In 1996’s Down Periscope, Kelsey Grammer stars as Lieutenant Commander Tom Dodge, a U.S. Navy submarine commander who is specifically chosen to lead a rag-tag crew in an impossible series of war games against a more decorated and power-hungry leader. Admiral Graham (Bruce Dern), has had it out for Dodge for some time due to his spotty track record on missions, and sticks him with a bunch of Navy rejects, which includes another superiors son who has a raging attitude problem, a college basketball choke artist, a driver with a gambling problem, an electrician who’s had more voltage pumped through him than a transformer, and a cook whose water is not exactly boiling. The fun doesn’t stop there, of course, as Dodge is also paired with an executive officer by the name of Marty Pascal (Rob Schneider), who himself has some quite acute anger management issues. Rounding out the cast of major characters is Lauren Holly as dive officer Emily Lake. She is sprung upon Dodge as a surprise by Graham, who is instituting a trial program that would enable women to work on submarines for the first time. As if that weren’t enough, the ship he is given to command is a recommissioned submarine from World War II that is falling apart at the seams, and is set to compete against a world-class nuclear sub in the games.
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