Dangerous Davies: The Last Detective (1981)

I watched the original broadcast of this television film which got a big build up on ITV. I even recall while promoting this film, Bernard Cribbins got cornered by Eamonn Andrews for This is your Life.It suspiciously looked like pilot for a television series that never materialized well not until it was rebooted over two decades later with Peter Davison in the lead role.Cribbins plays Dangerous Davies. A tenacious detective, regarded as a plodder, he drives a vintage car and accompanied by a big dog. Sometimes his best friend played by Bill Maynard helps out.Right from the initial scenes he ends up getting beaten up, so appears in bandages, gets beaten up again and progressively gets bandaged up more and more. Not sure how he survived the multiple baseball attacks. By the end of the movie he is in a wheelchair and bandaged almost head to toe.Davies is asked to investigate a 15 years old cold case, the disappearance of a teenage girl who might had been raped and killed. Davies is doggedly determined to get to the bottom of the case.The film had an uneasy mix of comedy and dark drama which is probably the reason why it never became a series. It also relied on too many plot contrivances and you are left wondering why this case was left unsolved for so long as Davies seems to have solved it rather too easily which kind of points towards some dirty cops.The film has a nice mix of well known faces such as Joss Ackland, Pam St Clement and Maureen Lipman as well as actors who were well known at the time but some of them are no longer with us.I recall enjoying the film at the time but now does not stand up too well as a drama outside its nostalgia.

I remember watching this as a 9/10 year old and was a bit spooked by it. The odd characters, the music, the feeling (even then) that the comic aspect to it sat uneasily next to main story of the murder/rape of a young woman.Watching it again recently (on DVD), I now see the naivety of it, the lack of political correctness, the slightly perverse emphasis on the young woman's sex life & her underwear, the painting by numbers plot continually has to circle itself. It's all a bit cack-handed, but scores points for its nostalgic portrayal of what comedy/drama/suspense was like on TV in the late 70's/early 80's.It also scores heavily for its cast. Although the story development is risible, the actors play it mostly straight (save perhaps Lipman).very watchable, but if it was on TV now, you'd want your licence fee back.

Back in my teens I became a big fan of the novels of witty Welshman Leslie Thomas. Rude but never sleazy, funny, bordering on slapstick but never becoming childish, emotive without being mawkish and dramatic enough to make you care. Very few of Thomas' novels appear to make their mark on screen and I reckon that's because too much of Thomas' work would have to be cut, leaving what remained on screen too uninvolving. The Peter Davison TV series of recent years has been OK - I like Davison and that show has been a decent comedy drama but it has rarely felt like classic Thomas. It has taken me some 25 years to view the Cribbins version and I love it! It really is a top class effort that makes the most of everything that made Thomas so great in the first place. The film may look a little dated now but rather than spoiling it, this simply makes the whole thing more nostalgic. And what a cast! A cavalcade of British TV screen greats including Maureen lipman, Bill Maynard, a future Doctor Who and a future Eastender. Check this one out if you are proud of your Brit heritage - if you're an American who likes our sense of humour - and there seems to be quite a few of you - then you'll love it too.

This film maintains a great atmosphere while the detective encounters a variety of characters in his investigation of a case. For anyone who wants a taste of England that is not glamorous or rural or grimly urban, this is the movie to see. It's full of regular folks. Plus, the plot is well constructed (with only one rushed development) and unfolds nicely. Bernard Cribbins is an appealing actor, playing a plodding copper with a light touch. Very amusing moments at times, which contrasts with another mood, that of youthful happiness -- now lost. I'm convinced that this could have been expanded into an even longer film (or 3-part TV show). It's that kind of story, with interesting characters you want to see more of. Loved the old man! I stumbled on this as a late night broadcast and just happened to record it (with commercials). Boy was I glad I did! It appears to be unavailable for purchase.