New posts

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mel O&#039;Drama" data-source="post: 275171" data-attributes="member: 23">Suitable For Framing <img src="https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BYTdlMjYxMTEtMTRhNi00OTc3LWJkMGYtMDdhNWIxYWI0ZDIwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNDM1MzYzMzc@._V1_.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 549px" /><img src="https://miro.medium.com/max/960/0*D6UwfLVtuDwQWoR4" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 547px" /> Well, this is the quickest murder yet, I think. It happened just one minute in, with the victim having no real dialogue. This allowed plenty of time for the murder plot. When Dale Kingston covered his victim with the electric blanket, I knew we’d be in for a nice bit of business with concealing the actual time of the murder. This gave an unsinkable alibi, when his accomplice made sure a security patrol guard heard her fire a gun at a much later hour, while Kingston was at a public event. The murderer’s female lover accomplice arriving after the murder and staying to make sure the plan is executed had echoes of Prescription: Murder. Even the scene where Tracy came in and had a bit of a turn on seeing the body felt very similarly staged to the earlier episode. The pair’s story was also given a Murder By The Book twist when the woman who knew too much was then dispensed with, making this the second episode with a double murder.It’s interesting to note that, like Lilly La Sanka before her, Tracy’s murder was very low key. Once again, we simply saw her shocked face as the killer approached her with an object (a rock this time round). Considering how elaborate some of the opening murder scenes have been it’s almost surprising, until I consider that to have a drawn out second murder and cover up would shift the focus away from the main murder. These second murders are simply plot points or detours (albeit important ones) rather than being the story. The interest comes from seeing Columbo take the threads of a seemingly unrelated murder with a different M.O. and use it to strengthen his pursuit. Tracy, by the way, is played by Rosanna Huffman, AKA Mrs Richard Levinson. Which may or may not explain her appearing a couple of times in Columbo, as well as numerous times in Murder, She Wrote. Although to be fair she was an established stage actress before the marriage, and is perfectly watchable here. Her pudding bowl hairdo and penchant for necklaces over polo necks gave her a bit of a pre-Sabrina Duncan vibe which is no bad thing. Like most of the murderers so far, Ross Martin isn’t an actor I associate with any particular role. I’m not even sure I’ve seen him in anything other than this. I think this helps. His friendly round face and cheeky impish smile make him seem perhaps the most unlikely murderer to date. He’s got the kind of looks that work well in comedy roles because there’s something innately likeable about him. I’d almost expect him to be the sidekick rather than the mastermind. All of which works to make him seem more difficult to catch. He’s also perhaps the person who is least tolerant of Columbo of all the killers so far. The weary sighs and exasperated eyeballs come quite early on in the relationship, and it’s clear he has a low Columbo threshold. Perhaps it’s because he’s used to getting away with so much, or perhaps it’s simply a choice Ross makes in his delivery. Either way, Dale losing his cool felt very much like a journey and made the inevitable outburst in the final scene feel more organic. There’s a lovely little moment for Ross Martin which nicely highlights both sides of his character’s persona when we watch the end of Kingston’s art show as it appears on television. He delivers his closing words and smiles. The camera stays on him as an announcement is made before the credits roll. His frozen smile is a little awkward and at one point when the voiceover starts his eyes dart sideways briefly for just a fraction of a second, before returning to look into camera. I initially thought this was an awkward moment for the actor and something to do with the production values of the time not allowing for it to be re-shot. But once we got so studio and see Kingston after the cameras are off, he was berating someone for keeping the camera on him and saying he wanted to change the way it’s done. Something I’d thought was a minor slip on the part of the actor was actually contextualised as an awkward moment for the character. It was perfectly played and with such attention to detail. continued...</blockquote>

Verification: 6 + 4 =