Silent Service

Starring:Maurizio Peppicelli, Cliff Lazenby, Robert Jones (XVI), B.H. O'Neill, Raul Bayone, Robert O'Gorman, Ralph Jameson
Director: Ryôsuke Takahashi
Studio: Us Manga Corps Video
Product Type: DVD

Description

The sneak attack on Pearl Harbor destroyed most of America's Pacific Fleet. Untouched were America's submarines. They would inflict catastrophic losses on the Japanese in World War II.

Featured on this DVD are five rare U.S. Navy films made in the WWII era — including a full COLOR film — showcasing the capabilities that led to America's triumph in the Pacific war. Watch a rare, silent newsreel of the recovery of the USS Squalus and its crew after a diving accident.

See recruits train for action in the pre-war silent service, and watch rare FULL COLOR WWII combat footage as U.S. fleet boats enter Japanese home waters, operating with impunity and sinking everything in sight.

Also featured is a film showing one of the great triumphs of the anti-submarine war in the Atlantic: the capture of the Nazi U-505 at sea.

The DVD concludes with a showcase of post-war developments including the launch of the nuclear Nautilus.

Digitally remastered and restored from original 16mm prints, many of these films have never been available to the public, and some have only recently been declassified. Please note, due to their age and rarity, image and sound quality can vary.

All films are black and white and COLOR. Running time: 90 minutes.

IMPORTANT: This DVD is presented in the DVD-R format. It may not be compatible with older DVD players. Please check your DVD player's manual for more information.

Customer Reviews:

great dive history.......2006-07-31
We showed this at our last dive club meeting and everyone really enjoyed it. Excellent background info for the history of diving.
Superior Early History Of United States Submarines.......2005-10-23
Without exception, "The Silent Service in World War II" is the absolute best depiction of the United States submarine fleet during this period. None of the footage that you'll see in this DVD is a Hollywood conception of what was. This is the real McCoy. As a veteran submariner and old smoke boat sailor, this is a DVD that you won't be able to stop watching. This is a must have for the any Naval historian, submarine sailor, school or anyone that would like to see how it really happened.

You'll see the exciting capture of an actual German U-boat and it's recovery. View the rescue and recovery of the USS Squalus and it's crew. Hear accounts from Japanese regarding the massive damage inflected by our pig boats after they attacked Pearl Harbor. I highly recommend this DVD to everyone. You're library just isn't complete until you own this one.

Bob Prater, USS Remora (SS-487)
Excellent U.S. Navy films from an historic era!.......2005-08-22
I just recently bought the "Silent Service in WWII" DVD and spent the better part of an evening watching it. If you're a fan of books like "The Hunt for Red October" or "Run Silent, Run Deep" -- or the movies of the same name -- this DVD is for you. It has five interesting films made by the U.S. Navy and featuring real-life footage of some of the most historic submarines of the 1930-1945 era. The "Submarine War Story" film is a special treat, in that it shows how the U.S. fought Japanese surface forces throughout the war with subs. It has some amazing footage from 1945 of subs sinking sampans and junks, and rescuing pilots whose crippled planes could not make it back to Tinian and Iwo Jima. Some of the other films show how sub crews were trained, and there is a short, silent newsreel that shows rare material from the Squalus accident (profiled in "The Terrible Hours" by Peter Maas). The DVD is one of a planned set of five discs, and I look forward to getting the other four when they are available (looks like only a couple have been released so far).

Average customer rating:

Sink the YAMATO!

Intriguing naval thriller with dubious premise

Silent Service
Starring: Maurizio Peppicelli , Cliff Lazenby , Robert Jones (XVI) , B.H. O'Neill , and Raul Bayone
Director: Ryôsuke Takahashi
Manufacturer: Us Manga Corps Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00007K01A
Release Date: 2005-01-25

Description
Explosively nuclear, the Seabat is the most closely guarded military secret in the world, but its rogue crew now threatens world peace!
Customer Reviews:

Sink the YAMATO!.......2003-04-18
If you like submarine movies like the German DAS BOOT or THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER you will undoubetly enjoy this anime.
The story revolves around a secret US-Japanese joint venture: the first Japanese nuclear submarine. On the U-boat's first mission captain KAIEDA and his crew start a mutiny and arrest the US liaison officer. The renegades rename their vessel YAMATO after a famous Japanese World War II battleship. Captain KAIEDA has an agenda of his own (namely achieving world peace by bluffing the USA into believing that the YAMATO is armed with nuclear missiles) and soon Japan and the United States are on the brink of war...
SILENT SERVICE moves at breakneck speed and is actionfilled from start to finish. More naval battles than in the second World War! Okay, okay, I admit I am exaggerating here, but it is amazing how much naval action (and story!) is crammed in the film's 100 minutes running time. The film also succeeds in creating quite a tension in the scenes which are common to submarine movies: officers listening anxiously to their sonar, vessels trying to out-manouvre one another, depth charges attacks, crash dives. The military hardware on display appears to be depicted accurately. I also liked the main character, captain KAIEDA, who is a righteous man and an excellent naval officer with nerves of steel.
While it did not bother me, I am aware that some US viewers may dislike the "the Americans can't be trusted" message of the film, evident not only in the overall storyline, but in some details as well (e.g. the American president before attending an international summit reads a "Japan Re-occupation Plan").
Don't let this put you off!
In my view most anime suffer from their usual sci-fi settings with aliens and mechs, so a more realistic and mature japanimation feature is always welcome, even more so when it concerns a war toppic. If you are a military buff, you'll like this one.
Unfortunately the DVD is rather weak on the extra side. There is a rather pointless "meet the characters" - feature and a multiple angle option for the end credits sequence, where you can switch between Japanese and English end titles with your remote control (I recommend to stay with the original). There are also some trailers, of which I liked VIRGIN FLEET best.
The optional English subtitles are easy on the eyes and free of misspellings. There is an English audio track, too.
Intriguing naval thriller with dubious premise.......2001-08-21
This is one of the better non-TV-series anime OAVs I've recently seen, mostly for its accurate and authentic use of the naval weapons shown here.
This OAV can best be described as an anime version of The Hunt For Red October, but it has a highly implausible plot which is the premise for the whole OAV. The best way to describe it would be as nationalist anti-American sentiment for Japan's return back to a pre-World-War-II military dictatorship, and a rogue nuclear submarine, dubbed as the Sea Bat but renamed as the Yamato, would lead the way. Highly unlikely, don't know if it's one man's opinion or shared by a nation, but it isn't the strength of this DVD.
The cool factor on this DVD has to do with the naval battles shown here and the surprising accuracy of the proper existing naval weapons depicted here. Unlike most anime where lots of weapons are created from the imaginations of the creators, all of the weapons shown here exist in real-life, except for the prototype super-sub Yamato, which is fabricated here.
When the US Navy hunts down the Yamato, they don't improperly show F-14 Tomcat or F-18 Hornet fighters try to attack a submarine, as a Hollywood film would inaccurately do to shown the sleekest aircraft on screen. Here, P-3 Orions are used for surveillance, and S-3 Vikings (the only submarine hunting airplanes in the US Navy) and Kamen Seasprite helicopters are shown launching torpedoes into the water, as it might happen in the real Navy.
The use of AEGIS cruisers and destroyers, armed with Harpoon anti-ship missiles, 5" cannons, and ASROC anti-sub torpedoes, while defending with Phalanx Vulcan cannons, are all existing weapons in the US Navy, and they are depicted here with surprising accuracy, even with the terminology being used correctly.
If you like submarine movies like The Hunt For Red October or Crimson Tide, you'll appreciate some of the genius tactical moves by the Yamato sub commander here, once you get past the highly dubious political plot of the story.

Average customer rating:

Sink the YAMATO!

Intriguing naval thriller with dubious premise

Silent Service
Starring: Maurizio Peppicelli , Cliff Lazenby , Robert Jones (XVI) , B.H. O'Neill , and Raul Bayone
Director: Ryôsuke Takahashi
Manufacturer: Us Manga Corps Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Venus Wars

Cleopatra DC

Submarines

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ASIN: B000053VGT
Release Date: 2001-01-09

Customer Reviews:

Sink the YAMATO!.......2003-04-18
If you like submarine movies like the German DAS BOOT or THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER you will undoubetly enjoy this anime.
The story revolves around a secret US-Japanese joint venture: the first Japanese nuclear submarine. On the U-boat's first mission captain KAIEDA and his crew start a mutiny and arrest the US liaison officer. The renegades rename their vessel YAMATO after a famous Japanese World War II battleship. Captain KAIEDA has an agenda of his own (namely achieving world peace by bluffing the USA into believing that the YAMATO is armed with nuclear missiles) and soon Japan and the United States are on the brink of war...
SILENT SERVICE moves at breakneck speed and is actionfilled from start to finish. More naval battles than in the second World War! Okay, okay, I admit I am exaggerating here, but it is amazing how much naval action (and story!) is crammed in the film's 100 minutes running time. The film also succeeds in creating quite a tension in the scenes which are common to submarine movies: officers listening anxiously to their sonar, vessels trying to out-manouvre one another, depth charges attacks, crash dives. The military hardware on display appears to be depicted accurately. I also liked the main character, captain KAIEDA, who is a righteous man and an excellent naval officer with nerves of steel.
While it did not bother me, I am aware that some US viewers may dislike the "the Americans can't be trusted" message of the film, evident not only in the overall storyline, but in some details as well (e.g. the American president before attending an international summit reads a "Japan Re-occupation Plan").
Don't let this put you off!
In my view most anime suffer from their usual sci-fi settings with aliens and mechs, so a more realistic and mature japanimation feature is always welcome, even more so when it concerns a war toppic. If you are a military buff, you'll like this one.
Unfortunately the DVD is rather weak on the extra side. There is a rather pointless "meet the characters" - feature and a multiple angle option for the end credits sequence, where you can switch between Japanese and English end titles with your remote control (I recommend to stay with the original). There are also some trailers, of which I liked VIRGIN FLEET best.
The optional English subtitles are easy on the eyes and free of misspellings. There is an English audio track, too.
Intriguing naval thriller with dubious premise.......2001-08-21
This is one of the better non-TV-series anime OAVs I've recently seen, mostly for its accurate and authentic use of the naval weapons shown here.
This OAV can best be described as an anime version of The Hunt For Red October, but it has a highly implausible plot which is the premise for the whole OAV. The best way to describe it would be as nationalist anti-American sentiment for Japan's return back to a pre-World-War-II military dictatorship, and a rogue nuclear submarine, dubbed as the Sea Bat but renamed as the Yamato, would lead the way. Highly unlikely, don't know if it's one man's opinion or shared by a nation, but it isn't the strength of this DVD.
The cool factor on this DVD has to do with the naval battles shown here and the surprising accuracy of the proper existing naval weapons depicted here. Unlike most anime where lots of weapons are created from the imaginations of the creators, all of the weapons shown here exist in real-life, except for the prototype super-sub Yamato, which is fabricated here.
When the US Navy hunts down the Yamato, they don't improperly show F-14 Tomcat or F-18 Hornet fighters try to attack a submarine, as a Hollywood film would inaccurately do to shown the sleekest aircraft on screen. Here, P-3 Orions are used for surveillance, and S-3 Vikings (the only submarine hunting airplanes in the US Navy) and Kamen Seasprite helicopters are shown launching torpedoes into the water, as it might happen in the real Navy.
The use of AEGIS cruisers and destroyers, armed with Harpoon anti-ship missiles, 5" cannons, and ASROC anti-sub torpedoes, while defending with Phalanx Vulcan cannons, are all existing weapons in the US Navy, and they are depicted here with surprising accuracy, even with the terminology being used correctly.
If you like submarine movies like The Hunt For Red October or Crimson Tide, you'll appreciate some of the genius tactical moves by the Yamato sub commander here, once you get past the highly dubious political plot of the story.

Average customer rating:
Submarines: The Silent Service in World War II ~2 Disk Set
Director: The History Channel ~ 2 Disk Set
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

World War II | Military & War | Genres | DVD | Video
Product Features:

2 Disk Set

History Channel

A & E

ASIN: B000LGFUEE

Product Description
They were hunters under the sea, living and operating in cramped, claustrophobic quarters. If they perished, they knew would meet a hideous death on the ocean floor. They were the men of THE SILENT SERVICE. The incredible achievements of these heroes come alive in this extraordinary set. Drawing on declassified documents, interviews with submariners and their enemies, combat footage and visits to museums where the ships are preserved, we'll get a sense of what it was like to serve beneath the waves. Each of the four volumes focuses on a different element of the submarine corps: The Boats of World War Two--See how the subs were designed and learn the stories of the Squalus and Argonaut. The Captains of World War Two--An up-close look at men like Sam Dealey, "The Destroyer Killer," Dudley Morton and Richard O' Kane, who developed strategies that helped win the war. The Torpedoes of World War Two--See how a failed design nearly proved disastrous, and how the definitive submarine weapon was re-invented. The Attack Plans of World War Two--Originally touted as scouts for surface fleets, submarines were used in far more effective ways as the war wore on.

Average customer rating:

Two DVDs full of questions...

The best in air/sea combat

Combat Pack - Silent Service/Area 88
Starring: Kaneto Shiozawa , Dan Olk , Shigeru Chiba , Kei Tomiyama , and Yoshito Yasuhara
Director: Hisayuki Toriumi , and Ryôsuke Takahashi
Manufacturer: Central Park Media
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000063K2I
Release Date: 2002-05-28

Customer Reviews:

Two DVDs full of questions..........2003-07-05
First Review: Silent Service is full of action, adventure, sea battles and backroom politics. As long as you don't mind the Anti-American slant, which I don't because the anime movie doesn't show the Japanese leaders in a very nice light either, and don't mind the fact that the Seabat seems to be able to hit anything the Captain wants it to hit, the story is a very good one. It asks many Post-Cold War questions, like what role will Japan play and how will the Americans continue to be the police force of the world when even a tiny nation may have nuclear weapons? What kind of relationship will America and Japan have after the Cold War? 100 minutes long, this anime movie asks a lot of hard and valid questions. Made in the late 1990's, the artwork holds up well, if sometimes very dark (as in hard to see in those underwater scenes). The plot can get VERY twisted because of the fears and paranoia of BOTH sides. I give it 4 out of 5.
Second Review: Area 88 is a 50 minutes movie about a fighter pilot named Shin. He was tricked into joining a air mercenary group in which the only ways out are to either survive for three years, pay 1.5 million dollars, desertion OR death. The problems, or maybe I should say issues, he has is that he is not sure his girlfriend will wait for him or even want the man he has become - a cold blooded killer. While an older movie, made in the mid-1980s, and also being the FIRST of what is a two parter, as they show the trailer to Area 88 Act II on this DVD, I still have to give it 4 out of 5 for the drama, the issues of friendship and the cool combat scenes.
Both movies are good enough to buy together or alone, depending on what kind of story you like. I would suggest also getting Area 88 Act II if it is available.
The best in air/sea combat.......2002-07-02
My review will serperate each title.
Area 88 Vol. 1:
In the year 1979, a mercenary base of jets fights for the kingdom of Asrian. But these pilots aren't really soldiers. They were either tricked or chose to come to Area 88. The only way to get out of Area 88 is either 3 years of service, earn 1.5 million dollars in kills or dessert. Shin Kazama, a Japanese pilot, was tricked into joining by his closest friend, Kanzaki, because Kanzaki wanted Ryoko all to himself. Now, Shin tries his best to get back home.
For an 80's OAV series with only 3 episodes, I must say it is quite amazing. The animation is smooth and the music perfect. Even the air combat is great. All of the characters feel very realistic and none of them seem they're just for show. The disc itself is pretty good. The main menu, however, is real slow. Video quality is okay. There are only a few small rainbows here and there, but it shouldn't bother you. The extras are basically skip to your favorite scenes parts for both combat and characters. Overall, a pretty good title that will have a lot of replay value to it.
Silent Service:
A Japanese\American submarine is built called the Seabat, that is armed with 8 torpedo bays, making it the most powerful sub ever built. However, on it's way to the escort, the Seabat deviates from it's coarse and soon claims the sub as the nation of Yamato. How much more complex can it get?
Considering that this was the first film Ryosuke Takahashi has ever done, it is a pretty good thriller. It's not really an all explosion ship battle because the Seabat never actually fire any armed torpedoes, only duds. Still, the film holds up well as a thriller. Again, this disc has skip-to-scene extras, but also has some DVD-Roms extras as well. This title is not really an exciting action packed film, but as a thriller, it is sure to entertain.

Average customer rating:
A Century of Silent Service

ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Special Interests | Genres | DVD | Video
Documentary | Independently Distributed | Stores | DVD | Video
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Independently Distributed | Indie & Art House | Stores | DVD | Video
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ASIN: B00007L5YH
Release Date: 2002-11-15

Average customer rating:
The History Channel Presents: The Silent Service, Set # 3 (2-DVD Set)

Manufacturer: A&E Television Networks
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

Science & Technology | Educational | Genres | DVD | Video
Product Features:

150 minutes of documentary to tell the complete, fascinating story of one of the most critical branches of the military - submarines

The Silent Service, Set #3 features three following documentaries:

(1) Japanese Submarines

(2) Submarines of Russia

(3) Deterrence From the Deep

ASIN: B000MJ1VX4

Product Description
THE SILENT SERVICE plunges beneath the waves to tell the complete, fascinating story of one of the most critical branches of the military--submarines. From the dreamers who conceived them and the earliest designs to the men who became legend and the designs that changed underwater technology forever, each hour focuses on a different aspect of the submariners story. This, the third set in the acclaimed series, features the following 3 compelling tales: (1) Japanese Submarines--During World War 2 the Imperial Japanese Navy maintained a fleet of submarines that included the largest and most powerful underwater weapons the world had yet seen, including underwater aircraft carriers; (2) Submarines of Russia--At the height of the Cold War the Soviets boasted more nuclear submarines than any other nation, a record achieved at great cost - not only in rubles but in lives; (3) Deterrence From the Deep - Here is the story of the U.S. Navy's ballistic missile submarines, SSBNs, or "Boomers", from their origins in the 1950s to their preeminent status in the strategic nuclear deterrent forces of the United States
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