Dirty business on Sunset Boulevard Most of the killers from the series “Colombo” was sympathetic. Of course, not all and among them there were people who boasted about their money, power, intelligence, or simply were cynical scoundrels who, although they spoke in a high syllable, would not want to sit at the same table with them. In general, all sorts of people met Lieutenant Colombo on his way, but perhaps the hero of today's series is the first person who without hesitation wants to send to prison for eternity. What's the negativity? Well, let's get acquainted with the local antihero and you will understand everything.
So, Eric Prince, a man with a fake name and a fake profession. Years ago, he was an unknown Hollywood actor, who played only in extras, but he wanted, of course, more. And one day he got the chance. Having asked to become a student to the undertaker, Eric soon became an assistant to the master’s funeral affairs, and then completely took the place of the teacher when the latter died suddenly. Whether Eric was directly involved in his teacher's death is unknown to us, but I wouldn't be surprised if the answer is yes. So, having taken such an honorable position, Eric decided ... to rob the dead After all, his clients were Hollywood stars, and they always have jewelry - beads, brooches, watches, rings. All this brings a good income and, according to Eric, these decorations are no longer needed by the deceased. At some point, one infamous journalist Verity Chandler learns about Eric’s dishonest deeds, who intends to tell about the whole world. Interesting: Journalists like people are not stupid, but for some reason they do the same stupid thing over and over again, informing people who are going to be let around the world about their plans. What are they even counting on? Want to gloat? This is possible, but it is necessary to understand that any action entails a consequence. What are the consequences of saying, you know, I’m going to ruin your life, take your job, and it’s very likely that you’ll spend the next few years behind bars? The worst. So Eric Prince stunned the persistent journalist, and then completely burned her in the crematorium. This is it. It would seem that the next perfect crime and the police simply have nothing to look for because there are no weapons of crime, no motive, the good of Eric joked and destroyed everything that Verity dug on him, or even the body. That’s just Lieutenant Colombo would not be himself if he did not try to understand this difficult case.
In fact, this is the basis of the entire investigation. The hero Peter Falk does not have any, even indirect evidence, and therefore he has to communicate with people that one or another knew Verity Chandler and try to build a picture of what happened at least in his head. And this is one of my favorite moves in Colombo, when Peter Falk's character has to interact not so much with the killer as with the people around him. The only problem is that secondary actors do not try to interest the viewer in anything. They will play their game, but none will be remembered.
There was no character humor in the series, and if it was, it was barely perceptible. The soundtrack also did not give anything impressive. Yes, the plot of the story, as well as the investigation itself is intriguing, this cannot be taken away, but the creators, towards the end of the film series, did not try to improvise and shoot great series. They shot just good series that looked good, but did not leave a long memory. “Star and Revenge”, as well as “Murder by Notes”, and with them “Colombo likes the night life”, is a farewell to the great detective who will forever remain in our hearts.
6 out of 10