Opera singer Tony Risanti is decrying his own ability to a tramp he has met. He tells the tramp that he will kill him and use his body to fake his own death but the tramp is too drunk to take any notice. Soon after he knocks him out. Tony goes through with his plan and seemingly "dies".
Action then switches to a starring performance years later by another opera singer - Anna Cartell who was married to Tony until his apparent "death". Anna seems to have the musical world at her feet and is soon to marry high-flying American diplomat Hal Bridie. So far, so good. The only slight problem is tension with her protective manager Sam when she tells him of her plans to retire when she marries Hal.
However when inspecting a new house she hears a man singing and is shocked to see her husband Tony who she had presumed long dead. He tells her that he faked his death and now intends to return, spelling scandal for Anna and her husband-to-be. He will disappear though if she pays him - blackmail. Anna adopts another response but it is one that only deepens her predicament...
Review
My first exposure to Thriller was reading the excellent story synopses in Ian Kerr's Timescreen article. This was one of the very few (A Midsummer Nightmare was another) that I didn't find particularly enticing. It was one of the episodes I was least eager to see and maybe unsurprisingly when I did finally see it some years later my expectations were not confounded; it's also fair to say it hasn't fared too well in the estimation more generally of fans. However it is better than might be supposed and is especially one of those instalments that profits from further viewing.
The comparison with A Midsummer Nightmare is informative. I have always linked these together: In addition to the link mentioned above they both come from the final series and have a cultural backdrop - theatre in the case of Midsummer and opera in this instance. In addition both are quite slow-paced, downbeat tales. Neither has had a particularly good reception although this episode has tended to be even less favourably judged.
For me however this story has the edge although neither enthuses me greatly. I can certainly credit it with inspiring my interest in Mozart arias and listening to some of those superb pieces it's hard not to link them to this episode. The tale of blackmail and guilt is firmly within Thriller territory even if the setting is unusual. Right from the off, a remarkable number of story elements echo previous episodes. Features from The Colour Of Blood, Lady Killer (most notably the faked death at sea), Once the Killing Starts, If It's a Man - Hang Up! and The Next Voice You See can all be found. Viewers may be divided on such recurrences. Some, like myself, may see them as welcome reminders. Others may see them as derivative or examples of uninspired writing. It has to be said that it would be difficult to write entirely original stories but this one probably has the most borrowings.
The teaser is the longest seen in the show - lasting around seven minutes - and is more of a broad introduction than the usual lightning grab for viewer attention. It's a decent start but indicative of the slow pace and atmospheric approach seen later. Tony's return from the dead and subsequent blackmail of Anna are both handled quite well. Tony is a dangerous and exploitative man but one can't help feeling he is trapped by circumstances, even if they are of his own making. Anna is also trapped. She has done nothing wrong but is desperate to protect her future husband and avoid scandal. Like many people in a terrible predicament she attempts to cover up and reluctantly play along with wrong-doing and just digs a deeper hole for herself.
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| Tony (Keith Baxter) makes Anna (Susan Flannery) an offer he feels she cannot refuse |
Anna also has to contend with the questionable motivations of her manager Sam. On the surface Sam is very dedicated towards her (and possibly loves her), His desire for her to keep working and not retire might be seen as him not wanting her musical talent to be lost but his motivation may also be more mercenary - Anna is clearly a very lucrative client. Does he really have her best interests at heart and how far will he go to keep her working?
The story improves as it goes along as Anna struggles to cope with the disturbing events and machinations around her. The climax is interesting but is probably the most low-key ending of all. The final series had a number of endings which were somewhat subdued, moving away from the often very dramatic but also arguably formulaic conclusions that predominated beforehand. The effort to do things differently is commendable but all the same these endings often feel a bit flat and underwhelming.
It is hard not to feel great sympathy for Anna, a genuinely warm person at the peak of her career, who is tormented by two men dear to her. Susan Flannery is very impressive in this demanding part and is one of the unsung (no pun intended) Thriller heroines. Sam and Tony are intriguing characters, particularly the former. Sydney Tafler gives a very fine display and carries off the American accent with tremendous aplomb. For many viewers Stuart Damon as the authoritative Hal Bridie will be a very welcome sight in one of his last roles before returning to the USA.
A very notable aspect is that this must be the darkest - in a literal sense - story. Almost every scene takes place in dimly-lit rooms, theatres or in the unlit house of Hal and Anna at night-time. It does help to create a melancholy ambience in this under-rated if far from outstanding story.
Notes
The ITC movie titles are, along with The Colour of Blood, one of the "hammer" category. This makes even less sense than in the earlier episode. The titles appear to recreate a violent incident from the episode (with lots of pink blood!) but in a quite inaccurate way. The titles appear to be simply offering some cheap, nasty and very misleading violence although as is the way with these things they may for all that encouraged curious viewers to keep watching although what they saw would be far more understated.
In the movie titles' favour though they do feature in my view some fine music including an excellent atonal piano piece over the end credits which unfortunately hasn't yet been identified. The movie title of "Melody of Hate" is probably an improvement on the cumbersome alliteration of the ATV version.
Richard Lewis and Teresa Cahill are credited for supplying the singing voices of Tony and Anna. They are two of three musicians credited in the series (the other being jazz pianist Stan Tracey on The Next Voice You See).
Peter Hill who played estate agent Purvell had previously appeared in another episode directed by John Scholz-Conway - Good Salary - Prospects - Free Coffin. Scholz-Conway had also directed an earlier episode featuring an estate agent and an empty house - Killer with Two Faces.
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