This episode has so many odd elements in it, that it almost seems as if everyone involved made a suggestion for inclusion, and no matter how wild it was, it WAS included. The circus commences with a cockatoo and a cat witnessing a shooting. Then the nephew of the shooting victim practically sings an aria announcing that he's a red herring. The widow of the late, prime suspect is figuratively crippled by grief, but can't bring herself to cry. A bartender gives Pete a succinct discourse on capital vs. labor in a bottle. Pete's client, obviously entranced, is blown up by a shoebox. Pete, looking down a long flight of stairs, has a conversation with a bar owner, looking up. A landlady semaphores to Pete that his bribe could buy more than a passkey. The client's blackmailer turns out to be his hypnotist, who conveniently details all of his crimes while dying in a Hollywood rainstorm after Pete, understandably unhappy after too close a shave, punches him off a fire escape. Phew! That's quite a lot to happen in 25 minutes, and while the whole thing isn't remotely plausible, it's so playfully directed and every part (except Pete and Edie) is such a tender slice of ham that I found myself entranced (but not explosively so) by it anyway. It's almost as if a script for Steed and Mrs. Peel of THE AVENGERS had been ruthlessly revised for PETER GUNN.
3 Reviews
Watch Out For That Landlady
dougdoepke8 May 2017
This series entry features the usual mystery, maybe a little more novel than ordinary, but not quite as tight. So who's trying to kill old Mr. Simpson—his wife, his doctor, his drunkard nephew, or a dead guy who may not stay dead. At the same time are the usual series benchmarks. There's the imaginative hook that grabs right away— instead of just staging a shooting, the hook adds an alarmed cat that embellishes the scene in riveting style. Then too, the resolution is dramatically mounted and staged—I just hope Stevens got paid double for getting so soaked. Add to the cast a pinko bartender, an effete nephew, and a floozie landlady, and the usual colorful characters take shape. Note too, the sudden close-ups that jar viewers, as with the haggard landlady that almost scared me. Anyhow, the entry's biggest mystery is how Pete could hire himself out and abandon the luscious Edie. Guess I would never make it as a PI.
Spell of Murder
Prismark1019 January 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Who is trying to shoot Arnold Simpson (Malcolm Atterbury)? Peter Gunn is about to find out in this explosive episode.
Arnold Simpson is a successful businessman with a dark secret. He once left his business partner to die in a collapsed mine. Maybe he has returned for revenge.
Jane Simpson hires Peter Gunn and Arnold tells Gunn of his secret.
Later Gunn receives a strange message from Arnold Simpson. Like he is mesmerised.
Another overstylistic episode but very implausible. Gunn should have been alert over Simpson's strange behaviour and repeating words. Maybe check just to see if his client was ill or not.
The wife running away just as Gunn was about to deliver the parcel was also a red flag.
Arnold Simpson is a successful businessman with a dark secret. He once left his business partner to die in a collapsed mine. Maybe he has returned for revenge.
Jane Simpson hires Peter Gunn and Arnold tells Gunn of his secret.
Later Gunn receives a strange message from Arnold Simpson. Like he is mesmerised.
Another overstylistic episode but very implausible. Gunn should have been alert over Simpson's strange behaviour and repeating words. Maybe check just to see if his client was ill or not.
The wife running away just as Gunn was about to deliver the parcel was also a red flag.
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