Lieutenant's final case Time passes, that is the trouble. The past grows and the future shrinks. Less and less chance to do something — and more and more insulting for what did not have time.
Haruki Murakami
The latest film about the famous detective Colombo is a rather boring case, filled with intrigues, curious plot twists and turns and proving that Colombo still has enough surprises for overconfident criminals. Nothing has changed in the design of the tape: the detective in a shabby cloak has not lost his charm, except that he has aged for several years, but the lieutenant looks not so much tired as he has gained experience and skills. By unwritten custom, Peter Falk demonstrates the beloved of many Colombo as he was in the early episodes and does it so masterfully that there are no claims to the gray hair of the famous detective. Once again, Colombo comes to the crime scene, performs very strange experiments, causing bewilderment in a young sergeant, and once again the hardened detective will have to play dangerous games with killers and solve complex puzzles to close the case. It's the last.
Unfortunately, many actors take a predictable step: leave their most famous roles, star in new projects, and just relax, and Peter Falk certainly deserved a long-awaited rest, because he delighted viewers of the series for thirty-five years. After all these years, none of the attempts to hit the audience were tortured, and if there were frankly average stories about Colombo shown on screen, it was certainly not the fault of Peter Falk, rather because of the triviality of the script. But even they were able to keep the audience at the screens, for the case is always taken by Lieutenant Colombo and no one else. This series can not take away - a slightly stooped, thoughtful and cute investigator.
Despite the strict censorship of the brainchild of William Link and Richard Levinson, there is vulgarity in the character - Colombo, but this vulgarity is manifested not in the scrupulousness of the lieutenant's remarks, he never descends to this. It is a completely different vulgarity. The criminal feels unprotected, naked and infirm, ready to scream with fear, an all-consuming sense of shame for what he did. Under the Lieutenant’s glittering eye is revealed the truth. It is at this moment that Colombo is audacious and obscene, and the killer seems to be naked, absolutely naked psychologically and morally. The sharp and accurate questions of a cunning detective produce just such an effect - psychological nudity. In these moments, the joy of Colombo is comparable to the joy of a freshman student who unbuttoned a girl’s bra, only it is much more difficult for a lieutenant to get to the point of “unbutton the bra”. It is likely that the censors did not think about it, because the first task was to cross out scenes where there is too much advertising and explicit scenes. Therefore, Colombo will never lose two things: the magnetic attraction and the invisible indecency felt during the interrogation of criminals. Volgarita indiscreta. If we talk about visual vulgarity, then this was undoubtedly. While investigating the case of the murdered writer, Colombo was holding underwear in his hands.
Colombo, what are you looking at?
- Nothing special, just panties.
At the time of the release of the series, and what a sin to hide, even now, the amazing idea of "Colombo" to show the attacker from the first minutes of the opening credits, admires its professionalism. The design is quite simple. The viewer has the opportunity to find himself in the mind of the killer, understand his motives, thinking and witness a deliberate and cold-blooded murder. However, the authors came up with one very interesting move, it is as curious and mysterious as if the face of the killer was not shown. The creators leave a tiny loophole for Lieutenant Colombo, which was accidentally presented by an inattentive criminal. A piece of cheese, a piece of gum, a rubber glove, no matter what, the idea is much more interesting: how one abandoned object and the sloppy work of a killer can closer to the end destroy his seemingly iron alibi. Then all pleas, persuasion and pathetic attempts to justify themselves in the eyes of Colombo are nullified, the lieutenant may be absent-minded, affable, meticulous, and even angry, but he is not a stupid simpleton, which can be considered at first glance. Another interesting fact is that you can empathize not only with Colombo, since the villains are not without amazing charm, if I may say so. The killers are constantly flashing between the scenes with Colombo, they live: they drive around in luxury cars, drink expensive drinks and sometimes remember the committed sin that hangs on the soul in the form of a lieutenant in a cloak who mysteriously smiles and smokes a cigar. In short, the on-screen villains have plenty of time to reveal their characters, but too little time to invent lies to keep Colombo behind them with their questions.
“Colombo” was and remains one of the most famous detective series, it is remembered both in cartoons and in films do not hesitate to quote a hard detective. It is too early to judge the archaic nature of Colombo, it is still in demand, it is viewed, simple truths are drawn from it not only about human cruelty, but also about friendship, justice and love, and the presence of Peter Falk makes the project long-lasting. It is possible that the series will be forgotten, anything is possible, but it is worth risking to assume that it will be when people will not be interested in mysteries and mysteries, and the methods of modern investigations will be so effective that the perpetrator can be found in ten minutes anywhere in the world. And there will be robot cops in that world, non-smokers and environmentalists who don't mention their wives in interrogations. Yes, then Columbo will be forgotten, but... perhaps one day, unknown in what futuristic era, one of the robots will break down and say, “Just one more thing, sir,” making you remember the legendary lieutenant and watch one other series of a great series, if this era will be the Internet. I hope it does.