The Ambassador (1984)

Director:

J. Lee Thompson

Writers:

Ronald M. Cohen (writer)
Max Jack (writer)

Release Date:

11 January 1985 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | War

Plot:

An Amerian ambassador to Israel tries to bring peace to the Middle East, but his efforts are hampered when his wife has an affair with a PLO leader.

Plot Keywords:

Israel | Middle East | Secret Agent | Palestine | Student

Cast

Robert Mitchum	...	Peter Hacker
Ellen Burstyn	...	Alex Hacker
Rock Hudson	...	Frank Stevenson
Fabio Testi	...	Mustapha Hashimi
Donald Pleasence	...	Minister Eretz
Chelli Goldenberg	...	Rachel (as Heli Goldenberg)
Michal Bat-Adam	...	Tova
Ori Levy	...	Abe
Uri Gavriel	...	Assad
Zachi Noy	...	Ze'ev
Joseph Shiloach	...	Shimon
Shmulik Kraus	...	Stone
Yossi Virginsky	...	Asher
Yftach Katzur	...	Lenny
Shai Schwartz	...	Gadi

Also Known As:

Peacemaker

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (TVC)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

UK:18 | Finland:K-16 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Norway:16 (1986) | USA:R | West Germany:16 | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Jerusalem, Israel

Company:

Northbrook Films

Trivia:

This was Rock Hudson's final film.

Movie Connections:

Version of 52 Pick-Up (1986)

Exciting little action film that was Hudson's last

A good little action/suspense thriller that was released by the now defunct Cannon group that has the novelty of dealing with the Israeli-Palestanian crisis with real intelligence and being Rock Hudson's last feature film. It stars Robert Mitchum as Peter Hacker, an American ambassador to Israel who tries to bring peace in the Middle East by unorthodox means, but his adulteress wife, played by Ellen Burstyn, threatens to derail his plans when she has an affair with a PLO leader. To make matters worse, someone threatens to expose a film of the affair if a high ransom isn't paid and the ambassador has a hefty price on his head for certain assassins. Rock Hudson plays Frank Stevenson, the ambassador's loyal security officer/friend who tries to unravel the scheme before the film hits the airwaves.

Heading a first rate cast, Robert Mitchum plays the lead role with grace and style as a man who tries to accomplish his goals when everything possible is trying to derail him and Ellen Burstyn plays the wife with right note between guilt and steadfast loyalty for her husband. Rock Hudson, on the other hand, is given little to do. He does what he can with the thankless role as the security officer but basically he's just there to try to talk some sense into the ambassador's head and to carry out orders; it's a little sad ending to a brilliant career. The film itself is well-done and first rate with a higher budget and quality than most Cannon films and the location shoots are first-rate. Check it out if you want a Middle-East political thriller with some action thrown into it for good measure.