This is a well meaning political thriller about both peaceful and radical PLO fighters dealing with the fight against the Jews to reclaim their land with the aide of American ambassador Robert Mitchum, a quiet and wise man desperately trying to bring these two factions together to start talks. But powers behind the scene definitely don't want that, extremists who will use whatever means to keep the war going. Why you ask? No real reason other than the desire for control through whatever means necessary.

Then there's Mitchum's beautiful wife, Ellen Burstyn, having an affair with Fabio Testi, a handsome and romantic shopkeeper who is a high level official in the PLO. Burstyn has no idea of that, and when a film revealing their affair is shown to Mitchum, he must come to terms with his neglect and ultimately confront Testi whom he needs to speak to the students on both sides to open the door to peace. "Maybe the next generation will make it better", Testi says, a noble gesture of shaking hands with the enemy that unfortunately goes unheeded by terrorists for whom peace is a dirty word.

Costarring in this film (his last) is the still handsome Rock Hudson, then in the last stages of his life due to HIV, still fighting just like his character seems to be doing here as Mitchum's assistant. But there's a mysterious element about him that really is undetermined, and you really never know what side he is on. The ending gives a sign of hope, touching in the fact that it proves Testi's words to be true.

Donald Pleasance and Heli Goldenberg (as a rather ambitious reporter who must reach into her ethics) provide solid support. Not a great film but a well intended one, nicely directed by J. Lee Thompson and beautifully photographed. A very amusing scene with Burstyn has her entering Testi's store and interfering with a sale in a way that really gives a good intro to her character and provides an ironic laugh. It would be interesting to see if the young students of the different cultures were real students and not actors which would add a sense of authenticity to this.

During the 1980s, Cannon Films made a lot of films...sometimes with big-name actors in them. But they all had one thing in common...they weren't exactly subtle! So, if you want explosions, a little sex and violence, they were the go-to studio of the era. As a result, when I saw that they made "The Ambassador" I wasn't thrilled with the prospect of watching the movie. I only watched it because Robert Mitchum and Rock Hudson (in his final theatrical release) somehow were convinced to star in the film.

The story begins with a meeting between the Ambassor (Mitchum) and a group of Palestinians in the desert. He wants to talk peace...but before the meeting gets going, a helicopter attacks...killing everyone but the Ambassador and his bodyguard (Hudson). Who was behind the attack isn't clear.

Soon, the Ambassador receives a phone call. Some unknown person indicates they have film footage of the Ambassador's wife (Ellen Burstyn) having very intimate relations with another man...a Palestinian with connections to the PLO. And, unless they are paid a million dollars, they say they'll publish the film. The Ambassador tells them to go ahead and publish it...he won't pay. But his bodyguard wants to investigate it himself. What follows is an attempt on the Ambassador's life and a lot of other things...such as a massacre and lots of violence.

On the plus side, the film was actually made in Israel...which isn't totally surprising considering the producers (Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus) were Israelis. Also, for a woman in her 50s, Ms. Burstyn has an amazing figure and her nude scenes must have pleased her! Additionally, Rock Hudson's character was pretty cool...sort of like the Terminator! On the negative side, the film's solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflicts and the students' reactions do seem rather simplistic. Also, while the story has some interesting story elements, like a Golan-Globus product, there also are huge bloodbaths which come off as gratuitous and gory. On balance, the bad slightly outweighs the good and the film, which had some nifty ideas, gets the full Cannon Films treatment.

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.