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This sequence from Death Lends a Hand. The perfect blend of music and filming. High quality stuff and editing you don't see on TV usually.
I really need to get myself a Columbo poster print.
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That Death Lends a Hand sequence is really fantastic. I remember watching the episode on TV as a kid, and I was completely amazed by the split screen editing seen through the glasses of Carl Brimmer (Robert Culp). I still am!
I don't know how many of them were released in cinemas, but Ransom for a Dead Man was one of them (UK in 1973 and Italy in 1978, according to columbophile.com) – and all the episodes that you find Italian poster artwork for, I guess.
Love the posters. That shot of Columbo smoking in Riscatto per un uomo morto is awesome.
I guess it would have been difficult for them to replicate or find new ways of showing stylised moments like these, but it would have been great if they had found a way to do it – even if just for a couple episodes each season.
Those Italian posters are brilliant. On that note, love your new profile pic! :-D
I also love this UK poster for Ransom. Very minimalistic, but very cool (and very 70's!):
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Edit: here's a Hungarian one too!
I agree, @mattjoes. 'Death Lends A Hand' is my personal favourite episode of Columbo. Robert Culp is by far my favourite Columbo guest star killer. There's a teeny little bit of this sort of thing carried over into the Season 2 opener 'Étude in Black' (1972) starring John Cassavetes. In the scene where Cassavetes' Alex Benedict first meets Lt. Columbo at the house where he killed Jenifer Welles he spots the flower that has fallen off his suit under the piano and the camera superimposes the zooming in of the image of the flower onto his sunglasses as he is talking to Columbo. It's a lovely touch and pretty much the last example of that type of thing in Columbo.
However, when Columbo returned on the ABC network from 1989 onwards there were a few attempts to kind of return to this flashy cinematography (for want of a better term) with Columbo dressed as a ringmaster bowing in the killer Alex Brady's (played by Fisher Stevens) vision at the end of Columbo: Murder, Smoke and Shadows (1989). It wasn't really the same of course or as well done and they never did anything like that again in any of the newer episodes to follow, and that was maybe just as well. You can see the scene I'm referring to here:
I thought you might! ;)
Love it. Instantly reminded me of this:
The last line of the tagline is all wrong, though! They could've left it off and it would've worked alright.
Speaking of Columbo posters, I was inspired to make this:
I'd forgotten about that touch with the flower, @Dragonpol. I like it. And Cassavetes is fantastic in that episode. "Goodbye, genius." And the whisper in Blythe Danner's ear. I don't think it's possible to make out what he says to her. All the better. Stimulates one's imagination.
I agree it isn't as well done. There is a certain logic to the idea --after all, there is always a bit of theatricality and spectacle to the resolution of a Columbo episode-- but in this case it's taken a bit too far. It could've used a little restrain-- introducing the "cast" is fine, but I wouldn't have Columbo speaking like an announcer, and I wouldn't show him dressed as a ringmaster, even if it's just a bit of fantasy. You know what? It reminds me of the ending of How to Dial a Murder, when Columbo pulls out pieces of evidence from the pockets of the pool table. There is a stylishness to it, but it's a little frail, because once you start to imagine Columbo placing the objects in the pockets (or preparing that reveal for that Spielberg clone, or whatever), it loses its luster somewhat.
I didn't notice that! I guess they took a few liberties with the tagline to bring more people to the theatre.
I didn't think of the similarity to the Vertigo poster either, but now that you mention it, you see where they might have got a bit of inspiration from. A lot of designers have been inspired by the work of Saul Bass.
Nice one! Much like you were reminded of the Vertigo poster, I was here reminded of this one for The Ipcress File (one of my favourite movies):
That’s a neat little number there by Gil Melle!! My favorite would be his murder scene music (seen through Culp’s glasses) in “Death Lends a Hand”. I gravitate towards the darker and more eerie/sinister music, especially that of Goldenberg. His 3 from season 1 are all excellent and sinister - Murder by the Book, Suitable for Framing, and Lady in Waiting. The last one (my favorite) was Emmy-nominated.
Also check out this unsettling one by Dick DeBenedictis!!! Awesome stuff!!
https://youtu.be/rsFayk7v5kw
Good catch! Glasses can make for some interesting images.
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On the subject of music, here's another one I like. Especially the percussion (sounds like the victim banging on the door of the safe). Great scene as well, with great lighting.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=iRgqqywphzw&t=46m08s
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I was thinking about Dabney Coleman's appearance in Double Shock. Entertaining role. Michael Caine tells a story of when he had a supporting role in a play (or a film), and the director told him he should think of all the wonderful things his character could say, and then choose not to say them. In other words, act like you're important, like you're the star of your own movie, even if you have a small role. Fill your part with life, so to speak. Dabney Coleman takes that approach. He provides information to Columbo but doesn't appear subservient to him. He doesn't make eye contact with him all the time. There are things in his mind. He chews gum. You can imagine this character has a life of his own beyond his brief appearance in the episode.
Bob Dishy as Wilson was another good character. Happy they brought him back and they could've done it again, in my opinion.
Yes and Dabney Coleman (who was a friend of Peter Falk's) returned as the guest star killer in Columbo and the Murder of a Rock Star (1991). It's a brilliant episode but not a great title unfortunately, especially when compared with the pithy and clever titles episode titles of the '70s run. I found Dabney Coleman very entertaining in that episode. In the same way, Ed Begley Jr. (another friend of Falk's) also played a policeman in a '70s episode (in 1978's How to Dial A Murder ). He later played the killer in the atypical episode Columbo: Undercover (1994) which was one of two episodes based on a Ed McBain novel.
I suppose that another example of this type of thing (within the '70s run itself) would be Joyce Van Patten appearing as a nun in Negative Reaction (1974) and going on to play the killer in Old Fashioned Murder (1976). Incidentally, I watched Old Fashioned Murder today again and I think it is my least favourite episode from the 1970s run. It's so badly written (full of plot holes), acted and indeed directed with a number of obvious insert shots. The scene where Janie Brandt and Dr Tim Shaeffer talk as they're leaving his apartment is totally dubbed as in the footage shown they never open their mouths! It's just very odd. It's as close as the 1970s Columbo episodes ever come to being boring too. It just really feels like an episode too many and it pains me to say it of one of the 1970s episodes. That's just my opinion of course!
On Bob Dishy's two appearances as Sergeant Wilson, I agree. I wish we had seen a little more of him. He's the one sergeant that gets closest to playing Columbo's sidekick, like Holmes and Watson. I especially enjoy his second appearance in Now You See Him (1976) where he's much more effective in helping Columbo solve the case than he ever was in his first appearance in The Greenhouse Jungle (1972). He's my favourite sergeant in the series as he's developed more and given more screen time than any other sergeant that appears alongside Columbo. Usually they are just functional characters to provide the necessary plot exposition for Columbo and the viewer. I also like Bruce Kirby's various turns as Sergeant Kramer but he's a more slow-witted sergeant and comic foil!
Can't disagree with anything here! Mellé, Goldenberg and DeBenedictis all made great music for the show, and the more unsettling cues (like the one you posted) were really effective.
Indeed. Reflections in general can be used to good effect, too. As for the poster, I really wonder what the thinking was with that last line.
Never noticed that detail before! Good catch!
Really need to watch Double Shock again. It's been too long since the last time. I'll try and remember to keep an eye out for Dabney Coleman's appearance.
I don't remember Dabney in that episode. Will have to re-watch again.
Yes, that would be my highlight of that episode too. It's a funny and brilliant scene and all the more real looking for being improvised!
All Columbo does through it is say, "Ah...". :))
Ah…yes! :))
Ed Begley Jr. also appeared with Peter Falk in The In-Laws.
Dishy and Falk were friends, it seems.
At least the haircut is pretty funny.
Holmes and Watson, absolutely.
Kramer must be one of the few 70s characters that returned in the 90s, right? Superintendent Durk is mentioned, as well.
I also agree on “Old Fashioned Murder”. Probably my least favorite of the original run (I haven’t seen the newer ones). The whole murder plot seemed extremely shoddy and careless and the episode just felt very bland, by the numbers. Like a filler episode. The frumpy murderess played by Joyce Van Patten was dull and whatever character development they tried to give her just didn’t work for me. Celeste Holm was just completely over the top and really got on my nerves quickly.
On july 14th 1995, in Sarcelles, 42 years old printer Jean-Bernard Wiktorska was found dead on his musculation bench, with a 50 kgs barbell on his throat. The first conclusion was that he had fainted while exercising, and that the weight he was lifting had fallen on his trachea, crushing it. Tragic accident, no need for a further investigation, right ? Except that a woman phoned the police, telling them that the so-called accident was in fact a murder. Further investigations, and an autopsy, showed that the poor man had a sedative in the organisms, and that some of the marks found on hs trachea were not consistent with the theory of the accident. At the ned of the investigation, the police discovered that the printer had been killed by his wife's lover, with her complicity, and that he had disguised his crime using the means shown in "An Exercise in Fatality", where the killer (Robert Conrad) used the same method to disguise his crime.
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbo#Meurtre_inspir%C3%A9_d'un_%C3%A9pisode
I just finished watching "The Most Crucial Game". Such a good episode. I had forgotten some of the smaller touches. Like Columbo asking people about where they got their shoes. Great stuff. His relationship with Dobbs was interesting to see develop. He threatens him without saying a word.
Culp is great as Hanlan. At times you can see the wheels turning and how he's thinking stuff through. Then after the murder is done he breaks into a smile after the coach leaves. You can almost picture him saying "I'm going to get away with this!"
Random thought, any other murder been committed using a block of ice?
Any other creative weapons in the series? The microscope from Lovely but Lethal was also an interesting choice. Though that was more a crime of passion and she just grabbed what was at hand.
What do folks think of Nicol Williamson as the murderer? I feel he doesn’t get talked about much.
In general, there were some great highlights in season 7.
But overall season 7 was an improvement over season 6 which only had 3 episodes and none of them standouts. Though I suppose I do like “Bye Bye Sky High IQ” but mostly for Theodore Bikel’s performance and the genius that his character is and the overly intricate murder plan that he comes up with. But “Old Fashioned Murder” is a snoozer and William Shatner is just a total ham in “Fade in to Murder” (though I thought his plan wasn’t bad).
The ending is pretty funny! I also like the music score with the timpani sounding like a heartbeat. The Columbo Phile book says when asked about it years later, Nicol Williamson couldn't remember making the episode!
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I was thinking yesterday how I would've changed the ending of Columbo Goes to the Guillotine. While Columbo "going to the guillotine" is a trap that Blake could've (should've) been suspicious about, I accept him playing along since it appears like such a clear opportunity to get rid of the Lieutenant. But I don't like Columbo saying he reversed the labels. That's just an insane risk to take on the assumption that Blake was going to try to murder him. I'd much rather have him say he had a special collar made that was safe on both sides. When the blade drops, another officer enters the scene, helps Columbo out of the guillotine (in the episode, he takes it off himself, even though he shouldn't be able to) and verifies that the guillotine was placed the "dangerous" way by Blake. Someone else being there might've also made the very end a little more amusing. The officer could've expressed surprise (or not, whichever is funnier) at Columbo pulling out the pistol and saying he would administer the penalty for murder.