IMDb > Columbo: A Trace of Murder (1997) (TV)

Columbo: A Trace of Murder (1997) (TV) More at IMDbPro »

Overview

User Rating:
7.0/10   353 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 12% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Vincent McEveety
Writers:
Richard Levinson (creator) &
William Link (creator) ...
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Contact:
View company contact information for Columbo: A Trace of Murder on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
15 May 1997 (USA) more
Genre:
Crime | Mystery | Drama more
Plot:
A millionaire's being threatened with a lawsuit by a man he did business with. When he gets into a fight with the man... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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User Comments:
Not bad, but the ending drags more (15 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Peter Falk ... Columbo

David Rasche ... Patrick Kinsley
Shera Danese ... Cathleen Calvert

Barry Corbin ... Clifford Calvert
Raye Birk ... Howard Seltzer
Will Nye ... Officer Will

John Finnegan ... Barney
Franklin Cover ... Harry Jenkins
Alice Backes ... Harriet Jenkins

Dion Anderson ... Stuart March

Donna Bullock ... Tracy Rose

John F. O'Donohue ... Doherty

Dyana Ortelli ... Colenari

Kymberly Newberry ... District Attorney (as Kymberly S. Newberry)

Maury Sterling ... Store Clerk
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Additional Details

Parents Guide:
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Runtime:
USA:120 min (including commercials)
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Stereo
Certification:
UK:PG
Filming Locations:
Los Angeles, California, USA
Company:
Universal TV more

Fun Stuff

Goofs:
Continuity: When Cathleen is talking about the murder to Patrick, he takes a black Swiss Army knife to open a bottle. In the next picture when he has the bottle opener screwing into the cork the knife is red. more
Quotes:
Lt. Columbo: Three eyes see more than one. more
Movie Connections:
Follows "Columbo" (1971) more

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User Comments

   (Comment on this title)
2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful.
Not bad, but the ending drags, 26 December 2002
Author: bregund from San Francisco

Let me say this right off the bat: the two worst actresses in the world are Kate Capshaw and Shera Danese. Watching Danese's misplaced facial expressions, hammy acting, arm waving, and screechy voice sucks all the fun out of this Columbo film. She does absolutely nothing good with the plum role she's given. Bad director or bad acting? I tend to believe the latter.

Danese's acting aside, this is a pretty enjoyable Columbo film, well-paced and fairly involved. The joy of watching Columbo is wondering if he already knows who the killer is; in the 1970s films, you could never tell, and that was part of the fun. That sense of enigma is lost in these later films, especially in this one, where he doesn't realize it until well into the film. No matter what else he does, this is Peter Falk's signature role, and he has been a lucky actor for not getting typecast, given his variety of roles over the years.

All in all, I recommend this film as a worthy contributor to the Columbo legacy.

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