Saw this on Talking Pictures channel (UK - old films and TV) who are running all 4 of the original Maigret series (BBC, early 60s).
This was the last of series 3 (one more series to come) and wasn't quite as good as some of the others, the story had to be packed in, due to the running time, and a couple of the support cast weren't quite as able, though the direction could have been faulty of course.
As the synopsis says, there's a series of bank robberies, Maigret and his team getting snappy with each other, due to lack of sleep and progress, then a murder is reported, of a criminal that Maigret has a sneaking respect for.
An inspector from district, despite battling persistent asthma, and a nasty cough, makes a breakthrough, and that in turn leads to some help for the other case.
One feature of many episodes is a bar, much the same scenery, and it appears here, and at one point, when a character in a fight crashes into the 'woodwork', it nearly falls apart, a 'Crossroads' moment, if anyone recalls that old show with wobbly sets?!
I did think that whoever edited this show had messed up, as there seemed to be a sudden revelation about a failed robbery, and one of the crooks had been shot, leading them to the rest of the gang. Maybe 'er indoors' had said something, and I was obliged to pay attention, missed a key moment?! There was also a helpful coincidence, the discovery of the car used in the murder, at just the garage being used by the robbery gang. I guess another device to pack 2 stories into that one hour runtime?!
Keen observers will have seen Hilary Mason in a small role, later of fame in the eerie film 'Dont Look Now'.
This was the last of series 3 (one more series to come) and wasn't quite as good as some of the others, the story had to be packed in, due to the running time, and a couple of the support cast weren't quite as able, though the direction could have been faulty of course.
As the synopsis says, there's a series of bank robberies, Maigret and his team getting snappy with each other, due to lack of sleep and progress, then a murder is reported, of a criminal that Maigret has a sneaking respect for.
An inspector from district, despite battling persistent asthma, and a nasty cough, makes a breakthrough, and that in turn leads to some help for the other case.
One feature of many episodes is a bar, much the same scenery, and it appears here, and at one point, when a character in a fight crashes into the 'woodwork', it nearly falls apart, a 'Crossroads' moment, if anyone recalls that old show with wobbly sets?!
I did think that whoever edited this show had messed up, as there seemed to be a sudden revelation about a failed robbery, and one of the crooks had been shot, leading them to the rest of the gang. Maybe 'er indoors' had said something, and I was obliged to pay attention, missed a key moment?! There was also a helpful coincidence, the discovery of the car used in the murder, at just the garage being used by the robbery gang. I guess another device to pack 2 stories into that one hour runtime?!
Keen observers will have seen Hilary Mason in a small role, later of fame in the eerie film 'Dont Look Now'.
