The Capone Investment

I watched this series last week for the first time on the Film 24 channel on the Sky network here in the UK (which was shown in two parts) and was surprised by the quality of the fast-moving plot and the sharp acting. It was more entertaining and gripping than many cinema films of this type.

I disagree strongly with the review shown on IMDb. I think that modern TV directors can learn a lot from the uncomplicated camera angles and long scenes used on this production - it gave the actors more scope to let their characters breathe and allowed the dialogue to be more realistic. I was also impressed by the excellent locations used, which gave the story more of an edge.

All in all, it was a very good TV drama which deserves to be shown on more prominent TV channels.

Very good, despite the obviously small budget and short length of episodes, but then it was made in the 1970s when money was tight. Good cast and written by one of televisions most prolific writers Ian Kennedy Martin. Martin also wrote an episode of 'The Sweeney' which was vaguely similar. I'll be honest, I only watched it for the first time recently because I like John Thaw. I also just about managed to ignore the cheap effects when filming what are supposed to be in-car conversations, of which there seem to be many.

If you enjoy 1970s TV drama then this series is for you. I managed to catch it on the Talking Pictures channel for free, however, I don't think I would have enjoyed it so much if I had paid over £30 for it on DVD.

I have one question, why is it advertised on Talking Pictures and some other websites with a still from a completely different series? The photo being used is of Diana Coupland and Anthony Bate in "Grady" made in 1970.

This is a strange, antediluvian pleasantry (old-fashioned even in 1974), resembling nothing so much as one of those Francis Durbridge serials where everyone is a suspect, everyone has a secret and everyone lies like mad.

A businessman is shot, and suspicion falls on his 'friends' (all parasitical hangers-on), 'secretary' (mistress) and his estranged son (John Thaw, just prior to his Sweeney superstardom). A gritty detective (Glyn Owen) and an enigmatic MI5 man (Peter Sallis) investigate, and soon link the crime to the murders of various shady Chicago characters in the UK. The suspects are slain at regular intervals, until the final unmasking of the villain and a somewhat perfunctory climax.

Absolutely nothing wrong with this, and it is great fun for those who like Paul Temple, or who prefer the slower pace of 70s television, and a whodunnit spread over six episodes. It is certainly not cutting edge drama, and is a surprising product of the pen of Ian Kennedy Martin, who usually produced somewhat more sophisticated material than this.

The one really hard thing for the modern viewer to cope with is the dreadful CSO, especially as for some reason a large part of this drama seems to involve deep discussions between car drivers and their passengers, all outlined by a terrible blue line, and with the background remaining stubbornly at the same perspective as the camera zooms in and out on the characters. It couldn't have looked good even then.

My review is based on the six part series.

Overall I enjoyed it, it is very much an attempt to copy the style of Francis Durbridge, we even get a few faces that had appeared in Durbridge dramas, although penned in the style it doesn't quite have the subtleties and intrigue that Francis contrived. Still it's enjoyable, and intriguing, it's a little slow to start, but the last episodes are very good.

The acting is a little up and down, Peter Sallis is undoubtedly the standout performer.

Credit to the writer for having an Al Capone themed story, it was well woven in. It has decent production values, and the music is very much of its time.

If you enjoy the likes of Melissa, Game of Murder and Paul Temple, I think you'll enjoy this. 7/10

As mentioned this old Southern TV pot-boiler was screened by the now defunct Film24 a few years ago, the property is now occasionally on Movies4Men as a cut down film clocking in at just about two hours including a handful of ad breaks.

Having not seen the series version I can't comment on what's been removed or whether it means the current version is stronger or weaker for that editing but as viewed The Capone Investment proved a quite enjoyable minor work and one that gains some kudos for me for the mere fact Ian Kennedy Martin came up with the idea in the first instance - wondering what happened to the American gangsters millions and then managing to come up with a story that meant it could be filmed by a regional British TV company on its own patch takes more imagination than I have! In the acting stakes its definitely John Thaws show, you can see the proto John Regan in his performance - no nonsense, a threat of violence, he will get his man! The rest are largely perfunctory though Peter Sallis does have "something of the night" about him as the C15 agent attached to the police investigation.

In terms of its production it is very cheap looking, as was the way in the 60s and 70s in house fiction series were often recorded on film when on location and on video for the studio work (sometimes video was used inside and out), when compared to more expensive series of the same era that were shot entirely on film - Space 1999, the Sweeney, the New Avengers etc it looks very crude at times but I suppose that's part of the retro charm!