Watch The Hindenburg For Free

The Worst Film Ever

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

Fictionalized account of the lives that were lost and those who survived after the German airship Hindenburg crashed in flames just prior to landing at Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey on May 6, 1937, having just completed its first round trip between Europe and North America. Director Robert Wise delivers a handsome film here, yet humorless, methodical Wise was probably the wrong filmmaker to take on this melodrama. Despite his effective usage of actual newsreel footage that gives the picture its third-act punch, "The Hindenburg" is basically a disaster movie in the sky, recognized on its release as part of the disaster movie cycle popular in the 1970s. But these movies were popular because they were trashy, popcorn entertainments. Wise doesn't stoop to such vulgar lows; he wants his film to be prestigious, a masterpiece, but after spending two arduous hours with the various 'colorful' characters on the guest list, one isn't inclined to be emotionally involved in the who-lived-and-who-died wrap-up. Most of the actors are miscast, anyway, particularly Anne Bancroft as a German Countess (by way of the Bronx) and Joanna Moore as a pregnant Broadway show-person with a Dalmatian (the Hindenburg did have two dogs aboard, but their fates differ from the happy ending given this screen pooch). Charles Durning has a thankless role as the ship's captain, barking commands until the disaster arrives, when he suddenly becomes human and shouts "No!" George C. Scott is effective as a colonel assigned to board the airship as a security officer in response to a bomb threat and Roy Thinnes does a good job as the ship's photographer who may not be what he seems. The cinematography by Robert Surtees is indeed marvelous, but the picture just doesn't deliver the genre thrills or suspense you may be hoping for. Wise mounts the proceedings carefully but without any flair. The idle chit-chat up in the air seems monotonous and pointless, and the only thing to look forward to is the finale, a long time in coming. ** from ****

Everyone's familiar with the Hindenburg disaster. "Oh the humanity" (cried out by radio reporter Herbert Morrison as he reported on the crash live) has entered our vocabulary when horrible things happen (or when flightless turkeys are dropped from a helicopter, as in WKRP in Cincinnati.) In any event, no one really knows why the Hindenburg crashed. The most widely accepted hypothesis is an electrical spark caused by a buildup of static electricity. This movie goes in a different direction. It emphasizes the sabotage theory - a theory rejected by both German and American investigators, but nevertheless tailor made for conspiracy enthusiasts and movie making.The movie's pretty well done. It has a feel of authenticity to it. I know about the Hindenburg disaster, but I never really had a sense of what the Hindenburg was like for its passengers. The movie gives us a pretty good sense of what it would be like to be a passenger on such an airship. It's not as luxurious as an ocean liner, apparently, but it would have been a pretty exciting voyage. I liked the sets, and the bit of a picture we get of how the airship flew. That was all well done.There's a large cast of characters in this, headed by George C. Scott playing Col. Ritter, a Luftwaffe intelligence officer who's assigned as head of security for the ship. The sabotage angle is played up with that character, plus a Gestapo agent who's both helping him and watching him, in that delightful fashion Nazi Germany had. Both suspect sabotage; both are looking. As is normal with this kind of movie, there are all sorts of possible suspects on board the ship, and no particular reason to suspect one above any other. In that sense, the movie lost a bit of an opportunity to create more suspense by giving away the identity of the saboteur maybe half way through. Ritter turned out to be anti-Nazi enough to be willing to let the sabotage happen, as long as it didn't endanger the passengers. In the end, the real tension comes from the fact that the Hindenburg's landing at a Naval Air Station in New Jersey was delayed, meaning that the bomb would go off before the passengers disembarked, unless Ritter could stop it - which, of course, he couldn't.The movie has a good cast. Aside from Scott, there's Ann Bancroft and Burgess Meredith and Charles Durning among others. There's even a bit of humour thrown in as a pianist and acrobat on board put on a show for the passengers and crew that turns out to be a shot at the Nazis, poking fun at Hitler and the party with a song called "There's A Lot To Be Said For The Fuhrer." In the end, the portrayal of the fire and crash of the airship is extremely dramatic and well done."The Hindenburg" is an interesting movie. It's highly speculative, but if you're interested in the sabotage theory, this presents at least one plausible sabotage scenario to consider. (6/10)

I was faced with a month's worth of ironing this afternoon and scrolled through the TV guide to see what was on. I saw The Hindenburg and considering I'm a fan of WWII/Nazi era movies I decided to give it a shot. It has George C. Scott and Anne Bancroft in it; how bad could it be? Pretty bad as it turned out, even for a 1970s era disaster movie. Although the Hindenburg disaster itself is compelling material, and the Nazi connection offers the opportunity for no end of intrigue, the film just isn't believable. For me this film never achieved the level of willing suspension of disbelief. Much of the time I just couldn't believe what I was seeing and hearing. The worst part is the acting: Almost without exception the actors mailed it in. None of them look like they want to be there, and the delivery is absolute flat, when it doesn't come across as passive-aggressive. Granted, it's not a great script and some of the lines are going to land with a thud even when they come from George C. Scott's or Anne Bancroft's mouth, but there are plenty more lines in the script that this cast was just reading, and which the director let slide.On the bright side, the musical score is OK (but not exceptional) and the set is quite realistic. Neither is a good enough reason to invest a couple of hours in a movie that will have you checking your watch every few minutes to see how much time is left.

I'll go against the consensus and say that I think this is a pretty decent film.I think it suffers from being called a disaster flick. There's a big difference. Most all the disaster flicks were fictional stories. There's some pretty good history here, although admittedly Hollywood has fictionalized it somewhat...but after all, it's not a documentary.So if it's not a disaster flick, what is it? Historical fiction. A very different genre with very different expectations.The special effects and sets here are awfully good for 1975. I give it very high marks in that category.In terms of the story, it's one version of what happened to cause the disaster. Is it the correct story? Who knows? And since it's not a documentary it has no responsibility to present alternate hypotheses.The cast is rather impressive. George C. Scott is good in a somewhat subdued performance as a Luftwaffe Colonel assigned as special security for the Hindenburg. I'm not much of a fan of Anne Bancroft...and after this film I'm still not a fan...but she does her job. I was glad to see Burgess Meredith, Richard Dysart, Robert Clary, and Charles Durning in the supporting cast.I do have two big criticisms of this film. The first has been mentioned by a couple of other reviewers. I wish the German characters had an accent so we could tell more about each character's nationality without having to work at making conclusions. They all sounded too American. Secondly, I don't think going to black and white for the conclusion was effective at all, although I imagine it saved them lots of money rather than trying to recreate the crash/explosion in color. Too bad colorization of newsreel film couldn't be done effectively in 1975.Nevertheless, I say give this movie a shot. I think you'll like it. It was a money-maker when it came out, so lots of people did like it back then. Perhaps its too historical to be exciting enough for some light weight audiences.