User Reviews

Thomas Griffith (Murray Matheson) thinks he's just married the perfect woman. After all, she's beautiful AND rich. Imagine his surprise on their wedding day when he learns she's NOT especially rich and her annoying family arrives and plans to stay! It turns out both Griffith AND his new wife lied about their 'fortunes'! How can Thomas find a way out of this marriage? Well, it's the early 19th century...and divorce just isn't an option...but poisoning IS!

This gothic tale is decent but made better by Matheson's haughty and enjoyable performance. Sure...you know where it's all going to go...but watching him enjoying his murders makes it enjoyable.

"The Poisoner," the show's first Gothic entry, is greatly enhanced by the presence of Murray Matheson in a rare leading role (later to be seen in "Letter to a Lover"), which brings to mind Dennis Price from the 1949 classic "Kind Hearts and Coronets." He portrays Thomas Edward Griffith, a 19th-century artist and author accustomed to the finer things, determined to live life to the fullest. Chagrined to learn that his lovely bride (Sarah Marshall, daughter of Herbert) actually possesses no wealth at all, he is even more displeased by the unwelcome intrusion of her insufferable drunkard mother (Brenda Forbes) and wheelchair-bound sister (Jennifer Raine). Adding to his woes is his miserly uncle George (Maurice Dallimore), who refuses to divulge a cent to his debt-ridden nephew due to a carelessly forged check. Amazingly, even after turning to poison from his Borgia ring as the solution to any problem, our erudite and composed hero never once loses audience sympathy (well, maybe once) as he flaunts the wheels of justice even under threat by the mob. Robert Hardy Andrews loosely based his script on the real-life crimes of Thomas Griffiths Wainwright (1794-1847), who actually was sentenced to life imprisonment in Australia, posthumously defended by no less a wit than Oscar Wilde. Director Herschel Daughterty would go on to do 14 more episodes, Murray Matheson a vastly underrated actor who did memorable turns on THE TWILIGHT ZONE ("Five Characters in Search of an Exit") and KOLCHAK: THE NIGHT STALKER ("Horror in the Heights," as the expert who divulges the Hindu legend of the Rakshasa.) Beautiful Sarah Marshall would reappear in "God Grante That She Lye Stille," but is best remembered by genre enthusiasts for her appearance in the STAR TREK episode "The Deadly Years." David Frankham would return in three additional entries: "Prisoner in the Mirror," "The Closed Cabinet," and "The Specialists." Seen in the later episode "The Closed Cabinet," Jennifer Raine was the stepdaughter of former Karloff co-star Alan Napier ("The Strange Door"), and also the mother of THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY's Brian Forster.

Murray Matheson plays Thomas Edward Griffith, a 19th century man and skilled poisoner who has just gotten married to his beautiful wife Frances(played by Sarah Marshall) He has just offered her a toast after presenting her portrait, when his "perfect" world is shattered by the unexpected arrival of her abrasive mother, and sickly, wheelchair-bound sister who have come to live with them. Frances apologizes for not mentioning their existence, but the in-laws only care about his money, though all are in for a collective financial disappointment, and Thomas realizes that he will have to put his skills to use to remedy this situation... Matheson is superb as the poisoner, charming but ruthless, and episode is richly scored and atmospheric.

When William Frye produced a "Thriller" crime drama, it was bound to contain the hallmarks of his great horror episodes. Though not terribly exciting, I still find "The Poisoner" a dramatic feast, largely due to the dark, oppressive visual style, the series debut of one of "Thriller's" unsung heroes--director Herschel Daugherty, Goldsmith's ingenious score AND-- Murray Matheson's standout performance.

Matheson was one of those amazingly solid and impeccable performers---who could dominate and carry this very talky script almost by himself--and yet never receive any significant recognition for his work. Re-check his tour-de-force portrayal of the surreal, caustic clown in TZ's "Five Characters in Search of an Exit" (YES--it's the SAME GUY!!), and you realize that the man should have been at the top of his profession, in terms of recognition and acclaim.

Goldsmith's score gives us a preview of his phenomenal "Grim Reaper" score, and also shares a noticeable similarity to his "Back There" score for TZ (in which case his music almost saved that dismal episode). It's amazing to discover how TV composers like J.G. were forced to crank out their music in an impossibly short time; but geniuses like this guy seemed to thrive on the restraints. Here Goldsmith produced a score that combines period English folk-flavored idiom (featuring that dark-toned harpsichord) with a diabolical sense of dread....including a very unusual and effective sort of reverb effect applied to the strings, which creates an alluring, ghostly sound. Incredible work produced under almost impossible conditions, capturing and greatly enhancing the mood of this show; the final shot of foggy front door with black funeral wreath and J.G.'s chilling music is a knock-out.

But what's with the men's phony sideburns?? DAMN, I wish these TV make-up guys could have done a more convincing job of this. Whether it's westerns, gothic period dramas....whatever....this flaw in TV production never fails to undermine the suspension of disbelief for me. If they just could have done a better job of MATCHING up the color and texture of the fake hair with the real hair.....(Matheson, David Frankham, the Uncle, etc etc).

Oh well--it's a relatively minor thing. Matheson's performance and the sheer stylistic visual/musical power of this one keep it at the top of "Thriller's crime output.

I think my problem with this offering is that I never bought into the plot. Everything the central character did was so obvious. I know it was a less sophisticated time, but for God's sake, three dead in a matter of days, and he at the scene each time. The highlight of this, however, is an acting performance of one of the coolest (and I mean COLD) characters in memory. There are no secrets and there is an eternal smugness as this guy fights the boredom of everyday existence. He's one of those people who can never be satisfied with the world he is in. It is boring to him and it takes something really dramatic to crack the veneer. He is so heartless, but the people he kills are so awful we don't care. Even his wife, who is quite pretty, drops her disgusting family in his lap. There is no kindness in this guy and money dictates everything. Left me cold.