DVD Review | Down Periscope
Written by: Kage Alan

With his immense popularity on television playing the lovable Frasier Crane and despite his private demons all over the news, someone at one of the studios thought it was high time that Kelsey Grammer be given the lead in a major motion picture.  Could he carry an entire film?  Would he make a fool of himself?  Would he make a fool of the studio?  Fortunately, Grammer turns what was probably an incredibly generic film into an absolute laugh fest and earned my respect as a film actor.

Lt. Cmdr Thomas Dodge (Grammer) has been in the Navy a long time…a very long time.  If he’s not given a command soon, he’ll be destined for a desk job, which means he’s gone.  Admiral Graham (Bruce Dern) and Captain Knox (William Macy) would like nothing more than to see Dodge go away, so it comes as no surprise that the man is given command of a rusty diesel sub with the worst crew in history.  Think “Police Academy” at sea and you’ve got “Down Periscope.” There’s the first woman allowed on a sub, Lt. Emily Lake (Lauren Holly), hyper Exec. Officer Pascal (Rob Schneider), Chief Engineer Howard (Harry Dean Stanton) and Sonar (Harland Williams) just to name a few.

Their mission is simple; one little old sub is going to take on the entire United States Nuclear fleet in a war game.  Dodge must get his ship and crew into shape, somehow outsmart more sophisticated technology as well as the minds of those who want to see him fail and come out on top.  Will it be easy?  No.  Do they have a prayer?  Probably not.  Will it be funny for audiences?  Absolutely…unless you don’t possess a sense of humor.

Despite the childish pranks and antics of the supporting cast, Grammer comes out on top and with a smile that lets us know he aware it’s a movie played for laughs, which is exactly what he effortlessly delivers.  While everybody else overacts, our fearless commander who really has nothing to lose glides along from one scene to the next and makes it all look easy.  Okay, it’s also fun to see William Macy try to take his role seriously, especially considering the man does have a flare for comedy.  Hey, this isn’t a film that was destined for an Oscar, so just take it in stride.  I laughed myself silly.

Fox has released “Down Periscope” in both a Widescreen and Full Screen format.  Considering what Sony has been doing lately with their older titles, I’m glad to see that Fox is at least giving us a choice.  Video quality is quite good (if not a bit fuzzy around the edges) and audio does the trick.  This isn’t a special effects film, so don’t expect anything overly dynamic.  As for extras, we’re given a trailer.  It’s a shame there isn’t more, especially since Grammer just finished filming the final episode of “Frasier.” If the studio had waited just a little bit longer, they might have snagged the man for a commentary.  That would have been fun!

For the price the studio has put on this disc and the fact it’s in Widescreen, it’s difficult to pass this one up.  Now that “Frasier” is over, I hope that we’ll be seeing more of Grammer on the big screen.  “Down Periscope” is proof that he can do comedy, so who knows what else he has in him?  This is a fun little film that doesn’t require anything of its viewers other than their enjoyment.

Film Rating: B
DVD Special Features: N/A