Review: ‘Phantom’ Does Not Do the Submarine Sub-Genre Any Favors

Run Silent, Run Deep had Gable versus Lancaster. The Hunt for Red October had Connery versus Baldwin. Crimson Tide had Hackman versus Washington. There’s a long history of two high-caliber actors going against one another in submarine movies. It usually involves a nuclear missile that may or may not be launched. Phantom, the latest of these, features Ed Harris versus David Duchovny, and while a law of diminishing returns is being felt in the overall trajectory of submarine movies, Phantom doesn’t do the sub-genre any favors, delivering a plodding, often hokey thriller that only thrills on its fairly calm surface. Based on true events during the heart-of-the-Cold-War 1968, Phantom tells the story of a Soviet captain, Demi (Harris), who, after an accident at sea where many of his men were killed, suffers from epileptic fits and moments of hallucinations. Seems the perfect candidate to hand one of three keys used to launch a nuclear missile. But Demi’s mental state is the …