Afouotos Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

SeeQuant Blending excellent reporting and strong storytelling, this is a disturbing film truly stranger than fiction

Stephan Hammond It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

Scotty Burke It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

RanchoTuVu When the first officer of an ocean liner (James Mason) finally gets a chance to captain his own ship it turns out to be the one on which crew members Broderick Crawford and Stuart Whitman are plotting to kill the ship's entire crew and somehow collect a million dollars in insurance. Entirely claustrophobic setting of the ship goes well with the plan to kill everyone. The overall sense of cold-blooded cruelty is a natural fit for Crawford, but Stuart Whitman's character turns out to possess a surprising degree of sliminess. How the great James Mason deals with this is but one of the great aspects of this under-appreciated masterpiece. Dorothy Dandridge, the cook's attractive wife, should have never been on the ship in the first place, but her presence is just another bit of the film's overall audacity and quality.

Panamint This film is pure dreck. Obviously made to be beyond the shock (or nausea) level allowed on TV thereby competing to get some viewers into the movie theaters and make the producers a few bucks. There is no story, no plot. Just some senseless slaughter that even one of the characters says is not necessary!Its too bad that tired lines like "these men are on the verge of mass hysteria" are typical. Dorothy Dandridge gives a poor performance, tarnishing her Oscar-nominee status. And this is definitely one of James Mason's all-time worst films. His performance is wooden and the lines he is given are embarrassing. His character is supposed to be courageous but really only calls for an actor (Mason) to feign desperation. No real acting is required of Mason or anyone else in this.Former Oscar winner Broderick Crawford's role is as one-dimensional and predictable as any ever written. His character is a cardboard caricature. No wonder this helped nail the lid on the coffin of his career.A complete waste of your time if you choose to watch. Don't bother.

simmonsjo First time watching and I was captivated throughout. I'm not sure why attention was given to Dorothy Dandridge as hers seemed like a small part. Very brutal but believable plot given that anything could happen on the open sea. I especially liked the scene of the ship intending to ram the lifeboat. It was a great camera angle and one actor uses sailor jargon like, "she's really got a bone in her teeth". I was also amused by the hip lingo used by the actors. Crawford reminds me of a ratpacker no matter what film he is in. I was wondering if anyone could tell me what ship(s) was used in the film for the interior and exterior shots? It looks like a Liberty Ship I took a cruise on, the S.S. Jeremiah O'Brien.

Poseidon-3 Whether it actually is or not, this claustrophobic suspense yarn seems like a 'B' picture. Though Mason and Dandridge were in the midst of their best years career-wise, this seems like a step down...like something that one would do if there was no more quality work. The story (supposedly based on fact) concerns a ship Captain's (Mason) attempt to thwart a murder for riches scheme envisioned by Crawford and Whitman. The pair of thugs plan to make the crew seem like they're planning a mutiny so that it will be entered into the Captain's log. Then they will kill the crew, pretend to be the only survivors and bring the ship in for salvage worth over a million dollars. Crawford lumbers through the film with his usual style, but does present a threatening persona. Whitman struts around and poses in the world's clingiest jeans, his hair all '50's Bryll cream. It's hard to believe he was just three years away from a Best Actor nomination. Mason is believable as a Captain, but not as an action hero as he is later forced to become. A dash of feminine sex appeal is supplied by Dandridge who plays the wife of the ship's cook. She feels the need to serve the men on the boat while wearing snug dresses with deep necklines, which causes it's share of problems. Eventually, the opposing sides must play a cat and mouse game while running all around the ship. (And since it is a black and white film, the decks run grey!) The film has going for it some surprisingly stark moments of violence (for that time) and some creative camera-work in the confined bowels of the ship. Drawbacks include the bland settings, the fact that there's too much talk about what's happening in the story rather than letting the audience see it (crewmen keep coming back to the saloon to tell what's happening outside!) and a feverish, unintentionally hilarious performance by Cross as a third party in the scheme. Also, Bard, as Mason's wife, gives a bizarre performance, nervously looking at the floor through most of her brief scenes and swallowed up in an ugly coat. Still, it's a fairly tight little film with some degree of interest. TV fans may recognize old salt Patterson from "Green Acres".