Glenn Ford is basically playing a James Garner type slick but good hearted character in Lieutenant Max Siegel a Navy Rublic Relations Officer who knows how to get the best of higher ups good Lieutenant Comnander Nash ( Fred Clark) and bad alike Newspaper man Gordon Ripwell ( ( Keenan Wynn). However he meets his match in local girl Melora Alba ( Gia Scala), who he romances, but because she and her father are very conservative, everything must be on her terms. He finally gets her to agree because he gets the Encyclopedia Britannia to help her teach her kids ( she is a school teacher). Another relationship involves Adam Vickers ( Earl Holliman) an enlisted man and Lieutenant Alice Tomlen ( Anne Francis). Of course a relationship between enlisted people and officers are a no no in the military: Naturally, in both cases it is boy meets girl, boy loses girl and boy gets girl back. Spoilers ahead: Believe it or not it is Max who has the tougher job to get the girl back. Why? Nash at the end of the war ( and film) let Alice and Adam be together. Meanwhile, Melora does not want to abandon kids to move to the US with Max. But Max loves her so much, he makes a sacrifice and decides to remain with her and talks about "doing our part with Little Alba's on the island" which her father explained to her is a marriage proposal. When she asks her father's permission, he said "I have not lost a daughter I gained a chess partner" ( Max was a champion chess player at Harvard and overcame her father's objection to Melora dating him because of Max's appreciation of Mr. Alba's chess set and playing him a game);". Again it is a good service comedy 8/10 stars.
Review of Don't Go Near the Water
