Dennis Gansel’s anti-war thriller film, The Tiger (Der Tiger), is a haunting portrayal of the aftermath of World War II, particularly centered around the five member crew who operated one of the German ‘Tiger’ war tanks. The film unfolds from eight months after Stalingrad, when the German soldiers had started to retreat from the Soviet territory. The crew chose to put up a fight until the very last moment before their commanding officer, Philip Gerkens, instructed them to retreat. They only had a few seconds to make it out; the Germans had already planted a bomb on the Dnieper bridge. The driver, Helmut, kept his foot on the gas as he tried to make it past the bridge on time. A loud explosion rang out as fire burst in from all sides. Had the bridge already been bombed? Did the Tiger make it out on time? Let’s find out.
Spoiler Alert
Did the five-member crew survive the bridge bombing?
The film left the audience under the impression that the five-member tank crew had survived the bombing, but the ending of The Tiger revealed that it was all an illusion. The crew didn’t make it off the bridge on time. But the souls of the characters seemed to be trapped in the mortal world. They were convinced that they’d made it out alive, although they couldn’t quite fathom how they survived the gargantuan fire.
Soon after Philip Gerkens recovered from the bombing, he and his crew were tasked with a confidential operation called ‘The Labyrinth.’ They had to safely bring Colonel Paul von Hardenburg home; he had classified documents that the Nazis feared would result in dangerous repercussions if the Soviets got their hands on them, so bringing the documents back to HQ was of top priority. The fact that the rest of the crew was surprised when they found out that their mission involved tracking down von Hardenburg was probably the first indication that something was not quite right. They were under the impression that von Hardenburg was dead, and to that, Philip responded that some believed that they too were dead; the conversation foreshadowed the ending. Von Hardenburg was present during Stalingrad, and it was widely believed that he was buried under the tractor factory rubble. Some even stated that he had apparently cut off his hand in an attempt to survive. There were several myths around von Hardenburg; some assumed a local girl took pity on him and helped him out of the rubble, and he apparently had started living as a farmer in the Soviet Union, and it was assumed that he had become a Russian spy. Philip had a personal connection with Paul; they became friends at the military academy, and Paul was his son’s godfather. The crew was not really keen about the mission; they needed rest, and they believed that going deep into enemy territory was an unnecessary risk. One of the five members, Keilig, wondered if the operation was just a lie and they were risking it all for Philip’s personal reasons. Philip repeatedly tried to explain that he was just following orders, and his personal connection with Paul didn’t have anything to do with the operation.
What challenges did the crew face?
On their way to the location where Paul was assumed to be hiding, the five-member crew faced several challenges. From passing through stretches of land with skeletal remains to detecting land mines that could have potentially resulted in their ‘deaths’ to hiding underwater to steer clear of enemy troops. The Tiger was built to transform into a makeshift submarine that could operate underwater. Although they hadn’t used the feature before, Philip figured this was the time to test it. They managed to hide away from their enemies, but when water started to trickle down into the tank, they wondered if they would even survive this impossible challenge. Surprisingly, their watches had stopped working since the bridge bombing, another indication that they had entered a realm beyond the mortal world. Thankfully, the engine didn’t give up, and they successfully made it out of the river. They didn’t expect to find German troops on the other side, but apparently it was a special mission. The soldiers were seen gathering the villagers in a barn, and they set fire to the place. Lieutenant Colonel Krebs casually explained that this method helped them save on ammunition. Philip was visibly disturbed by the sight, and he asked his men to just grab the fuel and leave. They decided to rest in the tank for the night, and they gulped down liquor to cope with their tragic reality. The lives they’d left behind were a distant past, that they had moved so far away from, that getting to relive it again did not seem like an option anymore. They had changed as individuals, and after witnessing violence so up close, they knew that the innocence of their youth was long lost. The memories of the bright happy days were all they had left to keep them going, and apart from the black-and-white pictures of their families and loved ones, they didn’t really have anything left to hold onto. The secret operation had turned out to be extremely challenging, and deep down they tried to accept the possibility that they might not make it back home. When they debated about losing touch with their human selves from the moment they started to take orders, Philip stated that without order there would be complete chaos, both in the army and society at large. He was a staunch believer in discipline, and he followed orders without ever letting his personal bias or emotions get in the way. The next morning, they continued with their journey, and suddenly an armed tank, an SU-100, attacked them. They’d seen the same tank before, and Philip deduced that it must have followed them. Although it was a strange situation, under Philip’s command, the crew managed to destroy their target successfully.
They soon discovered that Keilig was hit by shrapnel and fatally injured. With his dying breath, he asked Philip to write to his wife and daughters. He mentioned how he’d always dreamt of teaching again, and before taking his last breath, he thought of the summer of 1939, the last time the world was bright and hopeful. The crew buried Keilig, and on their way back to their tank, they noticed the dead bodies in the tank that they had destroyed. The youngest in the crew, Michel, was shocked to see skeletal remains; he thought it was impossible for a body to turn into a skeleton so fast. He warned Philip that there was something strange about the place, but Philip decided to continue with the operation. They were running out of fuel, they’d lost a member, and there was something eerie about the place, yet Philip refused to give up. Christian strongly believed that Philip had an ulterior motive and was intentionally driving them into a deadly trap, and he arrived at the conclusion that Philip shouldn’t lead them anymore. But Michel and Helmut didn’t feel the same way; although they didn’t agree with Philip’s decision to continue, they trusted him because he’d proved to be a worthy leader over and over again. Soon, the crew decided to head into the woods on foot, where von Hardenburg was apparently hiding. They found a bunker in the woods, and when they entered the place, they heard giggles and merrymaking. The situation didn’t seem to be as remorseful as they thought it would be. They soon came across German officers and a couple of women that they had brought into the bunker for entertainment. When Philip mentioned that he had traveled a long way to meet Paul, he was told that his friend had been waiting for his arrival.
What had happened to Paul von Hardenburg?
Philip was asked to meet Paul alone, while his crew members were told to wait for him with the others. Philip couldn’t figure out what it was, but there was clearly something very odd about the place. He found Paul waiting for him in a room, and he’d arranged a gala dinner for him. He noticed that Paul had lost a hand, and he figured that the stories about him were indeed true. When Philip mentioned that he and his crew were sent to rescue him, Paul remarked that Philip should have figured out that wasn’t really going to happen, since the tank was built for only five individuals and there was no way Paul and the crew would fit into it. Philip was an uptight officer who had been trained to never question the decisions of the authority. So, even though the Tiger seemed to be an odd choice for a rescue operation, he simply thought to himself that there must have been a reason. Paul wondered what Philip would do if he refused to leave; he knew that his friend would go against him if it came down to following orders. Paul encouraged Philip to have a drink, and he soon started to describe his experience of being buried under the tractor factory rubble. He had spent five days with no water and had slowly died of thirst, pain, and suffocation. The five days perhaps seemed like a thousand years, and he had enough time to reflect on his past actions. He regretted the role he played in Stalingrad, and he reminded Philip of his inhuman actions as well.
The Tiger’s ending revealed that even though Paul was hesitant about attacking a building full of women and children, Philip had repeatedly emphasized that, according to the orders from the higher-ups, they were expected to attack. When Paul said that he wasn’t sure if it was the right move, Philip had stated that the building was full of Russian forces, who controlled the factory, and if they failed to act, then it might cost them a lot later on. He’d reminded Paul that it wasn’t really their decision; they simply must follow the orders without taking into consideration their emotions or moral judgment. Paul ultimately commanded his men to carry out the order. They set fire to the building, and the helpless screaming and wailing of the thousands trapped inside continued to haunt Paul as well as Philip. While Philip continued to defend their role, stating that their job was to carry out orders and it wasn’t really their decision to make, Paul reminded him that it was their responsibility at the end of the day, and they had failed to be decent human beings. Philip noticed the rotten food on the table, and he realized that the place he was now trapped in reeked of death and despair. Paul blamed Philip; he believed that the only reason he, his crew, and Philip’s crew were stuck in this hell was because of Philip and his decision to carry out inhumane orders.
Why did Philip delay the order to retreat?
Philip refused to believe it was all an illusion; he mentioned that Colonel Richter had tasked him with carrying out Operation Labyrinth. Paul scoffed at his remark; he asked Philip if he even knew this colonel, did he even exist, and was he really asked to carry out the operation? Philip started to question everything; he gradually started to remember the blank pages in the Operation Labyrinth file, how none of their watches worked anymore, how his compass failed to show him directions, and the skeletal remains in the tank. Paul asked Philip why he delayed the order to retreat that night on the bridge; his one decision had cost the lives of his crew members.
In The Tiger’s ending, it is revealed that Philip had received a telegram informing him about the death of his wife and son the morning of the bridge incident. His family had died in a firestorm that was triggered by an air raid. Philip was punished by fate; he’d ignored the cries when he carried out the order to burn down a factory, but in the end, the final moments of his wife and son were equally agonizing. Paul added, “We reap what we sow,” while Philip had convinced himself that he’d joined the war to protect his family; in reality, he’d only contributed to destruction and suffering. That day on the bridge, he delayed the order to retreat, perhaps because somewhere deep down he wanted to perish the same way as his family. The strange journey that Philip and his crew had gone through perhaps unfolded within the few seconds between life and death. The journey was a visual representation of them arriving at the doorstep of death. There was a special place in hell perhaps for men like Philip or even Paul, who didn’t take responsibility for their actions and did whatever they were asked to. Being obedient and dutiful wasn’t really a positive quality in such an instance; it was rather a cowardly act.
What does the final scene hint at?
The final scene suggests that Philip and his crew didn’t survive the bomb blast on the bridge. The tank caught on fire, the bridge collapsed, and Philip remembered seeing the photograph of his wife and son burn away. The journey was meant for Philip to reflect on his past actions and realize the weight of the decisions he’d taken. Perhaps, just like Paul, Philip’s soul will also remain trapped in the rotten, hellish world, or maybe his soul will be freed if he repents his past decisions. Maybe Keilig’s soul was released before the others because he had realized the futility of war. It is safe to assume that Christian, Michel, and Helmut also passed away in the blast. They too had to pay the price of carrying out orders blindly, maybe not as severely as Philip or Paul.
