After the first 20 minutes of this film I was wondering why TCM only rated it 2 1/2 stars; after seeing the whole thing I want to know how it got more than 1 1/2. The early part of the film is as-advertised, the story of a Captain and crew trying to get a well-worn destroyer ready to serve in WWII. About 40 minutes into the film the crew picks up a drifting lifeboat, which turns out to contain 2 sailors, 2 pregnant woman, and 20 infants. The story degenerates rapidly into 1940s claptrap, with overlarge doses of idiotic humor, sentiment, and just plain wrong use of Naval terminology and procedures. The most prominent example: when a raft tied to the deck goes adrift in a storm, the Executive Officer -- second in command of the ship -- and the senior Chief are assigned to tie it down. That task would go to the LEAST senior people on board, not the most senior. The last chapter of the story, wherein an ancient tin can out-maneuvers and destroys a Japanese battleship, is unbelievable, but at least contains interesting action. I'm afraid that Stand By For Action was a real waste of a very talented cast.
Review of Stand by for Action
