Jan de Hartog's novel "Stella" becomes interesting, erratic, uneven WWII battle story mixed with romantic melodrama. William Holden, an American sergeant with the Canadian Army, is transferred to England to captain a rescue-tugboat in U-boat-infested Atlantic waters; the job inadvertently comes with a flat and a resident girl (Sophia Loren, an Italian by way of Switzerland!). Carol Reed directs the shipboard battle sequences well, but there's too much intricate detail (bombs going off, waves rocking the ships, crews scrambling the decks) that one loses sight of the main characters. Holden has some wonderful moments early on--fearful of his new position, nervous about his first day on the job--and his gaining respect from his men is one of the highlights of the picture. Loren has much less to work with...and in much less time; every so often she has a frightening premonition, or she's cooking, cleaning, or getting out of the tub. The bit with the apartment key near the end (passing it along before a treacherous assignment) is pure balderdash, and even talented Holden can't make the final scenes work. Very nice cinematography from Oswald Morris, sumptuous scoring by Malcolm Arnold; yet, overall, the picture is a minor one. ** from ****