Lady in Waiting

PLOT: The repressed and overprotected sister (Susan Clark) of an ad agency executive murders her brother (Richard Anderson) and stages it as a mistaken burglary. This takes place right after he threatens to fire her fiancé who works for the company (Leslie Nielsen). She then morphs into a startlingly confident and ruthless power broker.

COMMENTARY: Clark is excellent as the stifled wallflower turned murderess with a semi-mad gleam in her eye while Nielsen is just as good in a convincing serious role. The intriguing plot is original (for Columbo, at least) and the way the rumpled gumshoe pesters the woman with details, even after an inquest declares the killing accidental, is gripping drama. So "Lady in Waiting" is on par with the stronger Columbo outings. But there are glaring plot holes that lower my grade...

Why is there no trace of blood on the floor where her brother falls on the floor? After all, she shot him three times. And why is there no line of blood leading to where the body is dragged, keeping in mind that she had zero time to clean anything up?

Furthermore, since when are American detectives allowed to freely march into a citizen's abode in the middle of the night and confront a suspect in her bedroom? Officers must knock before entering a home, declare their presence, and wait for the inhabitant to come to the door. This is called the "knock-and-announce" rule. The reason for this rule is to allow people a chance to respond so that violence can be avoided and privacy ensured, otherwise police can waltz right into any abode and watch individuals having sex, bathing or going to the bathroom.

Also, do detectives continue pursuing cases after the suspect has been declared innocent by a court of inquiry? Are they paid to keep harassing the individual or do they do this on their free time?

And doesn't Columbo take a great risk at the climax? After all, this woman has proven that she's a little sociopathic (to put it nicely) and more than willing to murder someone in cold blood. Yes, he takes a similar risk in "Columbo Goes to the Guillotine" (1989), but he was much older then and confident of his conclusions on the suspect's character based on decades of experience.

"Lady in Waiting" is an entertaining episode, but there are too many blatant plot issues.

GRADE: B-/C+

When the story begins, you see that a rich woman (Susan Clark) is struggling with a very controlling jerk of a brother (Richard Anderson)....who wants to micro-manage her life. However passive she seems, however, apparently Beth Chadwick has had enough...and soon she hatches her evil plan. She kills the brother and then pretends she shot him because she thought he was a burglar! Can she get away with it? And, does anyone care if she shot the brother?! I was actually rooting for this--especially after seeing her mother!!

Apart from the excessive use of weird electronic music throughout the episode, I enjoyed this one quite a bit. The story was mostly good, though the villain was a bit dumb later in the film....and did a lot to make herself look guilty. Still, an exciting story and well worth seeing.

Susan Clark plays an excellent murderess in this movie, stifled and controlled by her brother who manages the family business and the money. Her plan to break free of his control and take over the business herself is well worked out and seems foolproof, but one miscalculation leaves her having to improvise her way out one problem after another. Leslie Nielsen, as her lawyer boyfriend, turns in a fine performance, as he plays a sensible, serious role with humour but without the manic quality that has come to be his trademark. Peter Falk's Columbo does a good job worrying and nibbling at the truth, forcing the killer to come up with more lies and explanations, until the contradictions close in on her and she is caught. The viewer finds himself sympathizing with the murderer at the beginning, but her growing confidence and arrogance as she reaps the fruits of her crime succeed in making her downfall a satisfying one.

A few things are notable about this episode from the first season of the show. It was one of several Columbos written by that great TV writer, Stephen Bochco, and directed by that acting/producing legend, Norman Lloyd. Among many other career accomplishments, Lloyd had worked closely with (and presumably learned a few things about directing from) master director Alfred Hitchcock, as had the supporting actress who plays the mom of Sharon Clark's character here (and of her brother, the victim, Richard Anderson), Jessie Royce Landis (who played Grace Kelly's mom in "To Catch a Thief" and also Cary Grant's in "North by Northwest"). And an early, totally serious role is played by Leslie Nielsen. And the plot is a little different from the typical Columbo setup, in that not only do we the audience know "who dunnit," but all of these the other characters do, too, as Clark admits to it all right off the bat, claiming it was an (unfortunate and understandable) accident. But her excuse doesn't survive our beloved Lieutenant's intense scrutiny. I give this one an extra star for the never less than convincing Ms. Landis, who died just a few months after appearing in this episode.

As people know, I love Columbo and consider it one of the best detective shows ever even with one or two lacking episodes later on. Lady in Waiting is a very interesting episode in many respects. And it isn't just because it features the first female killer.

The episode is a little slow occasionally, and I felt the final solution could have been expanded a little more so that the evidence had more time to unfold.

That said, like all the Columbo episodes I was impressed with how it looked. The episode with its clever use of photography and striking locations and costumes does look great, while the music is quite effective and doesn't intrude with the tone of each scene. The writing is good and the story is clever and makes the most of a great idea.

The acting is fine. Peter Falk while more subdued(more to do with how Columbo is written than Falk himself) is still brilliant in the title role, staying true in character and delighting us once more with that quintessential catchphrase. Susan Clark is excellent as well, and I was further impressed with how she was developed in Lady in Waiting, she starts off as someone you sympathise with and are touched by and then quite suddenly she is like a different person, more ambitious and ruthless. Leslie Nielson is good in a different role to what I am used to seeing him in, but supporting wise Jessie Royce-Landis was the standout being wonderful as the domineering mother.

In conclusion, an interesting episode mainly in the show's first female killer and how she is written. 8/10 Bethany Cox