Exceptional movies are dependent on exceptional and intriguing characters. In my thoughts of great characters, I began looking through the characters of past films looking for the best, my favorites. The one that stood out most is actually from television created by Peter Falk in Columbo(he won five Emmys of 12 nominations).
For those of you who are not familiar with Columbo, you are probably familiar with the classic detective character Peter Falk helped create with Columbo (along with Humphrey Bogart as Phillip Marlow in those classic noir films). You know the sloppy, unkempt but clever detective in the ragged raincoat smoking a cigar.
The Columbo character as written in the Columbo script was originally based on the Porfiry Petrovich character in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. What made Columbo such a great person, a great detective was everything Falk brought into him. Columbo is shaped by the character of Falk.
The costume came from Falk’s own wardrobe. That classic Peugeot Columbo drove and took pride in—Falk picked it. That glass eye and stare is also Falk’s own.
The humor of Columbo is in his humble and hidden cleverness and wile. One of my favorite Columbo quotes comes when a villain remarks, “Listen Columbo, just for a minute how about we stop pretending that I'm brilliant and you're simple!"
Then there are his fears: his fear of water “I can't swim, I don't even like a deep tub,” his fear of heights “My ears pop in an elevator. As a matter of fact I don't even like being this tall,” and his fear of guns.
Falk as Columbo is just plain likable, relatable, persistant and real. He has his coat, his car, his dog and his wife and is comfortable in who he is and in what is familiar and broken in and he becomes a familiar and broken in friend.
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