Columbo - Season 4 (Remastered) (1974)

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General		Extras
Category	Crime Drama	None
Rating
Year Of Production	1974
Running Time	515:00
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered Multi Disc Set (3)	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Bernard L. Kowalski Alf Kjellin Ben Gazzara Harvey Hart
Studio Distributor	Madman Entertainment	Starring	Peter Falk Patrick McGoohan Robert Vaughn Patrick Macnee Dick Van Dyke Robert Conrad George Hamilton
Case	?
RPI	$39.95	Music	Dick DeBenedictis Bernardo Segall

    Another day, another season of Columbo. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the show, it’s a long-running formula program which ran on-and-off for thirty-five years, starring the inimitable Peter Falk as the titular homicide detective in the LAPD. We the viewers are shown each murder and know who the murderer is, but we do not know just how Lt. Columbo will catch the killer as he hunts around for every piece of evidence he can dig up. Each episode is essentially a feature-length television movie, running anywhere between 70 and 95 minutes, and it’s very low-key, more concerned with dialogue than action.

    Season 4 of Columbo was the shortest to date at the time, with only six episodes (Season 1 had seven plus a pilot, Seasons 2&3 contained eight apiece), which are spread out over three discs on Madman’s DVD set. Here’s what we have:

Disc 1

An Exercise in Fatality (94:12)

    A prominent health and fitness celebrity, Milo Janus (Robert Conrad) oversees the operation of a chain of successful gyms across the city, but he rips off the individual managers by over-charging for equipment, making a tremendous profit that he deposits into offshore accounts. But one of his business partners, Gene Stafford (Philip Bruns), realises that Janus is extorting and defrauding the gym owners, and threatens to go public with the evidence. Janus responds by murdering him, making it look as if Gene died in the middle of a workout when he lost control of a heavy barbell. As per usual, it looks like an accident at first glance, but it’s the little things that bother Lt. Columbo when he becomes involved.

    “An Exercise in Fatality” is a strong opening for this particular season of Columbo, and it will definitely be appreciated by fans of the show. Falk’s performance remains thoroughly spot-on, and he’s well-matched with Conrad, one of the more charismatic murderers in the history of the show. Indeed, Conrad is a believable fitness guru, handsome and debonair, and his interplay with the beloved Lieutenant often sparkles (it’s priceless watching Janus trying to put Columbo through a workout). The ending isn’t quite the knockout that I was hoping for, but it is clever. Weirdly, this episode even has a Milo Janus jingle.

Negative Reaction (91:18)

    Professional photographer Paul Galesko (Dick Van Dyke) has had enough of his domineering wife Frances (Antoinette Bower), ultimately deciding to murder her in a complicated scheme to make the killing look like a bungled kidnapping. Galesko’s plan goes off without a hitch, using ex-con Alvin Deschler (Don Gordon) as the patsy, and making it look as if he shot Deschler in self-defence. The story seems to line up at first glance, but the sharp eyes of Lt. Columbo find holes and unexplained questions.

    “Negative Reaction” is an ideal implementation of the Columbo formula, embodying all of the qualities that we come to expect from this long-running TV show. Galesko’s scheme is a clever one, and it’s always fascinating to see Columbo poke holes in the official line mere minutes after arriving at the crime scene. The investigation is fascinating, while this episode also shows the benefit of adding comedy to the proceedings. Indeed, “Negative Reaction” is one of the most amusing telemovies in the Columbo oeuvre, with a number of standout scenes that are funny without being forced. Perhaps the key piece of evidence is a bit too slight, but it’s not enough to undo the episode’s numerous strengths. Humorous, engaging, smart and mightily enjoyable, this is easy watching for a rainy afternoon.

Disc 2

By Dawn’s Early Light (94:05)

    The all-boys Haynes Military Academy is presided over by a certain William Haynes (Tom Simcox), who aspires to combat declining enrolment by converting the academy into a co-ed military recruit school. Haynes also plans to oust the school’s commandant, Colonel Lyle C. Rumford (Patrick McGoohan). In response, Rumford rigs a ceremonial cannon on Founder’s Day by blocking the barrel with a cleaning rag and loading a more powerful shell, causing a large explosion which instantly kills Haynes when he fires the cannon. As a result, the ostensibly accidental death looks to be the result of negligence on the part of underperforming cadet Roy Springer (Mark Wheller), who was assigned to cannon-cleaning duty. Before long, Lt. Columbo is on the case, and he does not believe that Haynes’ death was a mere accident.

    Whenever I discuss my favourite Columbo episodes, “By Dawn’s Early Light” is always one of the first that I bring up. In fact, it may very well be my favourite episode, followed closely by Season 3’s “Swan Song.” This is a damn good episode, and a solid standalone movie in its own right for which I could easily write a fully-fleshed critique. It engages right from the beginning, with the preparation for the murder playing out in total silence, while the sense of place is astonishingly spot-on, with life at the military academy ringing true (believe me, I have been through army training). The decision to place Columbo in such a setting is so brilliant that it’s a wonder why it took so long to come about; his interplay with the disciplined troops is gold, and the Lieutenant even chooses to stay in the barracks with the cadets. Plus, Falk and McGoohan are a perfect pairing. McGoohan played multiple murderers throughout the course of the show, and was a frequent director right up until the end (he helmed the second last Columbo ever, “Murder With Too Many Notes”).

    Aside from the top-flight acting and flawless production design, the episode benefits from a smart script, with Columbo’s investigation both intriguing and engaging. The climax, too, is intelligent, closing in classic Columbo style. “By Dawn’s Early Light” is the pinnacle of the show. It’s a treat for Columbo fans, and I would say that it’s an ideal entry point into the series for the uninitiated.

Troubled Waters (94:02)

    Hayden Danziger (Robert Vaughn) is a frequent passenger on a Mexican cruise ship, and has started having an affair with lounge singer Rosanna Wells (Poupée Bocar). Danziger’s older but richer wife Sylvia (Jane Greer) is also on-board the ship, and Wells threatens to expose their affair. Unwilling to let this happen, Danziger establishes an iron-clad alibi by checking into the ship’s infirmary after faking a heart attack, and sneaks out during night-time hours to murder Wells and pin it on somebody else. Unfortunately for Danziger, Lt. Columbo is on-board the ship, and even though he’s out of his jurisdiction, he cannot resist looking into the intriguing case to solve the mystery.

    “Troubled Waters” shakes up the Columbo formula to an extent by setting the entire episode on the cruise ship, restricting the scope and allowing the beloved Lieutenant to do what he does best: snoop around. Vaughn (who became famous thanks to TV’s The Man from U.N.C.L.E.) is a perfectly charismatic murder, while this episode also benefits from added gravitas in the form of Patrick Macnee and Bernard Fox. Although lengthy, “Troubled Waters” progresses at a fine clip, buoyed by superb writing, making this another winner for this particular season, and the show as a whole. There are even numerous antics involving the perpetually unseen Mrs. Columbo.

Disc 3

Playback (71:00)

    Harold Van Wick (Oskar Werner) is obsessed with gadgets, and heads an electronics company. He enjoys inventing so much, in fact, that he lives on a lavish estate wired with cameras and recorders. But Van Wick’s hobby is costing Midas Electronics too much money, which raises the concern of his mother-in-law Margaret Midas (Martha Scott), who owns the company and orders him to resign his position. In response, Van Wick devises a scheme to murder her, using the surveillance cameras around his estate to his advantage, making the shooting look like a bungled burglary attempt. However, Van Wick naturally meets his match with Lt. Columbo.

    Even though “Playback” looks overly dated thanks to its old-fashioned surveillance technology, this is an excellent early Columbo telemovie, elevated by strong writing and performances. The formula is in place, but most everything about the episode works, from the humour to the sense of mystery, and Columbo’s investigation is interesting. It’s slightly paint-by-numbers, but with its brisk pace and short runtime, it’s a fun and easy sit.

A Deadly State of Mind (71:02)

    Psychiatrist Dr. Mark Collier (George Hamilton) is having an affair with one of his patients, Nadia (Lesley Ann Warren), and the doctor’s current research trials are not going as well as expected. Worse, Nadia’s husband, Carl Donner (Stephen Elliott), catches wind of the affair, and confronts the two lovers. Donner threatens both Collier and Nadia, and in the ensuing scuffle, Donner is accidentally killed. To cover up the crime, Collier concocts an elaborate explanation involving a failed robbery, which Nadia relays onto the police when they arrive. Although there is little evidence to suggest that Nadia’s story is false, Lt. Columbo cannot help but see holes in the description of events.

    “A Deadly State of Mind” is not the strongest way to close Season 4, but Columbo fans should enjoy this particular application of the show’s longstanding formula. Hamilton is a superb killer (he later returned in Season 10 to play another antagonist), while Falk’s appeal as the titular detective cannot be denied. It’s a fun episode, though the investigation feels slightly underdone, and the climactic “gotcha” moment is not one of the best that the show has served up. In fact, the evidence would be far too slight to secure a conviction in real life, which is disappointing. This episode needed a stronger ending.

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    As with Season 3, the Region 1 DVD release also contains a bonus episode of Mrs. Columbo. But since Madman's presentations are remastered, and Mrs. Columbo is not especially good, I'll stick with the local release. Others are welcome to draw their own conclusions, mind you.

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