1968·Crime·1h 40m
7.1
★
In Columbo's first outing, a psychiatrist uses a patient he is having an affair with to help him kill his wife, but his perfect alibi may come apart at the hands of a seemingly befuddled LAPD lieutenant.
Directed by Richard Irving
detective
investigation
murder
mistress
psychiatrist
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Cast
Peter Falk
Columbo
Gene Barry
Ray Flemming
Katherine Justice
Joan Hudson
William Windom
Burt Gordon
Nina Foch
Carol Flemming
Virginia Gregg
Miss Petrie
Andrea King
Cynthia Gordon
Susanne Benton
Blonde
Ena Hartman
Nurse
Anthony James
Tommy
Frank Baker
Man in Park (uncredited)
Clark Howat
Doctor (uncredited)
Crew
Richard Irving
Director
Dave Grusin
Original Music Composer
Richard Irving
Producer
Bud Westmore
Makeup Artist
Jerrold Freedman
Associate Producer
Popular Reviews
50 reviews
Harry WallacePRO
9.0★ · 06/14/26
Columbo has like 80 Akinator has you moments in this, he is GOATed and I might pursue a career in detecting and smoking cigars now
Columbo has like 80 Akinator has you moments in this, he is GOATed and I might pursue a career in detecting and smoking cigars now
PixelPyro
7.0★ · 04/05/26
Nice little murder mystery, if you want to call it that. It was really fun seeing the deduction and seeing everything really planned out and I think there were really some good twists and turns throughout this film. I really enjoyed Gene Barry and Peter Falk in this, it really makes me want to actually check out the Columbo TV show.
Rating: high 7/10
Ranking: #846/2,101
845 - Speak No Evil (2024)
846 - Prescription: Murder (1968)
847 - Wendell & Wild (2022)
Rating: high 7/10
Ranking: #846/2,101
845 - Speak No Evil (2024)
846 - Prescription: Murder (1968)
847 - Wendell & Wild (2022)
Nice little murder mystery, if you want to call it that. It was really fun seeing the deduction and seeing everything really planned out and I think there were really some good twists and turns throughout this film. I really enjoyed Gene Barry and Peter Falk in this, it really makes me want to actually check out the Columbo TV show.
Rating: high 7/10
Ranking: #846/2,101
845 - Speak No Evil (2024)
846 - Prescription: Murder (1968)
847 - Wendell & Wild (2022)
Rating: high 7/10
Ranking: #846/2,101
845 - Speak No Evil (2024)
846 - Prescription: Murder (1968)
847 - Wendell & Wild (2022)
serp
7.0★ · 03/23/26
holy falk this guy’s good
holy falk this guy’s good
Chiharu
6.0★ · 03/16/26
My dad really likes Columbo but I had never watched any of the episodes before so I was a bit surprised by the format of the murder where the viewer is immediately aware of who had committed the murder and it was more of a perspective of finding out how Columbo was going to figure it out. I didn’t expect that ending where Joan was listening in the whole time. Overall, I did enjoy this, I think Columbo is rather witty and I love the aesthetic of the film, some of the locations in the movie are quite pleasant (like the hotel near the end of the movie that Dr.Ray was at) and the grain you can see from the film, it's all so beautiful, nice movie!
My dad really likes Columbo but I had never watched any of the episodes before so I was a bit surprised by the format of the murder where the viewer is immediately aware of who had committed the murder and it was more of a perspective of finding out how Columbo was going to figure it out. I didn’t expect that ending where Joan was listening in the whole time. Overall, I did enjoy this, I think Columbo is rather witty and I love the aesthetic of the film, some of the locations in the movie are quite pleasant (like the hotel near the end of the movie that Dr.Ray was at) and the grain you can see from the film, it's all so beautiful, nice movie!
coby
6.0★ · 02/22/26
columbo is easily the coolest guy in any scene, and also like kind of a little freak
columbo is easily the coolest guy in any scene, and also like kind of a little freak