Columbo: Caution: Murder Can Be Hazardous to Your Health

After being off the air for a while, Columbo returned with some new made-for-TV mysteries that, while not being as good as the original series, are better than the shows that were done in the later '90s.

"Murder Can Be Hazardous to Your Health" used the then (and I guess now, if you think about it) true crime shows as the situation for a murder. The murder is committed by a very successful, egomaniacal true crime show host, George Hamilton (in a nice bit of casting). His chain-smoking nemesis, who lost the job to him, played by Peter Haskell, attempts to blackmail Hamilton when he discovers a porno video Hamilton made with an underage actress in his salad days. Hamilton uses Haskell's cigarettes to deliver the death blow via poison, giving himself an alibi as well.

Columbo is brought in to find out what happened. You know the rest. Highly entertaining.

Real crime show Crimealert (think Crime Watch) host Wade Anders has not got to his position by being a nice guy and letter the better man get a fair crack at the whip. So when he was going for the job of host against the much more experienced Budd Clarke, he was sure to drop lots of remarks to the producers about how unsuitable a character Clarke was for the show's image. His remarks (and more) worked and he won the gig, much to the ongoing annoyance of Clarke. Years later and Clarke has returned to tell Anders to quit the job and arrange for him to take over in his place – or else he'll break the story he has uncovered that will reveal that a pre-fame Anders made a porno film. Unwilling to let his life be ruined, Anders puts poison in one of chain-smoking Clarke's cigarettes and waits. With him dead all is good but when Lieutenant Columbo is assigned the case and can't seem to get over one or two minor details, it looks like it won't be over any time soon.

Starting with the usual "perfect" crime, this Columbo film sticks well to formula as our hero picks up on some small clues missed by everyone else, gets his sights on a main suspect and doggedly goes after his man until the end – much to the annoyance of the suspect. With this film the actual crime doesn't totally ring true in terms of logic but mostly it works in the context of the film and it sets up a series of flaws to hook Columbo. After that it is the usual cat and mouse pursuit, "one more thing" etc until the resolution; by sticking to this formula the film works well and produces plenty of the material than fans will enjoy. At points it is unconvincing (would Anders' porno really have not come to light years earlier?) but generally these concerns are lost in the sweep of the film and they don't detract too much. The solution is a clever one and an enjoyable example of Columbo's skills as an investigator.

Falk is as good as ever in the lead role and delivers his usual mix of scruffiness, deductive skills but also showing a nice touch with the comedy aspects. Hamilton is a solid guest star and he works well with Columbo – getting frustrated by him, trying to hold it together but generally being closed in on. The two men work well together and their chemistry is part of the formula working here where perhaps it wasn't so good in other "new" Columbo films. With the lead two carrying most of the weight the support cast are only OK but does throw up a few surprises. Gilborn turns up with his usual reoccurring (but pointless) character while the presence of Penny Johnson in a small role caught me off guard as a 24 fan.

Overall this is one for the fans, who will enjoy it because (like the 1970's films) it sticks closely to formula. The story is good and is developed well throughout – all the way to a conclusion that is a satisfying demonstration of how sharp Columbo really is (as opposed to some endings that come out of nowhere and don't show him actually picking at it). The two leads are solid and work well together and the end result is a Columbo film that stands up well with the best of them – engaging, interesting, funny and typically Columbo. Well worth seeing (and this from someone who greets all the "new" Columbo's with suspicion and slight dread).

I am a fan of Columbo and while Caution: Murder Can be Hazardous to your Health is not the best of the lot, it is very enjoyable. The plot is well written and everything with a good motive but it has been used before and perhaps better, while Peter Falk has been better as Columbo. Don't get me wrong he was still wonderful but he has also been exceptional and outstanding too. The episode does look striking though, and the music is intense and atmospheric. I also loved the script, it was funny and intelligent and Columbo and Wade had some delightful scenes together, and the direction and pacing are super efficient. The acting is fine too, as I've said Falk is wonderful if not exceptional while George Hamilton plays a different character to what he played in A Deadly State of Mind. In my personal opinion he gave the better performance in that episode, but he is excellent and works well with Falk showing easily the frustration that make the best villains intriguing to watch. Overall, very good episode. 8/10 Bethany Cox

PLOT: A crime show host (George Hamilton) murders a rival who blackmails him via an old porn flick to get his job (Peter Haskell).

COMMENTARY: Hamilton returns 16 years after his first gig with Columbo in "A Deadly State of Mind" (1975). The crime show is patterned after America's Most Wanted with John Walsh and makes for an interesting context. It's a solid episode that follows the formula to a 't,' nothing more, nothing less. Another reviewer accurately described it as "perfectly serviceable."

GRADE: B/B-

A fun entry in the 1990s series of revamped Columbo TV movies, this features George Hamilton playing the villain for the second time in the series (the first was 1975's A DEADLY STATE OF MIND). Hamilton has never been the world's greatest actor, but he's a solid fit for this 1990s-feeling piece, which has a relaxed atmosphere and plenty of light comedy to see it through.

Hamilton plays the presenter of a big crime TV show (think the BBC's CRIME WATCH) who discovers to his displeasure that a rival has uncovered a dirty secret from his past. He kills the guy by poisoning his cigarette, and Columbo is soon on the case. One of the annoying things about this episode is the slow, drawn-out way that Columbo describes the clues and the like to the audience; he actually seems quite slow-witted, and was never like this in the old episodes.

Still, the mystery is a good one, and there's an ingenious climax. Plus, I find the comedy in this latter episodes to be as strong as ever, with the interlude in the dog parlour a highlight. CAUTION: MURDER CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO YOUR HEALTH is a perfectly serviceable entry in the Columbo TV series.