5. The Hindenburg (1975, 125m)

The Week of May 6, 1937: The Hindenburg Disaster

Today is already December 7. Wow, this thing has really grown; I originally was planning to watch a film about the attack on Pearl Harbor today (most likely Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)) but now, even by most conservative estimates, there are around twenty films before it. Twenty films... I remember when this whole project was supposed to be twenty films... Either way, upward and onward!

Speaking of which, today's film is The Hindenburg (1975), starring George C. Scott and a variety of others. Made in the finest '70s disaster movie tradition (beginning with The Poseidon Adventure (1972) then followed by Earthquake (1974) and The Towering Inferno (1974)), the film has a large ensemble cast: Anne Bancroft, William Atherton, Burgess Meredith, Charles Durning, Robert Clary, Rene Auberjonois, and Peter Donat among others. Only, this time, one of them is a passenger trying to blow up the Hidenburg and it's up to Colonel Franz Ritter (Scott) to find out who - and stop them - before it's too late! The film's music and visuals are consistent with the time period/type of movie: the grand score makes us long for another age while Wise's visual team provides their signature opulence. The acting is alright, though nothing to write home about - or indeed in a review, but such is the nature of most ensemble pieces.

The film opens with a brief history of airships, done in the style of newsreel footage. There's a lot of history - humor too - and the result is quite charming, not to mention effective. I'll quickly point out that I love airships and that putting them in a film will pretty much guarantee that I'll see it at some point (I'm still trying to justify shoehorning Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1980) into this list, we'll see, 1938's already got some weird stuff!).

From there, the film bursts into color with a airship soaring majestically through the clouds. After the credits, we see a woman writing a letter, warning of a plot to destroy the Hindenburg. In response, Joseph Goebbels sends Ritter along on board to prevent sabotage. From there, Ritter and SS Officer Martin Vogel (Roy Thinnes), carefully review each passenger and consider if they have a reason to destroy the ship. Though made off-limits immediately upon departure, various passengers inevitably try and sneak back to the crew area/infrastructure - the most vulnerable part of the ship. Everyone's acting suspicious so everyone's a suspect.

Eventually, Ritter does discover the saboteur however, when this person makes it clear that their intention is to destroy the ship as a statement against the Nazis - while sparing the lives of everyone on board - Ritter must decide what what he wants do. The bomb may already be set. If he apprehends the saboteur now, he might never find it. Plus, Ritter's son died during his time in the HJ, so he has his own grudge against the Nazis. In the end, Ritter is faced with a difficult choice: to stop this person or help them.

Regardless of Ritter's choice, though, as we all know the ship explodes. This is handled in an interesting way in the film: everything switches to black and white so it can be cross-cut with the historical footage of the Hindenburg disaster. This sequence is fast and intense, though it frustratingly freezes on occasion for emphasis. Further, it gives the audience a new appreciation for what happened that day by giving faces (albeit mostly fictional ones) to the souls aboard. More than anything, though, I was shocked at how many people survived the catastrophe. And, obviously, Herbert Morrison's infamous radio broadcast of the event is incorporated as well. The film ends there, after cataloging the dead/survivors.

Safety, in regard to the hydrogen, plays a very prominent role in the film. I must admit I was a little surprised to what degree they went to keep everyone safe: thorough searches of the passengers, covering the steel tip of a cane to prevent against accidental sparks, etc. It makes sense, of course, but you never think about it. Though the ship did allow smoking on board, there was only one lighter (an electric one) that was centrally located and all the passengers had to share. In fact, though by this period there had been several airship accidents worldwide, until now the Germans maintained a perfect operating record, due to the diligence of their captains and crew.

When one when thinks about the Hindenburg, they can't help but look it it through the eyes of today - "Well of course it was going to explode, they should have known better!" And indeed, there's a little of that here, from a couple Americans, in addition to some ominous music/foreshadowing. However we must recall that they were doing the best they could with what was available to them. From my point of view, it's actually more amazing that there were as few problems back then as there were. Certainly today most people don't care a thing for safety, imagine them in the 1930s - "What do you mean I can't bring my flamethrower on board?? I just bought this! I want to speak to your supervisor!"

The legendary Robert Wise (The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), West Side Story (1961), The Sound of Music (1965), The Andromeda Strain (1971) and Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1971), among others - this is the same dude who edited Citizen Kane (1941)!) directs this with his characteristic grandeur, not to mention exactitude. The audience is left with no doubt what they're seeing is a lovingly crafted recreation of the legendary airship. Wise goes far to include real history in the film (even if the sabotage plot is somewhat dubious factually) portraying many historical people, for example, Dr. Hugo Eckener, Count Zeppelin's protege who took over the company after his death. Further, there's an eye for detail, for example the animosity between Goebbels and Eckener: during its second test flight, after the airship was completed, the Mayor of Munich asked Eckener what the ship's name would be over the radio. 'The Hindenburg' he replied, named for Germany's recently deceased president (the man who preceded Hitler). When he found out, Goebbels was furious, believing it should have been the Adolf Hitler. After that, Goebbels wouldn't speak to the man and refused to call the airship by its name, using only its designation, LZ 129 thereafter. Though the incident itself is not portrayed in this film, Goebbels behavior stays true to history.

Another such situation alluded to was the desire on the part of Eckener to switch the airship's lifting gas from hydrogen to helium. Helium, while more expensive and less effective, was of course far safer, however almost all of the gas was owned by the United States and they didn't want to share. In fact, for a while at least, Germany wasn't allowed to make any airships of this size at all - a provision of the Treaty of Versailles. It was finally through a gift, of the USS Los Angeles, that Germany was allowed to proceed, however they were still without the helium. After the Hindenburg disaster, FDR promised Eckener access to the gas however, with the annexation of Austria in 1938, the offer was rescinded.

A few incidents depicted in this films were appropriated from other airships, like the rip and subsequent mid-air repair of one of the ship's fins high above the icy Atlantic, which actually happened to the Graf Zeppelin during its first flight in 1928. Granted, a few details are wrong here and there - certain war medals and companies that didn't fit the timeline - but almost all of the airship stuff is right on. It's impressive that Wise and co. got their history right, but more so that they found a way to work it into the film in a manner that doesn't make it seem like a history lesson.

Overall, I'd have to say this is a pretty solid movie. Yes, it can be a little cheesy at times, yes sometimes the history is a little off. However, you know the type of movie you're in for when you sit down to watch it - and if you like this kind of film, it's a good one. The whole 'find the saboteur' aspect keeps the tension on, at the same time differentiating this movie from its fellows, while the real history provides a ticking clock that Scott must race against. I rate this film a 3.5/5.