mickcsavage Reviews

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Pen Pal (1960) Season 6, Episode 6

The Trouble With Quibbles.

[7/10 · 15 May 2023]

By which I mean the objections raised by other reviewers. They may or may not be valid (and Clu. Gulager, an actor I didn't know, certainly overacts pretty drastically), but when I realised that Stanley Adams - playing the cop - was Cyrano Jones, of Star Trek Tribble fame, who shot himself to death because of 'back pain' (as I discovered from Wikipedia) in 1977, I couldn't watch it dispassionately. Poor sod.

PS. The twist at the end was about as subtle as Clu's acting...enjoyed Hitch and his take on baseball by the way! Even though I'm English too, I'm very fond of the game. Fond memories of cold days at Candlestick Park!

Columbo: An Exercise in Fatality (1974) Season 4, Episode 1

For Falk's Sake!

[6/10 · 15 January 2023]

An interesting Colombo for a couple of reasons. Not so much the plot - as others have pointed out, there are obvious plot holes (the shoe-lace stuff in particular feels contrived and unconvincing), but more the dynamic between the Lieutenant and Janus, the murderer. For once Colombo loses his cool and displays a genuine anger towards the protagonist. Most unusual.

But then looking into the background of Robert Conrad, the actor playing Janus (not being American I was unfamiliar with him), I read he was born Conrad Robert Falk in Chicago in the mid thirties. So Falk plays opposite Falk.

Nothing life-shattering about it, I admit. Just thought it was odd. And in the event someone ever reads this- and, let's face it, you are - I thought you might be interested.

Just one more thing...(couldn't resist it!)

The Man Who Never Was (1956)

Aye-aye, Sir!

[7/10 · 2 January 2023]

A (presumably) American reviewer above is puzzled by the 'US style' salutes observed in this film - the answer that while it's true that the British Army always salute palm-out, the Royal Navy salute is traditionally made palm-down. And this is, of course, a naval operation.

Interesting film, and despite the lengths the Brits went to, hard to believe the Germans actually bought it. The very coincidental washing up of a body containing top-secret plans close to a well-known nest of Nazi agents would seem a weakness, but gullibility is, I guess, an enduring human trait.

Convincing turn by Clifton Webb, and while the sub-plot involving Stephen Boyd and Gloria Grahame also stretches credibility a little, it adds a welcome dramatic flavour to proceedings.

The Protectors: Goodbye George (1973) Season 2, Episode 7

The talented Mr Pond

[7/10 · 29 September 2022]

With a plot that seems to have Patricia Highsmith's Ripley very much in mind, Nyree is tasked by a worried father to find out what, if anything, has happened to his son, who is an artist (though by the evidence of the work we eventually see in his - admittedly wonderful - studio, not a very good one).

Turns out that Caspar, the son, is played by the man who turned down The Stones, Paul Jones (born Paul Pond), here with an early 70s barnet (hairdo) that's almost a character in itself. As is Venice, of course, here seen in its 'Don't Look Now' guise.

If that wasn't enough, we also have Geraldine Moffat, (last seen disappearing into the steel-grey waters of the River Tyne - a far cry from Venice - locked in the boot of her car in 'Get Carter') as a charity coordinator.

Can't help thinking that her unhappy demise in the Michael Caine film somehow presaged the careers of her two sons, infants at this time, who went on to create the Grand Theft Auto empire.

Funny old world, innit?

Enigma (1982)

Enigmatic

[7/10 · 31 August 2022]

A good cast in a strange little Cold War thriller. Though shot entirely in France, it gives a credibly chilly impression of East Berlin. Makes you want to turn up the heating (wildly extravagant these days, of course).

The plot is convincingly cynical, and the love triangle at its heart is persuasive - largely because it sidesteps cliché, especially at the film's ending.

Brigitte Fossey and Sam Neill work well together and while Martin Sheen seems less sure, his characteristic bafflement actually suit his character quite well.

Worth watching as a period-piece. And as an exercise in stargazing (Jacobi, Frank Finlay, Warren Clarke, Michael Lonsdale).

Seemingly based on a 'true story' - Whatever that means...

The Arsenal Stadium Mystery (1939)

Up the Arse!

[6/10 · 24 August 2022]

George Allison, the real-life Arsenal manager had no real background in football - indeed seems to have got the Highbury job largely by chance, and being around at the opportune time. Apart from that, I don't see any massive differences in the game then and now. If you ignore the fag smoke, of course.

The stuff around it - stadiums, money, demographics etc - has changed enormously though. It's hardly the people's game at the Arsenal level anymore.

Charming period piece with a very late glimpse of pre-war England.

The Saint: The Russian Prisoner (1966) Season 5, Episode 3

A Testament for Yootha

[7/10 · 3 August 2022]

Yootha Joyce, appearing here as the Russian apparat-chick (!) Milanova, was an old class-mate of Roger Moore. They both attended RADA during the Second World War, although fairly briefly. Lois Maxwell (Miss Moneypenny & recently in this series also) was there too.

Always makes me slightly sad to see Yootha, knowing how sadly it ended for her. A fine actress though. Particularly remember her as the 'Woman of Leicester' in 'A Man For All Seasons', Avril Machin (a real Leicester name, that).

Although known as half of George and Mildred, I always think of her with her real-life husband Glynn Edwards, Dave from The Winchester in 'Minder'. Hope they had some good times together - she deserved it.

Jigsaw (1962)

Sussex by the Sea

[8/10 · 29 July 2022]

Graham Greene praised 'Brighton Rock' by saying it had the 'authentic tang of fish & chips'. Well here we are in the same place some time later, and again it feels like a realistic take on a slice of English life long since vanished.

Decent, fast-moving picture this. But what stays with me is the brief appearance of John Le Mesurier as the victim's father. Understated and powerful (as ever).

Wish he'd had more serious roles in his film career.

Jack Warner gives his usual reliable turn. His obvious mobility problem plays into the role, but he makes a believable copper.

A rare enough thing in films.

Tales of the Unexpected: The Open Window (1984) Season 7, Episode 15

Leave it aht!

[3/10 · 24 July 2022]

Silly, unconvincing stuff, but that's not why I'm pulling on your coat.

Being unfamiliar with Valerie Mahaffey, I googled her, and was somewhat taken aback by her (apparently) appearing in the film version of that most British of sitcoms, 'Till Death Us Do Part' Really? Kind of difficult to believe - what was she? American tourist? Long-lost cousin?

I've seen the film (which is better than most TV series' transferred to the big screen, by the way) and have no recollection of her, and she doesn't seem to appear in the credits.

Anyone know?

Tales of the Unexpected: The Mugger (1984) Season 7, Episode 14

Come off it!

[6/10 · 24 July 2022]

It's a very unusual man who has a night out at some hideously posh dinner-party, refuses the come-on of a high class tart, then walks home (getting mugged on the way) without realising he doesn't have his wallet on him, but - I guess - just about forgivable for the sake of the story.

But when we're invited to believe in a world where the Met Police are so efficient and competent, well, then we know we've just entered the realms of pure fantasy!

Interesting point made about the dangers of assumption, I suppose, but a fairly long-winded and irrelevant way of making it.

Tales of the Unexpected: The Reconciliation (1984) Season 7, Episode 13

God Almighty, Dougal!

[7/10 · 24 July 2022]

Who knew Bishop Len Brennan could do such a convincing English accent?

Also interesting for Robin Colcord's very 70s little beard.

The story's a bit silly, but (call me soft) I enjoyed the happy ending...

Ask a Policeman (1939)

Is this your (comedy) vehicle, Sir?

[8/10 · 23 July 2022]

This film trades nicely on English comedy's obsession with failure and incompetence (closely allied with idleness and class-consciousness) as accepted - indeed desirable - foundations for life.

The fondness for surrealist touches is never far from the surface either.

'If he doesn't have a lighthouse, how can he have a grandmother?' Well, I've got a grandmother, but I don't have a lighthouse!' That kind of thing.

Daft, but good fun. A bit like English life, really.

The Girl in the Picture (1957)

All in the Family

[6/10 · 11 July 2022]

Interesting not only for the shots of late fifties Hammersmith (News Of The World - Players' Weights) but also for the following;- 1) Paddy Joyce (as garage-owner Jack Bates - nice Dublin accent, by the way), was actually the nephew of James Joyce!

2) Tom Chatto (George Keefe, the murdered cop's brother) was the father-in-law of Lady Sarah Armstrong-Jones - the niece of the Queen!

(He's also a descendant of the Chatto of publishers Chatto & Windus fame).

Nice to imagine the two actors attempting to out-relly each other during a break in filming. (For my money, Paddy's got the top trump!)

A quota-quickie from the 50s with intriguingly unexpected connections.

Feel free to amaze your friends with that one...

Ransom for a Dead Man (1971 TV Movie)

This is your pilot talking.

[8/10 · 26 June 2022]

This is a sure-footed 2nd pilot (ironic really, given that the good lieutenant makes a very unwilling 2nd pilot during this episode!) for the Colombo universe. His well-known array of tricks are lined up in all their glory.

True, the plot device of the resentful daughter is maybe overplayed. Me, I'd like to have had more made of the conflict between Falk and the excellent Harold Gould as the Agency man. But, it is what it is, and who's complaining?

Just one more thing. The deeply interesting Lee Grant, sexy, intelligent and capable lifts the episode way above the mundane. I was delighted to learn that she's still going strong (as of June 2022) as she approaches her century.

She's made some excellent documentaries by the way. After being frozen out of Hollywood by her refusal to go along with the unAmerican activity thing.

Unpublished Story (1942)

Britain Sticks it Out

[7/10 · 20 June 2022]

Well produced and - in the supporting roles at least - well acted, though the two leads, Greene and Hobson, give off the odd splinter or two. (Basil Radford weighs in with a very watchable turn as the undercover Intelligence Officer).

The story is a variation on the 5th column scare, which had well-worn currency in wartime England of course, but manages to steer clear of the most obvious clichés.

Interesting and fairly authentic view of London in wartime.

Smokescreen (1964)

Smart , bright , and good-looking

[8/10 · 12 June 2022]

A low-key, smartly-written delight. Enough familiar faces (John Carson, Gerald Flood, Glynn Edwards and many others) to fill a couple of Avengers or Saint episodes. But it's the consistently underrated Peter Vaughan who so effortlessly carries the weight here.

A sense of a fierce intelligence at work underlies everything he does.

An avoidance of cliché (both in the script and cinematography) means the film never feels dated, indeed its freshness remains in the mind well after viewing. Worth mentioning too a genuinely moving motive for Roper's cheapness which is carried off with the sure, light touch evident throughout.

Nice twist too.

Thoroughly recommended.

Columbo: Dagger of the Mind (1972) Season 2, Episode 4

Fish and chips and ham

[6/10 · 12 June 2022]

Colombo never disappoints, but this exercise in English hokum is far from his finest hour... The clichés abound of course. From Buckingham (stress on the ham) Palace to fish and chips (A little greasy for me, Superintendent...) But you'd expect that.

Even Richard Basehart's accent stands up quite well (I'm English and it fooled me). And Honor Blackman adds glamour and sexiness in bucketloads.

But as an English viewer watching Colombo, it's often the LA location that delights me most. I love the hazy deep blue skies and dark shadows, the Strip malls, the street furniture and fast food joints. So when we stray into foreign territory (so to speak) I shudder a little.

Not sure why the Producers decided to take this excursion, but it was a rare false step for the series and luckily not (Mexico apart) repeated.

Hollywood's greatest attraction - in my view - is the quality of its light. Rarely mentioned perhaps, but -for me - essential.

The Avengers: You'll Catch Your Death (1968) Season 7, Episode 4

Anti-Social Distance

[8/10 · 22 December 2021]

Feels weirdly prescient in these Covid -19 days. Though on its own terms making even less sense than most King-era Avengers episodes, the idea that pandemics could wreak such havoc in the world suddenly takes on a horrible reality.

Good turns from Ronald Culver and the ever-reliable Fulton Mackay, later to be reunited with Dudley Sutton (making a brief appearance here) in the Porridge take on The Desperate Hours.

Plusses include Tara's trilby and Steed's double-take when he sees Sylvia Kay behind the x-ray stand (Ooh, Matron!)

Minuses? Well, the oversized nose seems a prop too far. A bit too wilfully eccentric perhaps. The sets of this series ('Game', 'My Wildest Dream') are one of its best features, or can be. This one should have stayed in the imagination of whoever came up with it (one of the runners, maybe?) Also Tara being chloroformed. Again. To be fair to her, though, she was beginning to warm to the role to some degree. But the King/Steed dynamic never really felt comfortable. The tag scenes a recurring illustration of the awkwardness of their relationship (along with the quite hideous shirts worn by the usually immaculate Steed in some of them).

Quibbles aside though, it's still The Avengers, for God's sake. Stylish, playful, artful telly of a type impossible to conceive of being made now. More power to it!

The Champions: The Final Countdown (1968) Season 1, Episode 28

It's That Jag Again!

[7/10 · 22 December 2021]

Nice to see that white Jag flying off the cliff again. The driver did well to survive it - if only for a short time (probably used to crash-landings as an old luftwaffe pilot though!)

Also nice to see Hannah Gordon as his daughter. Amazing how little she changed over the years.

Recently caught this series again - (re-runs on ITV4). First time I've seen it in 50-odd years. The only bits I remembered were the Geneva fountain and the customary booze-up in Tremayne's office at the end of every episode. But pleasantly surprised by the high production values typical of ITC.

Interesting to compare casts with the Avengers (also being re-run on the same channel). Usually quite an overspill. (MacNaughton, for instance as well as Derek Newark - Perry and Henson too from this episode I think). A lot of excellent jobbing actors whose modern equivalents it's not that easy to think of.

The Avengers: The Forget-Me-Knot (1968) Season 7, Episode 1

The Times, They were a-changing.

[8/10 · 18 December 2021]

One of the few occasions when genuine emotion breaks through the artifice of TV.

Steed's sadness at Mrs Peel's departure is obvious and touching. But Patrick's heartache at Diana's leaving transcends even that.

Linda Thorson tackles her role gamely, but can't really help exemplifying the difference between the early and late 60s. From effortless grace and style we come to a rather more self-conscious zaniness. Doe eyes and psychedelic-tinged surrealist plots abound. Op art to Pop art. A certain clunkiness is observed. Not her fault, but a sign of the times.

Nice to see Paddy Kavanagh by the way. And on a Father Ted subplot, Rio Fanning ('Frostie') crops up elsewhere in the Rigg colour series. ' (Dead Man's Treasure' from memory).

Sad way to see Mrs Peel leave like this. But - let's face it - any way would have been equally heart-wrenching. And not just for Patrick.

Virgin Witch (1971)

She's Magic...

[7/10 · 18 December 2021]

Watchable if only for the appearance of the delectable Patricia Haines (Mrs. Michael Caine as was), Virgin Witch also subverts some 70s clichés quite neatly.

Nice music and fairly attractive photography lift this from the mire as does the Surrey location.

Some passages and attitudes obviously grate a little with 21st Century sensibilities. Be disappointing if they didn't. But all in all a pleasant and (to this viewer at least) pretty sexy hour or so.

And who wouldn't want to wake up next to the unclad Ms Haines?

Or is it just me?