"But you have to remember that Europeans have a lot more history to work with than Americans do" - but that can't possibly be true, since it's the same history wherever we live.

It only becomes true if the definition of history is adjusted, so that only American history counts as history. And while that kind of thing might make some sort of sense for some countries, for a country made up of descendants of immigrants from all over - well, it just seems strange. If anything Americans have more hiostory to work with than people in any individual European country.

I tend to assume all this stuff is something to be with living in such a huge country that it becomes seen as an entire world in itself. My understanding is that that is how the Chinese tend to think about things.

As for films adjusting the facts - in a sense any kind of drama has to adjust the facts, and even needs to if it is to get close to the truth. Characters need to say things that they never actually said in that way, or said at all, because that is the only way we can get inside their heads. Just listen to a tape of some event you are at, even a tea party - what you get normally gives no idea of what was happening, it's just confusion.

But in a film that purports to be telling a true story, the aim should be to present a version of what the people making the film believe to be the truth.

Would it be cynical to predict that sooner or later there will be a remake of Das Boot in which it's an Amerrican sub?