Never Say Die

New Zealanders want to have a bit of a laugh and a bit of bloody excitement.

– Director Geoff Murphy in the press kit for the film

When everyone’s out to get you, and you don’t know why ... Never Say Die!

– Poster advertising for the film

Have you offended the mafia? CIA? Inland revenue?

– Jack (Geoff Murphy) tries to figure out who has it in for Alf

John Clarke's used car salesman is a beauty...

– Listener reviewer Helen Martin, 11 February 1989, page 50

The storyline ... combines slick slapstick, black wit and some genuinely scary moments. And what saves it from falling into the banality of the chase genre is the tongue-in-cheek way in which each climactic moment is deflated by bathos. As much as anything the film revels in its self-mockery, inviting the audience to do the same.

– Listener reviewer Helen Martin, 11 February 1989, page 50