The only American sub movies I've seen are Run Silent, Run Deep, and Crash Dive. Old flics, but classics. I don't recall seeing what you're talking about in either flic. Other than those two movies, everything else has been documentaries. And to be honest, I don't think I've seen it there either. If I had to guess, I would think the wheel controled some sort of sound head that the operator was turning. The headphones I would think would be for listening. Just pure speculation here. Mabey someone knows for sure.
