The film lists Ted Richmond as producer, but a silent partner in the venture was Tyrone Power. His performance as the ship's officer with a double Job like burden is excellent. He was well past his youthful days as a romantic idol and it's sad to think he would be dead next year because any number of parts would have opened up for him. This one in fact should have netted him an Oscar nomination. Best performance in the film is that of Moira Lister who's a society woman and a swimmer. She's just full of cutting remarks about the 'brave captain'. Well, Power has inherited a mess. The ship had hit a derelict mine that exploded under the keel, killing almost all the other passengers. Some of the survivors are injured or otherwise weakened by age or illness. The engineer, Lloyd Nolan, is mortally wounded. With his last breath he urges Power to get rid of the detritus and keep only the strong aboard, who might have a chance if they row for Africa. Noland dives overboard and drowns himself. Power broods and decides in the end that Nolan was right. There are too many passengers and he decides to abandon the weak. The small group spots a lifeboat in the distance. Alec notes that it's the Captain's shore boat. At only 18 feet long it obviously already has too many people in it. They're better off where they are. Someone is spotted swimming towards them. Alec dives in to rescue them and it turns out to be Julie (Zetterling), the ship's nurse and Alec's girlfriend. Ecstatic over finding each other the reunion is cut short by a shark circling them. Alec and Julie have drifted closer to the heavily populated Captain's boat where Mac (Boyd) calls to them and fires a gun at the shark. A Classic Movie Blog says: "I think this is a good format for performers with short lives and brief careers ... I went into it with only mild curiosity about Twelvetrees and now I find my self pining for copies of unavailable, but intriguing films." Full review.

It was originally titled Seven Waves Away but the alternative US titles are Abandon Ship! and Seven Days From Now. In passing—Moira Lister's sardonic young woman appears to admire Power's strength of character simply for his strength and not for whether he's made the morally right decision. Suggesting that strength of character is in some sense more basic than right and wrong points toward the amoralism of the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche.) Not flawless and perhaps a bit dated, but still a rather powerful, disturbing film. If this sort of story appeals, I recommend it very highly.Maracaibo ** (1958, Cornel Wilde, Jean Wallace, Abbe Lane, Francis Lederer, Michael Landon, Joe E Ross) – Classic Movie Review 12,726 26 Nov 2023

criteria for people who were to die? His motives? The effect of these decisions on himself, on the various people? How well did the film offer pros and cons for his decision? Did some people have to die? Director Richard Sale’s 1957 British adventure film Seven Waves Away [Abandon Ship!] is a well-made, powerful and involving drama with solid acting by Tyrone Power, Mai Zetterling, Lloyd Nolan, Stephen Boyd and many others, carefully controlled direction, and a crafted script with a bravely downbeat tone and many gripping scenes. In the actual sinking, two crew members made the decisions about who to sacrifice: the First Mate, Francis Rhodes and a crewman named Alexander William Holmes. Again for clarity, the film sensibly distills these into one character called Alexander Holmes (Tyrone Power) and makes him the senior officer. It also creates a plausible, (but not perfect), scenario for how one person in a crowded lifeboat could alone compel others to throw some overboard. Not that easy a plot device to construct without arming him with a machine gun - the script only allows its 'Alexander Holmes' a pistol which is initially unloaded and a flare gun. The cast performed admirably under very trying circumstances (imagine being wet all day, every day); in fact, the miseries of the filming process influenced the acting in a quasi-documentary manner that benefits the picture enormously. Even seen on television, Seven Waves Away is an intensely experiential movie; I can only imagine what it felt like on the large screen. Audience response to disasters and accidents? Identifying with the situation, with the survivors, particular types in the lifeboat?

Sources:

The story is simply this: a lifeboat is too overcrowded to survive a coming storm and the senior officer must decide unilaterally who to jettison overboard so the rest can have a chance to live. A simple problem with a simple solution - sort of. The dilemma is terrible and turns the ordeal into a nightmare, especially when the storm sets in. This is not a pleasant film but rather extremely unpleasant, but it is a terrific drama which really puts your conscience to the test. Who could possibly make right decisions in such a situation? As it is, Tyrone Power lives up the responsibility while all the others wash their hands. Which is better?

It’s based on a true story. At the end, we’re told that the rescued captain saved a few lives. But he was charged with murder and convicted. Because of the extenuating circumstances, he was just sentenced to six months in prison. As Tyrone Power describes it, the mine didn't just strike the ship in one spot. It went under the ship and bounced along the bottom and when it exploded, it cut the ship right in half. It was down faster than the Lusitania when it was torpedoed. Less than 10 minutes, no lifeboats launched, no distress signal sent. Survivors of a sunken liner, the Crescent Star, huddle together on a lifeboat and executive officer Alec Holmes (Tyrone Power) has to face a number of uncomfortable choices. It centres on his agonising decision on his overcrowded lifeboat.Where Are You Going, Habibi? [Wo willst du hin, Habibi?] *** (2015, Cem Alkan, Martin Walde, Tuncay Gary) – Classic Movie Review 12,725 22 Nov 2023 The presentation of the people? The situation of the dog and the indication of what was to follow? Those who stayed? Those who had to go, those who decided to go? The bonds of fear?