Gray Lady Down (1978)

A Navy Captain uses his experimental Snark to reach a nuclear submarine stuck on an ocean ledge.

Director:

David Greene

Writers:

David Lavallee (novel), James Whittaker (screenplay),

Stars:

Charlton Heston, David Carradine, Stacy Keach

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charlton Heston	...	Capt. Paul Blanchard
David Carradine	...	Capt. Gates
Stacy Keach	...	Capt. Bennett
Ned Beatty	...	Mickey
Stephen McHattie	...	Danny Murphy
Ronny Cox	...	Cmdr. David Samuelson
Dorian Harewood	...	Fowler
Rosemary Forsyth	...	Vickie Blanchard
Hilly Hicks	...	Page
Charles Cioffi	...	Admiral Barnes
William Jordan	...	Waters
Jack Rader	...	Harkness
Antony Ponzini	...	Caruso
Michael O'Keefe	...	Harris
Charles Robinson	...	McAllister (as Charlie Robinson)

Storyline

The USS Neptune, a nuclear submarine, is sunk off the coast of Connecticut after a collision with a Norwegian cargo ship. The navy must attempt a potentially dangerous rescue in the hope of saving the lives of the crew.

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Plot Keywords:

nuclear submarine | submarine | rescue | collision | underwater | 

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Taglines:

Trapped underwater... with time running out.

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Genres:

Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Norwegian

Release Date:

April 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sauvez le Neptune

Filming Locations:

San Diego, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Mirisch Corporation, The, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) (uncredited)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Feature film debut of Christopher Reeve.

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Goofs

When resting on the bottom, the crew are seen on the mess decks watching a movie. In real life, the non-essential crew would have been sent to their bunks and the ship would have been placed on reduced electrical load in order to preserve precious battery power. There would not have been any movies or cooked meals.

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Quotes

Capt. Gates: [referring to those aboard the downed submarine] I hope they understood it.
Mickey: If I did - they did!

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: Gamera vs. Guiron (1991)

User Reviews

Good Action Thriller

"Gray Lady Down", which bears very little resemblance to the novel it was based on, is a nice, entertaining action thriller that holds up well today in contrast to today's action films because it's cloaked with a realism and plausibility that today's filmmakers seem determined to avoid like the plague.