Nobody Runs Forever (1968)

In honor of the anniversary of Franchot's birth on February 27th, I'm posting daily this week instead of my usual twice-a-week posts. Today, I want to highlight Franchot's final film, Nobody Runs Forever.

Nobody Runs Forever (also known as The High Commissioner) is a late Sixties political thriller starring Christopher Plummer and Rod Taylor (an example of perfect casting, in my opinion).  Rod Taylor is Scobie Malone, a police sergeant asked to take into custody the High Commissioner of Australia, James Quentin (Christopher Plummer), who is being investigated for the murder of his first wife. Quentin requests that Malone keep the matter private and give him until after an important peace summit. Malone agrees to give the commissioner a few days, but keeps a close eye on him. During that time, Malone grows close to Quentin as he protects him against multiple assassination attempts, uncovers secrets from Quentin's current wife, and identifies a threatening spy ring. Franchot is American Ambassador Townsend, an ailing political mentor of Quentin's.

Franchot's role is very brief (under a minute). For that reason, I chose to share his actual scene instead of my usual screen caps. Knowing it is his last scene in a major motion picture and that Franchot himself was battling lung cancer as he played this gravely ill character in a hospital makes this clip bittersweet for me. (If the embedded clip doesn't play here, use the direct Youtube link.)




Although he plays this scene from a hospital bed, Franchot performs with the fortitude that I so enjoy in the charactors of his final decade. He's no feeble old man in that room. He's alive and biting and wise and in control.

Nobody Runs Forever is a stylish spy film, full of political intrigue, great dialogue, and gorgeous mod fashion on both the men and the women. Christopher Plummer and Rod Taylor, two of my favorite actors of that decade, are both fantastic in their roles and Franchot ends his career on a high note in a sophisticated tale of espionage.

Under the title The High Commissioner, this film is available on DVD.

The Man on the Eiffel Tower (1949)

The Man on the Eiffel Tower stands out among Franchot's filmography for many reasons. First, it is a film that Franchot cited as one of his favorites. Second, it is the only film of his in color. Third, it features his second wife and mother of his children, Jean Wallace (yet they were either separated or divorced at the time of filming). Fourth, it was filmed with his pals Burgess Meredith and Charles Laughton. And fifth, it gave Franchot the opportunity to play a disheveled, quietly plotting killer.

Jean Wallace

Truthfully, I did not appreciate this movie the first time I watched it. I had come off a string of Franchot's 40s light romantic comedies and the plot of Eiffel Tower was a bit more complicated to follow. Also, I first watched a spotty quality copy with bad audio on Youtube, so I struggled to make out all the dialogue and was distracted by the rough cut. Later, I found a better version on Moving Image Archive and watched the film over in its entirety. (Just a note, because this film now falls under public domain, there really is no pristine copy. I've included links to the ones available online at the end of this post). On my second viewing, I enjoyed the The Man on the Eiffel Tower for the unique thriller that it is. My advice to you is don't write it off just because it hasn't been restored and it's not your typical glossy Hollywood mystery. The film has a clever plot, great cast, and amazing color views of Paris in the late 1940s.

In the movie, Bill Kirby (Robert Hutton) and his girlfriend Edna (played by Jean Wallace) confess to Bill's wife that they have been having an affair. In a cafe, Bill talks about his wealthy aunt and how her death could benefit his and Edna's future.

Johann Radek (Franchot Tone) is a sly, kooky character dining across the cafe. Radek passes a note to Mr. Kirby, offering to murder the wealthy aunt.

Meanwhile, the film's director Burgess Meredith stars as Joseph Heurtin, a quiet, hard-working man whose wife does nothing but belittle him. Heurtin decides to break in to and steal from Kirby's aunt's house, and unwittingly walks into a murder scene. When Heurtin loses his thick glasses (very similar to Meredith's Twilight Zone "Time Enough at Last" spectacles), the murderer Radek helps him home.

Because his glasses are left at the scene, Heurtin is first implicated in the murder. Heurtin helps the police identify Radek, but Radek is so sneaky and clever that he is able to taunt the police. Charles Laughton is brilliant as the lead inspector working to bait and catch Radek.
             

Franchot was 44 years old when The Man on the Eiffel Tower was filmed and the film, in my eyes, is his transition from romantic lead to interesting character actor. Although Franchot had played a killer once before in 1944's Phantom Lady, Eiffel Tower is where we first see Franchot's face (a bit more lined with wrinkles and wisdom) taking on the characteristics that he would display in his television work. His hair and clothes are somewhat disheveled and his eyes are full of mischief.

One of my favorite scenes is the exciting Eiffel Tower climb at the end of the film. Radek attempts to resist arrest by climbing the Tower, but Heurtin and the Inspector are close behind. The cityscape is visually stunning and the scene itself will have you on the edge of your seat!

You can watch The Man on the Eiffel Tower on Youtube or at the Moving Image Archive. There is also a DVD available on Amazon.

Phantom Lady (1944)

In 1944, Franchot took a sinister turn, costarring with Ella Raines and Alan Curtis in the film noir, Phantom Lady.

In Phantom Lady, Scott Henderson (played by Alan Curtis) goes out for a night on the town with a mysterious woman after his wife tells him she doesn't love him anymore. Scott and the unnamed lady have drinks at a bar, go out to a show where the songstress on stage wears the same elegant hat as Scott's guest, and then part ways outside of the bar. When Scott returns to his apartment, he finds detectives in the living room and his wife strangled to death in the bedroom. Because Scott's necktie is identified as the murder weapon, cops immediately zero on him as the main suspect. Scott must track down the mysterious lady who is his alibi, yet no one is cooperating. It is evident that witnesses who saw the two together at the bar and show have been bribed to keep their mouths shut. The only person who believes that Scott Henderson is innocent is his secretary Carol Richman, a woman clearly infatuated with her boss. When a jury convicts Scott of murder, Carol sets out to find the unknown woman and clear his name. Scott's best friend, Jack Marlow, arrives to help Carol. Franchot Tone plays Jack Marlow and doesn't enter the film until about 45 minutes in. Spoilers are coming after this set of screen captures, so if you don't want to know too much, beware!

Spoiler begins now. Before I saw this movie, I was really frustrated, because in all descriptions of the film it was made clear that Franchot portrayed the murderer. Why would they tell me that before I watched? I felt like the film's twist was probably ruined, so I went into watching it a bit deflated. Having seen it, I realize why viewers give it away so easily. The film gives Franchot away as the murderer in his very first scene! Franchot's Jack Marlow immediately strangles a character. I liked Franchot's portrayal. Wringing and knotting his hands and suffering from debilitating headaches, Franchot's Jack Marlow is obviously a conflicted psychopath. It reminds me a bit of Robert Walker's Bruno Antony, although Phantom Lady is not nearly as masterful as Strangers on a Train. I didn't like that the film gave away his identity so quickly in the film. I think the film would have been more suspenseful and exciting if the viewer was not made aware of the murderer's identity until the plot had progressed. It would have been more fun to debate Jack Marlow's guilt or innocence and then it be revealed.

Franchot is, however, ultra creepy in his scenes and it's unnerving to see Carol (Ella Raines) so implicitly trusting the very murderer she's hunting. I enjoyed this film noir, but feel that the plot and build-up was a bit thin. There's no explanation or back story as to why and how Jack Marlow became a murderer. All we know is that Scott Henderson's wife laughed at him and he didn't like it. Phantom Lady is a fun, but flawed film noir. It made me realize how wonderful it would have been if Franchot had been asked to be a leading man or criminal in an Alfred Hitchcock film. He would have been so convincing as a deceiving murderer hiding in plain sight in a tuxedo with all his charm. What a lost gem to Franchot enthusiasts that a Hitchcock film was never made. (Note: If you haven't seen Franchot Tone's roles in episodes of the Alfred Hitchcock Presents and Alfred Hitchcock Hour television shows, you must!)

If you enjoy 1940s film noirs, you'll want to check out Phantom Lady. It is available on DVD on Amazon and TCMShop.