powerful secondary guns and could steam at 30 knots, did carry out some commerce raiding and did occasionally engage smaller warships. However, she was quick to turn away from any modern allied cruiser or battleship. One allied warship the Bismark did not turn away from was the aged British battle cruiser HMS Hood. The Hood was thinly armoured and her guns were inaccurate compared to those of the Bismark, and HMS Hood stood no chance in the engagement. The Bismark also challenged the accompanying British Battleship Prince of Wales. The Bismark sank HMS Hood and badly damaged the Prince of Wales but not before she was hit several times by the British, causing damage to her boilers and causing her precious fuel to leak. The Bismark was later found by British aircraft who managed to inflict damage to her rudders forcing her to reduce speed to improve her steering ability. Later the Bismark is found by the British battleship King George V (KG5) and the supporting fleet. The story continues...

Sink the Bismark! (1960) is generally based on historical events and portrays the short sea-going life of the Bismark very well. The acting is professional, the battle scenes are accurate and the special effects are extremely well done. Sink the Bismark! (1960) is a worthy addition to any war film collection.

Film and Movie Information

Sink the Bismark! was released by 20th Century Fox in 1960 and was directed by Lewis Gilbert. The prncipal stars were Kenneth More, Dana Wynter and Carl Mohner. The movie was filmed in Black and White on HMS Vanguard and HMS Belfast.

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