The Final Mission: The Story of the U-190

200647 min 10 secFilm: Documentary

Direction: Alain Vézina

Production: Alain VézinaJean-Luc Potvin

Script: Alain Vézina

Co-produced by Merlin Films Enr. and Pixmédia Enr.

This title is an acquisition.

It is the final months of the Second World War, and German submarine forces are faced with the overwhelming superiority of the Allies. Despite heavy casualties, the U-boat crews keep on fighting. Some vessels even venture along the North American coastline. A few weeks before the end of the conflict, one of these ships, the U-190, is outside Halifax, Nova Scotia, looking for enemy vessels.

On April 16, 1945, the U-190 torpedoes the Canadian minesweeper HMCS Esquimalt, which rapidly sinks. Dozens of men fight for survival in the icy waters of the North Atlantic. Out of 71 crew members, 44 will perish.

The men of the U-190 do everything in their power to escape the Canadian Navy and try to reach their Norwegian base of operations. But the war is nearing its end and the U-190 crew, worried bout the fate of both their country and loved ones, anxiously await the outcome of their final mission.

Availability


Subject categories


  • National Security and Defence > Army Programs and OperationsHistorical PerspectivesNavy
  • History - Canada - 1920-1945 > World War II
  • War, Conflict and Peace > World War II - The Home Front

Credits


producer
Alain Vézina
Jean-Luc Potvin
writer
Alain Vézina
director
Alain Vézina
editor
Jean-Luc Potvin
Michel T. Prévost
music composer
Réjean Doyon
3D animation
Jean-Luc Potvin
narrator
Luc Pilon
additional voice
Patrick Baby
Jean Guérin
Ron O'Brien
dialogue coach
Ron O'Brien
English adaptation
Alain Essiembre
Michel T. Prévost
interviewee
Werner Hirschmann
Fred Burbidge
André Kirouac
Raymond Bérubé
Laurent St-Pierre
director of photography
Jean Kavanagh
Jean-Luc Potvin
camera operator
Dave Smith
Patrice Larose
Jean-Luc Potvin
sound
Dave Smith
Patrice Larose
Jean-Luc Potvin
model maker
Jean-Claude Laurier
lighting
François Gamache
reenactment
Marc Blanchet
sound recording
Serge Drolet
sound effects
Gilles Claeys
post-production audio
Jean-Luc Potvin
production secretary
Annik-Corona Ouellette
research
Alain Vézina