User Reviews

This is one of the more interesting DVDs I've seen in some time--both "S.O.S. Iceberg" and "S.O.S. Eisberg" were included on the same disk from Kino. While the two films are close to being the same film (the first in English and the other in German), they are NOT exact copied of the other film. Instead, the films were made as a joint project with Universal and their German counterpart. Many of the scenes were identical and much of the cast were in both films, however, many plot points and the ending were quite different. Seeing both films, one after the other, was an unusual experience and I am thrilled that both were packaged together.

Here are some ways that both films differ:

1. The German version has Dr. Lorenz alone in Greenland. Apparently he was separated from the rest of his party because he's stupid, though the film never exactly said this. Then, a meeting is held some time later to discuss the recent failed rescue attempt as well as to plan the next. In the American version, all the characters in the film meet at a meeting about Arctic exploration at a club. The entire group goes, but Dr. Lawrence wanders off and much of the film is spend looking for him. Both Lorenz and Lawrence are played by a German and an American actor (respectively).

2. The film involving the initial trek across Greenland is quite different as well as the scene where Lawrence/Lorenz is discovered.

3. Gibson Gowland dies slightly differently and at different times in the two films.

4. Gowland shows his unstable and evil side far earlier in the American version. There's less suspense this way, but his actions later make a bit more sense this way.

5. The American film (at least in its current version) is about 10 minutes shorter.

6. The breakup of the iceberg occurred at a different time and was more dramatically placed in the American version.

Regardless which version you see, the main plot is still basically the same and the cinematography is, likewise, wonderful in both films. It really appears that some of the differences are simply due to the film being assembled slightly differently--like they shot a lot of film at one time and divvied up some of the scenes to each film--then included a few identical scenes with mostly the same actors.

So which is better? Well, neither is that much better or worse. But, if I only were to see one I might suggest the American one---especially if English is your first language. Not only that, but it being shorter is NOT a bad thing--the German version drags a bit more because more scenes of the men crossing the barren ice are included. You really get bored by this after a bit--even if the scenes were incredibly difficult to make and looked amazing.

By the way, take note of the actors Ernst Udet and Leni Reifenstahl in the film. Udet was a top WWI fighter ace with 62 victories. He also was Hitler's choice for head of the Luftwaffe during WWII. However, after he and Goering blew the Battle of Britain, Udet killed himself in 1941. As for Reifenstahl, she was one of Hitler's BFFs and directed some of the most technically astute and impressive pro-Nazi propaganda films, such as "Olympia" and "Triumph of the Will". Following the war, Reifenstahl apparently told reporters and war crimes tribunals that she'd been away from Germany on vacation from 1933 to 1945 and was angry someone had been impersonating her all those years and saying all these nasty things about her--an 'innocent' lady!