I love this show and almost everything about it. From the opening cafe scene with the simple Nouveau grill-work door/window to the final stark fade-out, it's filled with great ideas, images, situations: the tomb of Yvette, the antique shop, Lloyd B. sitting in the dark in his room staring at the mirror, the fairy-tale ambiance as Yvette appears and lights the candles....all extremely well-done.
For some reason I missed this on its initial run back in '61; I caught it on its summer rerun, and the opening scared the %^#*& out of me! The gradual shadows that engulf David Frankham, the increasingly diabolical look on his face, etc....strong stuff for a 10-year-old back then.
Lloyd Bochner's performances always have...umm..perhaps just a slight whiff of HAM about them, and I'd say the same for his Cagliostro persona. However, to be fair, it's mighty tempting to overplay this sort of thing. Basically I think he pulls the overall role off very well. Marion Ross is great as the slightly daffy, befuddled, but hot-to-trot fiancee (I still don't understand their relationship and that of her brother; are they all shacking up together or WHAT?)
Much cool tension in the final build-up; the fight scene in the room, with the real Lloyd collapsing in desperation within the mirror is a GREAT concept and beautifully staged. Very impressive and unexpected conclusion.
I only wish that Herschel Daugherty had called for another re-take of Jack Mullaney's incredibly limp "You killed my sister" line; (Say..Jack,..could we try it again, with a little more feeling this time?).
Another wistful, romantic waltz score by Morton Stevens, with the stark strings and tolling chime lending a touch of solemnity to the final fade-out. Nice going!
PS--If you happen to have a lot of spare time on your hands, do a freeze-frame/slo-mo advance on the final shot of Lloyd Bochner's face turning into the skull; it's pretty darn cool, and gives an idea of the care that went into this relatively simple effect. LR