Customer Reviews

Columbo: Mystery Movie Collection 1994-2003

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Bearing his infamous rumpled trench coat and cigar, legendary Peter Falk returns for one last hurrah as one of America's favorite TV detectives--the disheveled-looking Lieutenant Columbo with the Los Angeles Police Department.

Since the show's inception on February 20, 1968 and March 1, 1971, with the two pilot episodes, "Prescription: Murder" and "Ransom for a Dead Man," one of the greatest shows in TV history appeared on NBC and the rest, as they say, is history. Peter Falk made the character of Columbo unforgettable in many people's eyes. And did so for eleven terrific seasons, including several made-for-TV movies, which at this juncture in an actor's career is beyond remarkable.

The eleventh and final season of Columbo contains many seasoned Hollywood actors and actresses who make a memorable appearance in these seven entertaining episodes. In the first excursion, "Butterfly in Shades of Grey," William Shatner (Star Trek, Boston Legal), tries to persuade the always persistent Lt. Columbo that he was not close to one of his staff members at the radio station, but who later turns up dead, a bullet in his back. "Undercover" involves a bank heist and guest stars "Cagney and Lacey's" Tyne Daly. In "Strange Bedfellows," Columbo faces difficulty when a corrupt horse breeder and a murdered bookie raises the lieutenant's curiosity. Guest stars George Wendt ("Cheers"). "A Trace of Murder" serves up Columbo a dealing of money and corruption. "Ashes to Ashes" stars two of Hollywood's marvelous stars, Rue McClanahan ("The Golden Girls") and Patrick McGoohan. When the disappearance of a gossip reporter becomes front page news, Columbo readily investigates. "Murder with Too Many Notes" pits Columbo against a murderous musical conductor. "Columbo Likes the Nightlife" brings Columbo's investigations to a melancholy end. He gets a rare look into the suspicious rave scene of Los Angeles.

Like in previous outings, the writing, stories, and acting are top notch, never altering. Peter Falk obviously adored the cigar-smoking man in the wrinkled coat. And for eleven wonderful years, there is no mystery why fans of the show never left their armchairs when Columbo graced their TV sets.

This DVD box set includes all seven TV movies, which were produced during 1994- 2003. Relive the bittersweet experience of one of the most endearing Hollywood actors in entertainment history. Watching Peter Falk deduce as Columbo is like slicing into a homemade apple pie right out of the oven: it is a warm taste of heaven.

"Butterfly in Shades of Grey": January 10, 1994
"Undercover": May 2, 1994
"Strange Bedfellows": May 8, 1995
"A Trace of Murder": May 15, 1997
"Ashes to Ashes": October 8, 1998
"Murder with Too Many Notes": May 12, 2000
"Columbo Likes the Nightlife": January 30, 2003

T.B. Grant
10/20/2011

The two later Columbo movie sets, 1991 through 2003, were cropped on the top and bottom so that the image will match the shape of a modern TV screen. (The two earlier sets, 1989 and 1990, were not cropped.) I really wish people would speak out against this reprehensible practice, which amounts to mutilating works of art.

. . . thank you! This will complete my Columbo collection! I have all boxed sets from the beginning and look forward to this ending. One of my absolute favorites in set is Ashes to Ashes. Rue McLanahan is a delight in this episode and as always Patrick McGoohan is his excellent acting self!

At last, my Columbo collection is complete. My DVD set arrived on Friday night and by Sunday evening I had watched every episode! Watching the series evolve over the years is similar to waiting for a bottle of fine wine to properly age. Peter Falk always stayed true to the character without ever becoming stale. In the later years, at an age where many people would be retired, his portrayal showed that becoming older does not mean becoming irrelevant; he always gave us such wonderful insight into the satisfaction of loving your work and always finding a new challenge. This last set of movies, which included guest stars from earlier episodes, is an entertaining, and yes, bittersweet farewell to our beloved Peter Falk and Columbo. What an amazing legacy he left for us to enjoy!

I am so glad this collection was finally released......I have collected all the episodes released over the years. Since no cable, local, or network channel shows Columbo episodes, I can watch when the mood hits me, and with no commercials. Although I have to say, the last seasons of these network movies were not as good as when the show was in production, nonetheless, I love the writing style and Peter Falk's performance. Any Columbo fan would want to have this mystery movie series as part of their collection. I especially enjoyed the last DVD...for I had never seen the last Columbo movie when originally released on TV.

Well Columbo fans, we waited patiently. As I write this I do not in fact have this collection on DVD which will be out in January, 2012. My review however is valid since I have seen and collected each Columbo episode on VHS tape.
So my review is anticipatory. Now my collection will be complete, having already purchased the earlier episodes, both from the 1968-74 years and the later years when Mr. Falk reprised his role as Lt. Columbo. Having every episode enables me to watch a different one each evening with my grown kids who were not around or were too young to appreciate this great series. One of the best TV shows of all time.

My husband and I really enjoy the Columbo series. I purchased each DVD set as it became available. It was a bit frustrating because the releases were fairly far apart, but at last, we own the entire collection. While there are several episodes I really enjoy, I think my favorite is part of this collection, "Murder with Too Many Notes." (I felt SO sorry for the victim and his girlfriend.) One of my husband's favorites, "A Trace of Murder," is included in this set as well. Not everyone enjoyed the later Columbo movies as much as the earlier episodes. Although they did change a bit over the years, my husband and I enjoyed them all. It was sad that Peter Falk passed away last year from Alzheimer's disease, but through Columbo, he will remain with us for a long time to come.

Colombo is great,the quality is still there after all the years. Good writing,acting and production. And always great guest stars. Fast shipping, great price.

First, I want to say that none of the episodes on this dvd set have ever before been released on dvd in America. Second, I wouldn't say that these episodes were "cropped". They are in widescreen format. Most tv's made after widescreen came out, have a settings option to view the tv in either a widescreen or full screen format. Third, I want to say that my husband and I love Columbo! This dvd set is awesome! Peter Falk is greatly missed.

Like the previous Columbo movies produced when the series returned in the late 80's, this final set is a mixed bag of the best and worst of the show.

The best: great guest stars, intriguing murders, and, of course, Peter Falk in his Emmy-winning role.

The worst, and that can be summed up in one word: bloated. As was the case in even the classic Columbo's, the better shows were the 90-minute ones, rather than the 2-hour movies.

The best of the seven installments in this compilation are "Butterfly in Shades of Grey," featuring William Shatner making a second murderous turn; "Strange Bedfellows," with "Cheers" George Wendt and Oscar-winner Rod Steiger; "Ashes to Ashes," guest-starring Emmy winners Patrick McGoohan and Rue McClanahan; and "Columbo Likes the Nightlife," the final installment, highly reflective of its contemporary setting.

While "Undercover" and "A Trace of Murder" have their moments, "Murder with Too Many Notes" is possibly the weakest Columbo ever produced. The episode really suffers from a mediocre script and an even more mediocre villain in the form of guest star Billy Connolly.

There are no extras in this set and it would have seemed fitting that Falk's widow, Shera Danese - featured in "A Trace of Murder" and three previous episodes - would have been asked to give some commentary on her husband and his long association as the detective.

Though he is no longer able to don the rumpled coat and finish smoking that cigar, we, his fans, can revel in the fact that every one of Falk's Columbo appearances can be viewed over and over again...and that, in itself, deserves a "just one more thing..."