''Phantom Below'' (also known as ''USS Poseidon: Phantom Below'' and ''Tides of War'') is the first film released by

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

-based studio Pacific Films. Its world premiere was at the

Hawaii International Film Festival The Hawai'i International Film Festival (HIFF) is an annual film festival held in the United States state of Hawaii. HIFF has a focus on Asian-Pacific cinema, education, and the work of new and emerging filmmakers. HIFF’s primary festival is ...

on March 31, 2005. The film is notable in that it has three different editions: one for general audiences, another with eight additional minutes for

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

audiences, and one with a homosexual

theme Theme or themes may refer to: * Theme (arts), the unifying subject or idea of the type of visual work * Theme (Byzantine district), an administrative district in the Byzantine Empire governed by a Strategos * Theme (computing), a custom graphical ...

(''Tides of War'') as an original film production for

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...

-interest television channel

here! Here TV is an American premium television network targeting LGBT audiences. Launched in 2002, Here TV is available nationwide on all major cable systems, fiber optics systems, and Internet TV providers as either a 24/7 premium subscription channe ...

. It was filmed entirely on the Hawaiian island of

Oahu Oahu () ( Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over two-thirds of the population of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The island of O� ...

and employed hundreds of local actors and crew members. It was produced and directed by

Brian Trenchard-Smith Brian Medwin Trenchard-Smith (born 1946) is an English-Australian filmmaker and author, known for his idiosyncratic and satirical low-budget genre films. His filmography covers action, science fiction, martial arts, dystopian fiction, comedy, ...

and stars

Adrian Paul Adrian Paul Hewett (born 29 May 1959) is an English actor best known for the titular role of Duncan MacLeod on the television series '' Highlander: The Series''. In 1997, he founded the Peace Fund charitable organisation. Early life Paul was ...

as Commander Frank Habley and

Mike Doyle Michael, Mick or Mike Doyle may refer to: Politics * Michael Doyle (Irish politician), Irish Farmers' Party politician from Wexford, TD from 1922 to 1927 *Michael Doyle, alleged member of the Molly Maguires *Mike Doyle (American politician) (born ...

as his lover, Lt. Commander Tom Palatonio.

Plot summary

The film takes place primarily in the waters off the coast of

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

with some scenes set in Hawaii. As it opens, an American submarine under the command of Commander Habley is attacked by an enemy submarine that has no

sonar Sonar (sound navigation and ranging or sonic navigation and ranging) is a technique that uses sound propagation (usually underwater, as in submarine navigation) to navigate, measure distances (ranging), communicate with or detect objects on o ...

signature. Although it survives the fight, the American submarine is badly damaged and Tom, Habley's executive officer and lover, is killed. Upon return to base in

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

, Commander Habley is subjected to a

court martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...

. The Navy does not believe his story and it appears his career is over until he is recruited to command a covert

mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

to tap an underwater cable lying between North Korea and mainland China. This is a highly sensitive and dangerous task because tensions are rising between the United States and North Korea, and it appears the two nations are on the brink of

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

. Habley's mission is complicated by the presence of Lieutenant Claire Trifoli, Tom's sister, who blames him for her brother's death.

Production

The movie was partly financed by a Japanese DVD and TV distributor looking for a submarine drama to cash in on the release publicity for an upcoming $12-million Japanese submarine drama. They partnered with the here! Network, a new video on demand channel catering to the gay and lesbian market which needed an original movie to launch the channel. It was decided to make two versions, a non-gay version for Japan and a gay one for other markets. Director Brian Trenchard-Smith:

For me, the gay version is better drama. The hero has a secret. We were at the height of the ‘don’t ask/don’t tell’ debate at that time. Formula is always enlivened by a serious social issue. It intrigued me as a heterosexual to add a genre cocktail to the B-movie shelf of Gay Cinema. Gay movies can be about more than just coming out. They can be as testosterone charged as FAST 5. Why shouldn’t the gay audience have their own action heroes?

The film was shot in Hawaii over 15 days without official army or navy co-operation because the plot had the sub commander in love with his executive officer.

also made '' In Her Line of Fire'', another action film aimed at gay audiences.Andrew L Urban, "TRENCHARD-SMITH, BRIAN – GENRE HOMBRE", ''Urban Cinefile'', 24 May 2007
accessed 4 December 2012

References

External links

* * {{Here Media Inc. 2005 films 2005 television films Gay-related films Submarine films Here TV original programming Films directed by Brian Trenchard-Smith 2000s American films

Plot summary

Production

See also

References

External links