Down Periscope (1996)

Lt. Cmdr. Tom Dodge is assigned as Captain to the USS Stingray, an old diesel driven submarine that has seen better days. With a crew that consists only of weird guys (and a gal), he's ... See full summary »

Director:

David S. Ward

Writers:

Hugh Wilson (story), Hugh Wilson (screenplay),

Stars:

Kelsey Grammer, Lauren Holly, Rob Schneider

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kelsey Grammer	...	Lt. Cmdr. Thomas 'Tom' Dodge
Lauren Holly	...	Lt. Emily Lake, Diving Officer
Rob Schneider	...	Executive Officer Martin T. 'Marty' Pascal
Harry Dean Stanton	...	CPO Howard, Chief Engineer
Bruce Dern	...	RAdm. Yancy Graham
William H. Macy	...	Cmdr. Carl Knox (Orlando)
Ken Hudson Campbell	...	Seaman Buckman
Toby Huss	...	Seaman Nitro 'Mike'
Duane Martin	...	Planesman 1st Class Jefferson 'R.J.' Jackson
Jonathan Penner	...	Seaman Stanley 'Spots' Sylvesterson
Bradford Tatum	...	Engineman 1st Class Brad Stepanak (Winslow)
Harland Williams	...	Seaman 2nd Class E.T. 'Sonar' Lovacelli
Rip Torn	...	Vice Adm. Dean Winslow
James Martin Jr.	...	Orlando Radioman
Jordan Marder	...	Orlando Ensign

Storyline

Lt. Cmdr. Tom Dodge is assigned as Captain to the USS Stingray, an old diesel driven submarine that has seen better days. With a crew that consists only of weird guys (and a gal), he's headed against the atomic powered USS Orlando, with the mission to destroy a dummy battleship.

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Plot Keywords:

submarine | navy | war game | torpedo | box office flop | 

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Taglines:

A rusty sub. A rebel commander. A renegade crew. When destiny called, they should have hung up.

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some crude language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 March 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Touche pas à mon periscope

Filming Locations:

Alameda Naval Air Station, Alameda, California, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$25,800,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The USS Pampanito could not move under her own power. The underwater shots were scale models. The surface shots actually were the Pampanito, however she was being towed.

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Goofs

RAdm. Yancy Graham says, "He's gone AWOL with U.S. government property". AWOL, Absent With Out Leave is Army terminology. The Naval term is UA, which is Unauthorized Absence. However the producers felt the audience would recognize the meaning of "AWOL" but not "UA".

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Quotes

[Buckman has just let go a huge fart]
Captain Carl Knox: Hear something?
Orlando Sonarman: Yeah. Almost sounded like... an explosion.

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Crazy Credits

As the credits begins to roll, The Village People and several cast members start singing "In The Navy."

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Connections

Spoofed in Godzilla (1998)

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Soundtracks

"Anchors Aweigh"
Written by Charles A. Zimmerman, A.H. Miles and R. Lovett
Performed by the Men of the Concert Choir
University of Southern California
Courtesy of University of Southern California

User Reviews

Great Movie

I've enjoyed this movie ever since I first saw it in the theatre. Some movies have a cast of characters and a script that come together in perfect synergy, and this is one of them. The characters illustrate some truths about getting the best out of people, working together harmoniously, building a team and achieving goals, without ever preaching morality. The situations are crafted well and are consistent with the movie's opening premise. The tension builds nicely and the humor is clean and consistent throughout. The movie manages to pull me right in to root for the characters, and to laugh pretty well all the way through. This is a feel good movie as good as they come.

What amazes me is that a movie which appears so simple can be so long term entertaining. The music is a perfect copy of music in the typical serious post war navy movies, which helps to create the humor and point out that greatness is in the eye of the beholder. The scenes in the credits are a great music video of "In the Navy", which deserve their own full screen special feature. The scenes and cuts are crafted well, and the casting and acting is right on.

This movie is a classic as great as any ever made, without any pretensions. In fact, the lack of pretension is what makes it so much fun to watch. I love these guys and gal.

The other day I thought of the film, and wondered whether it was available on DVD. Good fortune has come to us, and the DVD came out in May 2004. I headed to the store, and snapped up a copy. Then my wife and I enjoyed another hilarious night in front of the big screen. I've rated this movie as a 10 because it comes together on all levels, far better than many high budget films and Oscar winners. This is entertainment.

Listen up Fox home video: you have a great movie in your vaults, and it's a shame to find a cheap shot DVD with badly degraded off tint colors only 8 years since release. So why not restore the colors and present the film as it was meant to be seen? I'd gladly pay a few bucks more to get the picture right. I'm grateful to have my own copy. Now give us the eye candy that the film deserves, and how about recreating the credit sequence as a full screen music video special feature.