I Killed the Count: Part 1

The "I Killed the Count" three parter was a unique episode of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' up to this point of the series' run, with it being the only story arc to last for more than one part. Even after the series ended, it continued to stand out from the rest of the episodes due to how few times 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' did more than single parters. On the whole, it was a solid three parter, apart from feeling like it ran on for one episode too long and despite issues with pacing in all three parts.

"I Killed the Count Part 1" is a very strong and effective start for the "I Killed the Count" three parter. A first part of any story arc should have the main objective of setting things up, which "I Killed the Count Part 1" does incredibly well on the whole while also being a very solid episode in its own right. Not one of the best 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' offering or one of director Robert Stevens' best, but it hardly disgraces either (the complete anti-thesis of that).

So much is good. It is extremely well acted, especially from an exuberant and authoritative John Williams, a regular lead of the series, as a character that has a lot of presence and entertains from the get go. Can't fault his chemistry with Charles Davis, who holds his own. Alan Napier is great value. Hitchcock's bookending is entertainingly ironic and Stevens directs with good sense of style and assurance.

Furthermore, "I Killed the Count Part 1" is thoughtfully scripted, provoking a good deal of thought while also providing an equal amount of fun. It is shot slickly and atmospherically and the story engrosses right from minute one with not a dull moment. It also doesn't feel too predictable, already delivering on the twists and turns, and nothing feels silly or too rambling.

Did feel though that with such a lot going on that the episode did feel rushed at times and tried to include too much, some of what was the final act could have been as part of Part 2 quite easily and the end of Part 2 in Part 3 (which would have helped make that part a lot more eventful).

Also that some of the interplay between Williams and Davis occasionally over-explained.

On the whole though, a very well done set up part to a solid if flawed three parter. 8/10.

The story begins with the dead body the disreputable Italian, Count Mattoni, in a hotel room in London. The maid who discovers him, incidentally, is played by Pat Hitchcock, the director's daughter....and she appeared in quite a few episodes, often in small parts. The police inspector investigating is John Williams, who also appeared in tons of episodes as well as in "DIal M for Murder".By the time episode one has completed, you have two men who BOTH claim to have murdered Mattoni...a bit of a sticky problem for the Inspector, as both clearly did NOT kill the man.

Overall, it's hard to rate the entire story...I'll get to that a bit in part 3. But part 1 has very good acting and is very interesting. Where it all goes, you'll have to wait to see.

This three episode story is a real treat, if you admire good acting! A great many fine British actors in this, led by the truly great John Williams in one of his best efforts I have ever seen. Also, Alan Napier, distinguished actor, who, of course, gained more fame in America is the butler on the Batman tv series. The ending, as some other reviewers here have pointed out, is a slight disappointment, but all the entertaining work up to that point makes it very special indeed. Highly recommended!

OK, this silly site requires 100 or so more letters until I can post this, so I'll just tell you that I have really been enjoying watching these half hour "Hitchcock presents "on the ME TV network.. the half hours, with the exception of this trilogy of course, are so packed and concentrated that they never fail to entertain.

3 people confess to 1 murder and we learn why by the end of the last episode; I had already guessed it before the end of episode 1. Most of 90 minutes of this triplet consisted of the nearly futile combing over of various mundane details of the crime. Between the old-fashioned British accents and the somewhat distorted soundtrack (this was MeTV, but I suspect the other services get their content from the same old prints), it took a lot of concentration to make sense of the dialog, but most of what was discussed was just incidental to the real story. The story had potential, but by the end I was bored and happy only to see an ending I had already guessed. If this had been packed into an hour or a half-hour, it might have been worth watching.

It's hard to review a single twenty-five minute episode of an old TV drama. I mean, it's not exactly Star Wars or Lord of the Rings. In this episode we meet the first of the four murder suspects. He is a rich American who goes through the murder with some precision. The only thing that stood out to me was the mugging of British actor John Williams and his little sidekick who keeps analyzing his every move. Beyond that, we are introduced to the murder, find out a bit about the count (he, apparently was an ugly, grasping worm who always got what he wanted). I believe the whole thing could have been made a bit more fun by writing at least a post mortem flashback so we could observe his evil ways.