The F.B.I. is probably the most interesting show I've ever seen on TV. I guess I find the cases and the way they are investigated with detail interesting. It's like Dragnet without the humor added. There is some humor here and there and I like that. The episode is very good because of the casting. We have one of my all time favorite actors Michael Rennie(the last role he ever did on TV). He plays a retired U.S. diplomat. We also have the very beautiful Claudine Longet(Andy Williams wife at the time), Russell Johnson(Professor from Gilligan's Island) & a young Harrison Ford playing Michael Rennie's son. The story revolves around Russell running an espionage ring and befriending Michael Rennie in the process. Claudine befriends Michael Rennie and Harrison Ford along the way and then she comes to visit Michael to really help out Russell with his espionage ring. They don't count on Harrison being in the mix and he is suspicious of her. Inspector Erskine comes in undercover as a newspaper writer to try and find out what's going on. Harrison finds out what Claudine is up to and Russell finds out and tries to kill Harrison. Claudine tries to gain secret information from Michael. Erskine gathers enough evidence to arrest Claudine. They also capture Russell in a shootout at the end. Claudine does a really nice job in her part. You can hardly believe she is a criminal. Great episode and my personal favorite.
2 Reviews
Interesting and worth seeing....but also a bit sloppy.
planktonrules13 January 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The biggest reason to watch "Caesar's Wife" is to see a very young Harrison Ford in a supporting role. Otherwise, it's interesting but also a rather sloppy show.
The episode begins with a man being killed while trying to bring information to the US embassy in Paris. On his possession is a photo of Danielle Chabrol (Claudine Longet) and the implication is that she might be a spy. When the FBI checks on her, they learn that she recently left Paris and is in Honolulu. It seems she's there to see Eric Severson (Michael Rennie), an elderly diplomatic official. The man's son (Ford) is dubious as he knows the lady and thinks she's up to no good. Erskine uses this to his advantage in order to get near Danielle and to observe her.
The general plot is interesting. But the film is sloppy in several ways. The use of doubles in fights is pretty poor and it's obvious that they are stuntmen. Also, while the story is set in Hawaii, it's pretty obvious they filmed some extras in Hawaii and the rest was made in Los Angeles. Now I do NOT expect the crew to all head to Hawaii because it's a weekly series...but they didn't hide it very well. First, Colby meets Erskine at the airport in Oahu, but the windows go from all the way up (when the extras are in the car) and on close-ups they're down and you can see Erskine and Colby....and they then are inexplicably up again as the car rolls away. There wasn't time to put the windows up and down...it's just some bad editing. There also are redwood trees on the estate in Honolulu...a tree that doesn't grow there and takes a LONG time to grow.
However, the biggest problems are in the story, where the plot occasionally lets you down...such as how quickly Danielle turns on her partner....which makes no sense in light of her previous actions. The arrest along the cliffside near the end is also very sloppily done...and I cannot imagine an FBI agent doing this. There are a few other problems as well....but I don't want to get into too many, as I still managed to enjoy the episode. The actors were good and I really enjoyed seeing Russell Johnson (the Professor from "Gilligan's Island") playing such a vicious man.
By the way, if you don't know much about Miss Longet, try reading up on her....she lived a VERY unusual and interesting life.
The episode begins with a man being killed while trying to bring information to the US embassy in Paris. On his possession is a photo of Danielle Chabrol (Claudine Longet) and the implication is that she might be a spy. When the FBI checks on her, they learn that she recently left Paris and is in Honolulu. It seems she's there to see Eric Severson (Michael Rennie), an elderly diplomatic official. The man's son (Ford) is dubious as he knows the lady and thinks she's up to no good. Erskine uses this to his advantage in order to get near Danielle and to observe her.
The general plot is interesting. But the film is sloppy in several ways. The use of doubles in fights is pretty poor and it's obvious that they are stuntmen. Also, while the story is set in Hawaii, it's pretty obvious they filmed some extras in Hawaii and the rest was made in Los Angeles. Now I do NOT expect the crew to all head to Hawaii because it's a weekly series...but they didn't hide it very well. First, Colby meets Erskine at the airport in Oahu, but the windows go from all the way up (when the extras are in the car) and on close-ups they're down and you can see Erskine and Colby....and they then are inexplicably up again as the car rolls away. There wasn't time to put the windows up and down...it's just some bad editing. There also are redwood trees on the estate in Honolulu...a tree that doesn't grow there and takes a LONG time to grow.
However, the biggest problems are in the story, where the plot occasionally lets you down...such as how quickly Danielle turns on her partner....which makes no sense in light of her previous actions. The arrest along the cliffside near the end is also very sloppily done...and I cannot imagine an FBI agent doing this. There are a few other problems as well....but I don't want to get into too many, as I still managed to enjoy the episode. The actors were good and I really enjoyed seeing Russell Johnson (the Professor from "Gilligan's Island") playing such a vicious man.
By the way, if you don't know much about Miss Longet, try reading up on her....she lived a VERY unusual and interesting life.
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