The Hindenburg (1975)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Robert Wise

Writers:

Nelson Gidding (writer)
Richard Levinson (story)

Release Date:

25 December 1975 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Thriller

Tagline:

The truth at last? What really happened to The Hindenburg?

Plot:

A film that chronicles the events of the Hindenburg disaster in which a zeppelin burst into flames.

Plot Keywords:

Disaster | Sabotage | Zeppelin | Bomb | Gestapo

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

George C. Scott	...	Col. Franz Ritter
Anne Bancroft	...	Ursula, The Countess
William Atherton	...	Boerth
Roy Thinnes	...	Martin Vogel
Gig Young	...	Edward Douglas
Burgess Meredith	...	Emilio Pajetta
Charles Durning	...	Capt. Pruss
Richard Dysart	...	Capt. Lehman
Robert Clary	...	Joe Spahn
Rene Auberjonois	...	Maj. Napier
Peter Donat	...	Reed Channing
Alan Oppenheimer	...	Albert Breslau
Katherine Helmond	...	Mrs. Mildred Breslau
Joanna Moore	...	Mrs. Channing
Stephen Elliott	...	Capt. Fellows

Runtime:

125 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White | Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Mono (Westrex Recording System) (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1987) | USA:PG (certificate #24257) | Netherlands:12

Filming Locations:

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

Company:

The Filmakers Group

Trivia:

A model of the Hindenburg was constructed for filming. The model was over 25 feet in length, and was able to be flown by suspension cables in front of a backdrop. The model was donated to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, where it is on display.

Goofs:

Factual errors: In the film, the characters of Ernest Lehman and Hugo Eckener are portrayed as very wary of the Nazi party. In reality, while Eckener hated the Nazis and spoke against them openly, Lehman was very accommodating to the powers in Berlin in order to advance his career and the fortunes of the Zeppelin Company. In fact, while the movie shows Lehman protesting using the ship in the previous year to drop propaganda leaflets, in reality Lehman was eager and glad to oblige in this undertaking, to the extent that he launched the ship in a dangerous wind condition, bashing in the tail. In real life Eckener lashed out at Lehman for endangering the ship to please the Nazis, resulting in Propaganda Minister Goebbels blacklisting Eckener in the press forever after, despite his being a national (and international) hero.

Quotes:

Elliot Howell III: Well countess, I've never enjoyed losing so much!

Movie Connections:

Featured in SPFX: The Empire Strikes Back (1980) (TV)

Soundtrack:

There's A Lot to be Said for the Fuhrer

My favorite disaster flick!

"The Hindenburg" is a Robert Wise film in which he depicts the last voyage of the blimp from Germany to Lakehurst, New Jersey. He adapted the screenplay from Michael Mooney's book, in which the Hindenburg might have been a victim of sabotage from someone on board.

This film has all the elements for a great disaster! The usual cast of colorful characters played by terrific actors (George C. Scott, Anne Bancroft, Burgess Meredith, Katherine Helmond, Charles Durning, etc), a nice twist to a factual tale about sabotage bringing down the symbol of Nazi power, and an outstanding display of the effects during the explosion sequence. Wise used the actual newsreel footage, shot it freeze-frame style and spliced it in with the characters as they try to escape death. The best part of the movie by far!

"The Hindenburg" does drag in some spots but the viewer needs to pay close attention to what is going on, who everyone is, what issues they have, why they are on the zepplin and how this adds to the story. Pay close attention to The Countess played by Anne Bancroft, by far the best character in the movie.

This happens to be my favorite disaster movie for a number of reasons. First off, the sabotage plot unfolds nicely and I actually believe that the Hindenburg was downed as an act of sabotage. I have always believed this. Second, I love the detail Wise's team did with the ship's interior sets, you actually feel as if you are flying on the ship, and the third, the last sequence with the explosion occurs. Effects were pretty damn well done! If you want to see a true disaster come about, revolving around a suspenseful story with great characters, rent "The Hindenburg"