Search - Sinking of the Lusitania on DVD

BEST "LUSITANIA" DOCU-DRAMA EVER MADE

Johnny | Lawrence, KS USA | 04/27/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This Discovery Channel special 90-minute feature is the closets thing to a movie that has been released on the world's second most famous shipwreck after Titanic. In many ways, it can be considered a movie because it fully renacts the events which led up to the most famous sinking of World War I. Actor John Hannah, who was in all three "Mummy" movies as Jonathan, is the star of this docu-drama. The set used as the Lusitania herself does look almost identitcal to the real ship. Newsreel footage allegedly taken on May 1, 1915 the day the Lusitania set sail from New York on her fatal voyage is included. Also included is a full recreation of the infamous German submarine U-20 and her crew, who were responsible for torpedoing the Lusitania off the southern Irish coast on May 7, 1915, killing 1,195 innocent men, women and children. In just 18 minutes, the 785-foot long ship sank after listing completly to her starboard (right) side, the same side where the torpedo struck. Within seconds of the torpedo's impact, a secondary mysterious explosion occured farther forward; this is believed to have been the TRUE cause for the Lusitania's rapid destruction. To this day, no one can say for sure what caused it; whether it was a coal dust explosion, boilers or even the war supplies rumored to have been aboard near where the torpedo hit. Unfortunatley, the docu-drama does not go into detail as to what may have caused the secondary explosion. The feature does recreate the heart-breaking aftermath of the sinking; the recovery of floating bodies in Queenstown (now Cobh) Southern Ireland; the trial held the month after; and the fate of some of those who survivied. Hopefully, a movie shall be made one day to help keep the memory of those who perished alive; and to promote further education into World War I, for there are not a lot of movies based on the First World War as there are about World War II. The story of the Lusitania coincides with her great rival TITANIC; its the story of one of the world's most luxurious, biggest and fastest ships that ever existed. And like the story of Titanic, the richest people in the world traveled aboard her during this final voyage. In many ways, the sinking of the Lusitania is perhaps somewhat more tragic than TITANIC; it was a deliberate murderous act of war upon a ship of innocent souls."

Better than expected

Tony Philpott | Sydney, NSW Australia | 06/24/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I expected this to be a dry documentary with grainy old newsreel. With the use of CGI the filmakers have re-created the last voyage of the Lusitania and made it interesting and viewable
Well done"

Well done

S. D. Simmons | charleston ,s.c. | 05/15/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"discovery channel look at the sinking of the the lusitania was as good as there one about titanic.i really enjoy the backstory on why this ship should had never sunk."

A movie shown in Documentary Form

William C. Ajello | Highlands, NJ - Gateway to the shore | 04/16/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"THE SINKING OF THE LUSITANIA is truly a nice piece of work, it's done in a movie/documentary format, while there are no top name stars in it, the actors themselves did a good job.

There is however, a question as to how many torpedoes struck the ship because there was two distinct explosions heard, the first one was the torpedo from the german u-boat and then there was another much larger explosion after that one. THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE LUSITANIA by National Geographic covers this well so I won't give anything away but the Germans were not 100% at fault for sinking this ship and I'll leave it at that. This is a good DVD and I reccomend it.
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