Posted by moonbasegirl on
URL: https://www.shado-forum.com/subsmash-tp1507385p1507389.html

Hi all,


Thanks for the responses :-) I'm sorry for the length of this
reply :-D

Bryan wrote:

>Letting water into the sub would have been worse because of the
>delicate electronics and chance of shock.
 
In all the "submarine" films I've seen they all get flooded to some
extent and nobody (seems to) get electrocuted. There wouldn't have
been that much water from the hatch either; even if it were emptied
several times. Surely no electronics are more valuable than a human
life?

>It would also have made the sub more unstable, also water displaces
>air so the air would have run out faster.

Wouldn't they have lost air anyway, each time the escape hatch was re-
used? The only difference would've been in its quality, and if they
all get to leave within an hour or so, it wouldn't matter……?


Pat wrote:

>One possibility, maybe the escape hatch as a mechanism that prevents
>its inner door from opening, unless it's completely empty?

Don't all doors on a sub have a manual override, in case the power
fails?


Mark wrote:

>I think it's quite true that more than one person could have used
>the escape hatch, but I agree with Brian on this and I think most of
>the audience would assume that there is only room for one person.

Until they see "Reflections in the water" :-D


Pat wrote:

>1. I've always asked myself just that, why they didn't just open the
>hatch's inner door, and let the water out in the sub (and, just like
>for the emergency exit tunnel... that escape hatch looked big enough
>for two people to use it at the same time).

It occurred to me that the crash dive flood tube would have been
flooded anyway, since they did crash dive at the beginning of the
episode and Straker points out it can only be used once because it
can't be emptied unless Skydiver surfaces, which hasn't happened :-O


>Further, along those lines, why not just flood the sub and they
>could then have all escaped via the escape hatch or the coning
tower ?

If this really is an option, then the episode is over in about ten
minutes! :-D  

All this friendly nitpicking aside, the episode still works from the
viewpoint of looking at the character's reactions to the situation
they find themselves in, each one from their individual perspective
and experiences, which is obviously what it's all about. Ed B. says
it was written because of his own and Dolores' claustrophobia which I
can only think means the scriptwriter/ producer/ director decided
there would be more of an "edge" to their respective acting in it.  
Seems a bit cruel, especially for Dolores, which Ed hints at – "she
had to crawl through that bloody tube" - guess he wasn't all that
approving.


Mark wrote:

>I think that given the psychological strain, the possibility of
>impending death, physical weakness and lack of oxygen it is arguable
>and reasonable to assume from the director's point of view that an
>hallucination or some other form of conscious breakdown is entirely
>possible.

It's in the script directions:-  

118 INT. SKYDIVER - CONTROL (STUDIO)

START ON EXTREME LONG SHOT OF STRAKER.

HE HAS HIS EYES CLOSED, NEAR TO DEATH, SURRENDERED TO THE
INEVITABLE. HE SITS AS BEFORE, BACK AGAINST WALL OF SUB., SWEAT
ON HIS FACE AND UNIFORM.

WE TRACK IN ON HIS FACE AND WATCH HIM STRUGGLING FOR AIR. AS
HE SITS HIS LIFE FLAHSES THROUGH HIS MIND LIKE SOMETIMES HAPPENS
TO A DROWNING MAN.

I did some research on this. It seems the regions of the brain
associated with memory are particularly susceptible to lack of oxygen
that can cause a "seizure" – quote;

"Electrical stimulation of the lobes produces hallucinations,
distorted perceptions, and feelings of detachment, fear, sadness and
loneliness. Past experiences - sights, sounds, thoughts - are
recalled in great detail; yet the patient is still conscious of the
present. The recall stops when the electric current ceases. The
imagery content depends on the fears and hopes of the patient <snip>
replays a single audio and visual memory in real time. "


I think they got this pretty accurate! A very disturbing scene to
watch, IMO.  

Bryan wrote:

>I used to wrestle and a friend said he could put me in a sleeper
>hold . He made me pass out but I don't remember hallucinating.

Sounds like your friend cut off the brain's blood supply, in which
case you'd have lost consciousness pretty rapidly :-)

>People always want the Commanding Officer to have a love interest
>but it usually makes for a lower fan base

Why? Because he/she is "unavailable" – even in fantasyland? ;-)

On another group, it was mentioned that Jo Fraser was meant to be a
semi-regular character but Jane Merrow didn't hit it off with
Sylvia. Personally, I'd have liked to see Straker unwind a little;
goodness knows he needed it :-D


And finally………………

Mark wrote:

>Actually I think the ending is very good. A similar ending was used
>by Hitchcock in North by Northwest, so what is good enough for the
>master. It expresses the emotional relief in one straightforward
>cut. That is what I think was intended.

I see your point. Having watched "Subsmash" three times in the past
24 hours , it gets better each time. That's why I love UFO :-)

Sarah