Decoy

Hitch over the years did some experimenting on his tv show, from soap operas to noirs, and this noir-ish drama is extremely entertaining, much credit going to Oscar nominee (the DEFIANT ONES) Cara Williams.

Cara appeared in some fine dramatic roles, also with a flair for comedy. She gets the job done here playing a singer who may have an abusive husband, and how many singers in noirs had terrible relationships. The Hitch catch is we really don't know the whole story, all because her musician friend, Gil (Robert Horton) pays a visit to her husband -- who gets killed. Dead men tell no tales. The murder is pinned on him, the perfect fall guy.

Now it's up to Gil to clear his name, and comes the slick part of the story -- which all us noir buffs love -- putting a giant jigsaw puzzle together which includes his gal pal. You can well see why Cara Williams was cast in this role, likely one of her best tv performances. You be the judge.

Written by Bernard Schoenfeld, who wrote quite a few classy B films and cop shows. The only debit, and I agree, this should have been re-made for Hitch's hour long tv series, the story had more to it, particularly all the questions about her late husband. Considering Schoenfeld wrote it, the script may have originally been intended for a full length movie, paired down for tv.

Early role for Frank Gorshin, always fun to watch, and Philip Coolidge (a Hitch favorite), this time playing a cop. That's a switch.

SEASON 1 EPISODE 37 remastered Universal dvd box set. All seven seasons are now on dvd in a single box set. Released 2022.

Gil Larkin (Robert Horton)is suspected of murder when Mona Cameron's allegedly abusive husband is shot dead in front of him and he gets knocked out by an unknown assailant. He wakes up with a gun in his hand. He determined to find the real killer.

Fairly involving story that is competently made and well acted, especially by Wagon Train star Robert Horton. His depiction of a character trying to clear his name for murder is convincing. The finale ends things in a satisfactory manner. However the episode isn't too remarkable, and plods on at times. The Hitchcock introduction is amusing as ever with his dry humour.

Average episode, but average for Hitchcock still means entertaining with a twist. Piano player and arranger Gil Larkin (Horton) has secret crush on song bird Mona Cameron (Williams). The trouble is she's married to a high-powered businessman, so Gil's left to pine away until he finds a bruise on Mona's arm. Convinced that husband is abusing her, he confronts Cameron in his office. There, however, he's slugged, and Cameron is shot by an unknown assailant. Now the cops will think Gil did it and he's got only a few hours to clear himself.

Gil's search is fairly suspenseful, but what I like is the effort to make it unusually colorful. His first stop is a Japanese Kabuki theatre— not exactly a staple of 50's programming—where the two interviewees argue tantalizingly in Japanese, while he's left to puzzle it out. Then, in deep contrast, he goes to a very 50's record hop, where the DJ (Mullaney) sounds like he's only one step away from the funny farm. Two very clever venues for TV of the day.

Horton was an early Hitchcock favorite. Nonetheless, the hunky actor is somewhat miscast as a muscular piano player, but is clearly on his way to bigger roles, which he would get on the long-running Wagon Train series. Mullaney was another early Hitch favorite, unsurprisingly, since he was adept at the kind of offbeat characters the series specialized in. Here his nervous giggle comes across as a neurotic defense mechanism and there's something satisfying in Gil's finally manhandling his giggly evasions. And, of course, there's Cara Williams who, along with Patricia Berry, seemed to have a monopoly on the archly feminine of the day. Anyway, it's an entertaining , if unmemorable, half-hour with a better-than-average Hitchcock epilogue.

I enjoyed the episode. I love seeing Cara Williams anytime. She was always hilarious in "Pete and Gladys". But my interest here is in a classic character actor, Philip Coolidge, who plays the police Lieutenant. He made a memorable twilight zone episode in which he was very cross and disagreeable until he would hear a player piano playing, then he became very kind. He has a very unusual appearance, which suits him well for the various roles in different shows of the time. What I noticed in this show, but I think he does in every role he plays, it's his way of closing his eyes just as he begins to talk! Very unusual and effective!

"Decoy" is another one of those 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes with a quite interesting premise, especially if it is a type of story that is up your alley (like with me), but also one that is fairly familiar (with it sounding like the sort of story you'd see in an early Hitchcock film). My main reasons for seeing it were that it featured quite a few Hitchcock regulars and also to see all the episodes of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents', which was of inconsistent but solid quality up to this point.

As far as the series and Season 1 go, "Decoy" is one of the middle of the pack outings. There are worse episodes on both counts (meaning of both the series and Season 1), but also a lot better likewise. This is an episode that is worth watching and is not a bad outing, there is just nothing special about it either. The premise intrigues, but "Decoy" could have done a good deal more with it. This is all personal taste though that will be agreed with by some but disagreed with by others.

While there are better looking episodes of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' definitely, "Decoy" does have some nice slickness and atmosphere. Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette" is still made iconic use of for the main theme. When used, the music is suitably ominous without being over emphasised. Hitchcock's bookending is suitably dry humoured in both writing and delivery.

The script has some tautness and intelligence and the story has some nice suspense early on. The acting is very good from all, particularly from Robert Horton with touching Cara Williams close behind, and it is directed assuredly enough.

On the other hand, "Decoy" agreed would have benefitted from being longer. It did feel rushed and like there was too much crammed in, which meant that not everything had clarity and it could have had more depth. The suspense could have been more in the slightly too coincidence-heavy second half and personally did think that the ending was not that much of a surprise.

It is agreed too that the sets do look sparse and under-budgeted side.

Concluding, worth watching if unexceptional. Had good potential early on that wasn't carried all the way through. 6/10.