SAS 181 Does Not Reply

SAS 181 antwortet nicht is an East German black-and-white film, directed by Carl Balhaus. It was released in 1959.

Plot

Kurt, a young apprentice in a fishing commune and a member of the Technology and Sport Association, enters a race to show his maritime skills. After he fails to win, he falls in love with a girl named Anke, but she loves the apprentice Hannes. Kurt and Hannes sail with skipper Laue on one of the collective's boats, SAS 181. Laue pretends to be Kurt's friend and instigates a conflict between the two boys. However, they both realize that he intends to reach the Danish isle of Bornholm and defect to the West. The two settle their differences and, with the help of the old fisherman Jens, return the boat home.

Cast

Ulrich Thein as Kurt
Otmar Richter as Hannes
Rita Gödikmeier as Anke
Friedrich Wilhelm Junge as Linnet
Erwin Geschonneck as Laue
Wilhelm Koch-Hooge as Poppe
Gustav Püttjer as Jens
Erich Brauer as Laue's deck hand
Hans Finohr as Kollmorgen
Klaus Gendries as Eisermann
Fritz Diez as collective director
Harry Hindemith as Danish harbor manager
Hans-Joachim Glaser as Spuchti
Gerd Scheibel as Knautschke

Production

The film was the first in the history of East Germany to portray the pre-military youth training organization known as the Technology and Sport Association. It was produced with the assistance of the association.

Reception

Heinz Kersten noted that the theme of "fleeing from the republic" - a common feature in East German films, which showed a person leaving the GDR for the West, grow disillusioned and sometimes commit suicide - was present in the plot of the SAS 181 as well. The German Film Lexicon cited it as having "an unimaginative plot".