The High Commissioner

Not terrible but not good either. "Nobody Runs Forever" is a 1968 British thriller involving international politics and murder in a reasonably tortuous plot. It's also a Betty Box/Ralph Thomas picture which means it was never likely to set the world on fire; workmanlike is about the best you can say for it. What distinguishes it is the cast. The usually reliable Rod Taylor is the Australian policeman sent to London to arrest Christopher Plummer's Australian High Commissioner for the murder of his first wife and finding, when he gets there, that Plummer isn't the villian he's been painted. Lilli Palmer is Plummer's current wife. (she's the best thing in the picture), Camilla Sparv is his secretary and Daliah Lavi, a very fatale femme. Franchot Tone even pops in for a cameo appearance as does an uncredited Leo McKern. It's not particularly exciting and it is rather far-fetched and it will never rank in any list of decent conspiracy thrillers but at least it passes an entertaining couple of hours.

This 1968 production has a great blend of cast and the outline of the film is well described in the comments of bampton. where Scobie Malone, an Australian outback detective Sargent is summoned by the Premier of New South Wales to go to London and safely escort an Australian diplomat(Christopher Plummer) back to Australia. Scobie(played by Rod Taylor) is annoyed to go to Sydney (the capital city of the state of New South Wales) after having just returned from there. This scene of when he is summoned also shows a unique and beautiful background of outback Australia at that time.

Rod Taylor plays the part of a rugged bushman exceptionally well, as he is outspoken, grumpy and speaks his mind without too much concern as to who may be present. I even like his Australian accent as it stands out at the London banquet amongst the upper class English gentlemen in their tuxedo, who pay more attention to their etiquette as they are tensely worried by his unpredictable outbursts of free speech. In contrast to his role in Time Machine" where he is much more docile and well spoken. This is what I believe makes a good actor, especially with the extreme diverse roles that they can perform and I believe that Rod Taylor performs brilliantly.

There is also a scenery of a tennis match at Wimbledon between an Australian and an Englishman where Scobie boasts to them that Australia is in front. Yet, Scobie also shows his Australian charm as he is a real softy at heart and his bark is louder than his bite, but is also an outstanding policeman where he surprises all those that underestimate his police skills purely by judging a book by it's cover.

Without giving too much away, I do recommend this movie and should be judged fairly as it is a late 1960's production and should not be compared to modern cinema. I do enjoy repeats of it as it seems to be more inspiring . A brilliant blend of cast which also include Leo McKern, Lilli Palmer and Charles Bud Tingwell. Worth watching!!!!

This gets off to a cracking start with Rod Taylor's no-nonsense outback cop, Scobie Malone, engaged by the New South Wales premier - played by an oddly uncredited Leo McKern - to arrest Australia's High Commissioner in London, a former political rival, accused of murdering a former wife.

The stage is set for a taut political thriller, but once Malone reaches London the tension gradually dissipates as he finds himself acting as Commissioner Christopher Plummer's bodyguard in a meandering cold war plot involving a peace conference and assassination attempts. The sort of thing you could see regularly in second-rate episodes of the likes of The Saint or Jason King back in the day. Hard to figure how the Calvin Lockhart character fitted in, nor Franchot Tone in his final film, in a brief cameo as an ambassador confined to bed. Among the baddies are the familiar faces of Burt Kwouk and Derren Nesbitt, the latter with hardly a word of dialogue.

True, Rod Taylor is very good in the lead, and it was a shame he was never given another chance to reprise the character. Plummer and Lilli Palmer are convincing under the circumstances, Camilla Sparv and Daliah Lavi provide plenty of glamour and there's a fitting score from Georges Delerue, but all these hardly compensate for what seems a missed opportunity.

Taylor and Plummer work well together in a very underrated, now forgotten thriller. They play off each other very well. Taylor plays an Australian cop and of course excels. He's a human wrecking ball surrounded by dumb Bobbies and even dumber British secret agents. There's no actor today like Taylor although Hugh Jackman might come close.

Amiable Aussie icon Rod Taylor ("The Time Machine") plays Scobie Malone, a police detective from the Outback who is sent on special assignment. He's to retrieve high-ranking Australian politician Sir James Quentin (Christopher Plummer, "All the Money in the World"), who's wanted for a 15-year-old killing, and must go to London to do it. However, after some botched attempts on Quentins' life, Malone is obliged to act as a bodyguard for the man while trying to figure out who wants him dead.

I really don't think this is as bad as all that. Based on a novel by Jon Cleary, it tells a decent, reasonably entertaining story. It's mostly plot-driven, with some action scenes here and there, and the plot really doesn't stand up to scrutiny, but it's all perfectly watchable, if not distinguished.

It's the wonderful international cast that makes the difference. Taylor is in fine form, and Plummer is smooth as always - and importantly, he also makes his character likeable enough instead of making him some pompous jerk. The women are truly gorgeous: Daliah Lavi ("The Whip and the Body"), Camilla Sparv ("Downhill Racer"), and the classy Lilli Palmer ("The Boys from Brazil"). Also putting in appearances are Clive Revill ("Avanti!"), who's amusing as a stuffy butler, Calvin Lockhart ("The Beast Must Die"), Derren Nesbitt ("Where Eagles Dare"), Edric Connor ("Moby Dick" '56), Burt Kwouk (the "Pink Panther" series), Russell Napier ("A Night to Remember"), Charles 'Bud' Tingwell ("Dracula, Prince of Darkness"), and, in his last film appearance, Franchot Tone ("Advise & Consent").

Bolstered by a great score by Georges Delerue, "Nobody Runs Forever", a.k.a. "The High Commissioner" entertains adequately in the end, coming across as a decent but unremarkable entry in the espionage / international intrigue genre.

Six out of 10.