Submarine Movies: Best Films
We've compiled for you a list of what we consider the best submarine movies ever made. Our selection prioritizes masterful filmmaking, compelling narratives, and films that have stood the test of time.
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea remains Disney's classic adventure beneath the waves, while The Enemy Below and Run Silent, Run Deep represent the golden age of WWII submarine dramas with their psychological depth and tense duels. Das Boot is widely regarded as the greatest submarine film in history, delivering unflinching realism and claustrophobic intensity.
The Cold War era gave us The Hunt for Red October, a perfectly crafted thriller, and Crimson Tide, which explores the ethics of nuclear command with powerhouse performances. Finally, The Wolf's Call proves the genre still thrives, offering modern technical sophistication and edge-of-your-seat tension.
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List not ranked (sorted by Release Date)

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
A ship sent to investigate a wave of mysterious sinkings encounters the advanced submarine, the Nautilus, commanded by Captain Nemo.

The Enemy Below
The crew of the American destroyer escort, the USS Haynes, detects a German U-Boat—resulting in a prolonged, deadly battle of wits.

Run Silent, Run Deep
The captain of a submarine sunk by the Japanese during WWII is finally given a chance to skipper another sub after a year of working a desk job. His singleminded determination for revenge against the destroyer that sunk his previous vessel puts his new crew in unneccessary danger.

Das Boot
A German submarine hunts allied ships during the Second World War, but it soon becomes the hunted. The crew tries to survive below the surface, while stretching both the boat and themselves to their limits.

The Hunt for Red October
A new technologically-superior Soviet nuclear sub, the Red October, is heading for the U.S. coast under the command of Captain Marko Ramius. The American government thinks Ramius is planning to attack. Lone CIA analyst Jack Ryan has a different idea: he thinks Ramius is planning to defect, but he has only a few hours to find him and prove it - because the entire Russian naval and air commands are trying to find Ramius, too. The hunt is on!

Crimson Tide
After the Cold War, a breakaway Russian republic with nuclear warheads becomes a possible worldwide threat. U.S. submarine Capt. Frank Ramsey signs on a relatively green but highly recommended Lt. Cmdr. Ron Hunter to the USS Alabama, which may be the only ship able to stop a possible Armageddon. When Ramsey insists that the Alabama must act aggressively, Hunter, fearing they will start rather than stop a disaster, leads a potential mutiny to stop him.

The Wolf's Call
Shown from the perspective of a young submariner with unusually sensitive hearing and uncannily precise sound recognition. The fate of many often depends on his ability, and one time, whilst highly stressed, he makes a incorrect call which put his entire crew in mortal danger. Trying to regain the confidence of his comrades, he conducts an unauthorised investigation of an apparent plot which, it turns out, risks escalating into a nuclear apocalypse. Suddenly working under pressure with the fleet admiral, they must do whatever is necessary, even the unthinkable, to prevent a nuclear war, since a confirmed nuclear strike order cannot be countermanded.
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