Eloping proves hard for an upper class girl and a mechanic as the girl's bitter mother starts a police chase by claiming that they stole money in this little seen drama from 'Too Many Crooks' and 'Laughter in Paradise' director Mario Zampi. Vastly different to the comedies that Zampi is best known for, 'Now and Forever' has several sobering moments as we are shown the circumstances leading to the girl, played by Janette Scott, feeling a need to run away. While her character is a little too one dimensional with her complete disregard for Scott's feelings, Pamela Brown is well cast as her cruel mother who does not see the importance in attending her daughter's recitals or telling her that her estranged father was unwell until after his death. Other familiar British faces make notable appearances; Ronald Squire adds ample comic relief as a nosey waiter, while Bryan Forbes has a fun turn as a drunk hitting on Scott. An uncredited Hattie Jacques has the best bit part though, scolding a policeman. Scott and lead actor Vernon Gray are unfortunately never quite as interesting as the supporting characters, and even at only 90 minutes long, the plot feels stretched thin by its conclusion. The 'Thriller' classification on IMDb is slightly inaccurate too as there are a lot of lulls while the pair are on the run. The film does undeniably succeed though in telling a familiar story in a sweet manner and curiously, there is a bell tower scene that almost looks like the blueprint for the iconic scenes in 'Vertigo' - still only a twinkle in Hitchcock's eye back when this film was released.
Review of Now and Forever
