Death Cruise

This is a pretty decent movie of the week from the Spelling-Goldberg production house. This movie is pretty much like Murder, She Wrote, which came out ten years later. Michael Constantine does a pretty decent job as the ship's doctor, who also happens to be an amateur detective and the cast, which is made up of many of the top stars of the small screen at the time did a pretty credible job playing the victims. Also, this happens to be one of the final appearances of Richard Long, who would die a few months later.

Three married couples set off on a contest winning cruise. They are: Richard Long and Polly Bergen (as Jerry and Sylvia Carter), Edward Albert and Kate Jackson (as Jimmy and Mary Frances Radney), and Tom Bosley and Celeste Holm (as David and Elizabeth Mason). On ship, they discover why nobody can really remember entering the contest; it's a scam. A mysterious group known as "E&M Productions" has lured the six "winners" on board to kill them. As the travelers meet unfortunate ends, Michael Constantine (as Dr. Burke) assumes the role of investigator. Cesare Danova is the ship's captain. All are delightful.

This is an unexpectedly suspenseful Spelling-Goldberg television production, with good performances and direction (Ralph Senensky). And, it's very well paced. As they are being killed off, the three "happy" couples are revealed to be in significantly troubled marriages; this, and a resemblance to ABC-TV's later "The Love Boat" series, gives the movie a heightened eeriness. Jack B. Sowards' script has a few surprises; and, most of the time, it is challenging to guess which passenger to will die next. Unfortunately, part of an ending explanation does not match a prior character motivation; it's not enough to spoil the movie, however.

This was Richard Long's last role, sadly; the former "Big Valley" star died of a heart attack late in 1974. Also, around this time, beautiful young co-stars Kate Jackson and Edward Albert were a real life couple; although, they were "living in sin" (unmarried). The relatively under-appreciated "TV performer" cast makes "Death Cruise" an enjoyable trip.

****** Death Cruise (10/30/74) Ralph Senensky ~ Richard Long, Kate Jackson, Michael Constantine, Edward Albert

I saw this when I was twelve. It was the movie that made me understand what a good mystery really was. I had read the entire Happy Hollisters children's mystery series and they were about a family of child sleuths who always got their man. But we the readers were not in a position to solve the mystery along with them. This movie showed me that a good mystery is that which makes the viewer/reader, at the end, say, "OH!!!!! OF COURSE!!!!!!!"

Not exactly sure what compelled me to want to check out Death Cruise, but despite some reservations I did indeed go there, and am actually glad that I did. So the premise of this movie has already been stated and three couples and a new ships doctor are involved. Two of the couples stories are kind of interesting - Bosley and Holmes story is the best of the three with Long and Bergen coming in second and Alberts and Jackson a distant third, but Jackson herself makes up the gap. Constantine turns in a nice performance as the doctor/amateur sleuth. It really shouldn't work as well as it did but I was engaged throughout and found in moderately entertaining. Not great but I think worth checking out.

"Death Cruise" (1974) is one of those nice little mysteries that follows the tradition of "Ten Little Indians" and Agatha Christie. The story follows three couples (one old, one middle age, and one young) who have seemly won a free cruise from the same contest that none of them can remember entering (never an encouraging sign in this type of movie). And sure enough, faster than you can say Sherlock Holmes, they quickly discover that it was all a ruse to get them on board as one by one, they all begin to meet their ends at the hands of a murderer. The one hope that might save them comes in the form of the ship's good doctor, Dr. Burke (Michael Constantine) who takes on the role of the amateur detective very competently. All of the actors play their parts very well, with Tom Bosley and Cheleste Holm as the older couple who are struggling to find their way now that their children are all grown up, Richard Long as a philandering husband and Polly Bergen as his poor wife, along with Edward Albert and Kate Jackson as a young couple just starting out, and Cesare Danova as the ship's captain. All of this, plus an enormous twist ending that Alfred Hitchcock himself might have appreciated, make this a nice pleasant movie to watch, especially if you like to dream of a simpler time, like the 70s. Catch it on you tube sometime. 8 out of 10.