Peter Falk is Columbo, plain and simple. In other words he plays his role here like the icon he soon became. On the other hand, the guest star of the week, Roddy McDowell, went over the top playing Roger Stanford, as an heir to a chemical company who was also eccentrically brilliant.
In order to ascend to the control of his family's company Roger Stanford had to kill his uncle and neutralize his loving aunt. Saddled with a brilliant mind, but a crazed narcissism Roger believed he hatched a perfect accidental death of his uncle. This, actually, mirrors real life mega-millions family struggles, but what pushes this into less than dirty realism is the over-the-top performance by Roddy McDowell as the killer Roger Stanford. McDowell's character is simply too flamboyant and too eccentric. Columbo knew he did it the first time he laid eyes on him and all he had to do was give him the smallest bit of rope to hang himself. Not much tension as one might guess.
This episode had an excellent cast, not the least of which would have to be McDowell. If only the director had used some restraint this would have been extremely compelling one must believe. Roddy McDowell, a life-long thespian, certainly has the skills, but was pushed here to create a character with, roughly, twice the crazed madman persona needed to be a cagey foe for Columbo. How much nicer it would have been if Columbo would have had to actually do some work! Still, all in all, quite an entertaining story if too rote.
In order to ascend to the control of his family's company Roger Stanford had to kill his uncle and neutralize his loving aunt. Saddled with a brilliant mind, but a crazed narcissism Roger believed he hatched a perfect accidental death of his uncle. This, actually, mirrors real life mega-millions family struggles, but what pushes this into less than dirty realism is the over-the-top performance by Roddy McDowell as the killer Roger Stanford. McDowell's character is simply too flamboyant and too eccentric. Columbo knew he did it the first time he laid eyes on him and all he had to do was give him the smallest bit of rope to hang himself. Not much tension as one might guess.
This episode had an excellent cast, not the least of which would have to be McDowell. If only the director had used some restraint this would have been extremely compelling one must believe. Roddy McDowell, a life-long thespian, certainly has the skills, but was pushed here to create a character with, roughly, twice the crazed madman persona needed to be a cagey foe for Columbo. How much nicer it would have been if Columbo would have had to actually do some work! Still, all in all, quite an entertaining story if too rote.