They Call It Murder

I love "made for tv" movies and old mystery shows. This one has it all. Great cast, brilliant camera angles, typical music for the time and decent script. Where in California was this filmed? The panoramic views are stunning! It's a shame this series never came to fruition.

Regarding the cast, Jim Hutton is pleasant as always. I can't count the number of tv movies Jessica Walters was in. She seemed to always play the villainess. Ed Asner's performance is the usual gruff sheriff. His Lou Grant series is still one of my all time favorites. I believe Jo Ann Pflug was on a game show or two but remember her most from tv movies.

This definitely one of the better pilots for an unrealized tv series.

A man in a wheelchair, his widowed daughter-in-law, her mother and a cab driver find a dead body in the swimming pool. Complications of a missing murder weapon, evidence of a second weapon and a sleazy high-priced lawyer arise quickly.

The mediocre production values, plethora of B-List supporting cast and squishy ending testify that this was made-for-television. It has a very good plot despite that, and the mystery is on a par with a theatrical release.

I like Jim Hutton very much. That is what enticed me to watch this movie. He is here not quite as refined and at ease as he was when he appeared as: Ellery Queen but he is still quite fun.

I found Vic Tayback surprisingly good as a low-rent private detective. It was on a par with his role in: The Cheap Detective (1978).

I am sorry to say that the rest of the cast was quite disappointing. I expected much more from: Leslie Nielsen, Edward Asner and Nita Talbot but it was obvious that their hearts and minds were not in their role. They were all quite low-grade even for television.

I will split my rating to say that the story/plot/mystery are: 6.8/10 but the production values and most of the performances are: 3.2/10

This movie is available for viewing for free on the streaming channel: "The Film Detective". I do not know what sign-up or commercials that channel uses. I watched it on: Amazon Prime Video. The print was not very good.

This 1971 TV movie appears to have been a pilot for a proposed series based on "Perry Mason" creator Erle Stanley Gardner's much lesser known "Doug Selby D.A." novels. It's a shame this never made it because "They Call It Murder" shows a good bit of promise. Jim Hutton is excellent in the title role as the earnest young D.A. (His son Timothy's resemblance is remarkable) and he was always an underrated actor.

The supporting cast is also strong an notably features Ed Asner as a bumbling and blustering small town chief of police. In this episode the "guest stars" are Jessica Walter (who was intriguingly distant yet seductive) and Leslie Nielsen (was this guy EVER young?) and while it wasn't real difficult to finger the culprits the motive and means were creative yet not so far-fetched as to be beyond the rules of "fair play."

TCIM, of course, appears dated now with a very early 70s look (and outlook)and pacing that is several gears slower than contemporary mystery/suspense. It could be said that the movie drags in places but it could also be argued that that the languid pace adds to the atmosphere. . As with all mysteries it is a formula driven show but it is a well done one. This has more in common with 40s film noir than formula dramas of today such as the L&O faux realism template.

TCIM relies more on plotting and character psychology and less on fist fights and car chases than the typical 60s/70s era shows of this genre did. (Although there is a little of that it appears superfluous and forced; that would be my only complaint.)

I came across this in a $1 bin of overstock DVDs. It's a very low budget DVD that appears to have been transferred from second generation (or worse) tape and has uneven sound and almost no packaging but it's well worth the dollar.

It was like an episode of Columbo without already knowing the murderer and Columbo.

In what looks like a pilot for a possible television series Jim Hutton plays the District Attorney in a small southern California county who partners closely with County Sheriff Robert J. Wilkie in the investigation. Hutton is even in on the final shootout.

For Bob Wilkie sad this pilot wasn't picked up. Wilkie played dozens of bad guys in westerns and this would have been a career change for him.

A body is found in the pool where Leslie Nielsen resides with daughter-in-law Jessica Walter. Nielsen is in a wheelchair as a result of an accident where his son was killed several months earlier.

There's an insurance settlement in the offing. But the insurance company PI Vic Tayback smells a rat.

Of course the murder and the accident are linked but you watch the movie to see just how. I guessed the right perpetrator, but not the extent of the con that was being played, A few murders happen before the solution is found.

Also note good performances from JoAnn Pflug as a reporter and Nita Talbot who is an actress worried about keeping up with the younger women coming up in her profession.

There's also Ed Asner who is an obnoxious and bumbling city police chief. His role seemed superfluous to the story.

Might have made a good series.