Volume 43 in the series of TWILIGHT ZONE DVDs presents two classic episodes and two relative rarities from the series. The first classic is the pilot episode, "Where Is Everybody?" This thirty-minute near-monodrama stars Earl Holliman as a man who inexplicably finds himself in a deserted town. Who the man is and how he came to be in the town appropriately remains a mystery until the episode's final scene. "The Eye of the Beholder," a classic from the ZONE's second season, was quite controversial when first shown. It is the story of a woman, Janet Tyler, who was born with a "deformed" face and is undergoing plastic surgery to make her face look "normal." The episode takes place in a dimly lit hospital, and Janet's face, as well as the faces of the doctors and nurses attending her, is not seen until the episode's last moments - which are some of the most shocking and thrilling in ZONE history.
Both of the classic episodes were written by Rod Serling, as was "A Thing about Machines," a timely (if somewhat silly) story about a man (Richard Hayden) who comes to a bad end due to his fear of technology. Richard Matheson's "A World of His Own," one of the ZONE's few comedies, is a delightful gem starring Keenan Wynn as Gregory West, a mild-mannered playwright who brings his characters to life by describing them into a Dictaphone. In the end, the playwright is granted well-deserved happiness with one of his creations.
The reason I give this generally fine disc four stars only is this: I feel that the presentation of "Where Is Everybody?" is marred by its introductory and ending narrations, which are given by an announcer who is not Serling. Every ZONE fan knows and loves Serling's spoken narrations for the episodes: his famous opening ones ("There is a fifth dimension, beyond that which is known to man..."; "You're traveling through another dimension..."; "You unlock this door with the key of imagination...") and his creative closing ones ("Where Is Everybody"'s begins, "Up there, up there in the vastness of space"). The narrations are not the same without Serling's voice - its sound and its memorable, clipped delivery. There were, in fact, two versions of "Where Is Everybody?" It is the first version, which was shown only to the series' prospective sponsors, that is presented here. The man who read the narrations originally was...well, just not Serling. This version also has dialogue in the first scene that was edited for the better-known second version - the one seen by the general viewing public. It is debatable which version of the script is better. But if you want to hear Serling speak his own narrations, I would suggest buying - or at least viewing - the second version of the pilot, available on the DVD "Treasures from THE TWILIGHT ZONE."
"Eye of the Beholder" and "World" are Classics!
This DVD has 2 Excellent episodes.I love "The Eye Of The Beholder" and "A World Of His Own".The other 2 kind of bored me(Yea I know,"Where Is EveryBody?" was the First Episode,and many like it),but it is frankly just Earl Holliman running around talking and whining to himself for 25 min,It is B-O-R-I-N-G.Being the First episode,you'd think they would have CHECKED the continuity when the camera shows Holliman tapping the glass gauge and cracking it in the close ups.Then when the camera pans away,the cracks are magically gone.The fourth episode,"A Thing About Machines",is a snoozerama.Fortunately,The 2 Middle Episodes,"Eye" and "World",make this a Great DVD to own.
Wish they were in order
Got all 43 DVDs (45 if you include the 2 "Treasures"). They are great and ALL 156 episodes are represented. The last reviewer somehow miscounted and thought two were missing. They are not missing. The "Passersby" is on DVD #6 while "Come Wander With Me" is on #41. Its terrific to finally have this great series on DVD, I just wish they appeared in order of release.
The performance of Donald Pleasance stands out in the four episodes from "The Twilight Zone" collected on Volume 41 of this DVD series. Robert Sorrells plays "The Mighty Casey," a robot that becomes the star pitcher of the last place Hoboken Zephyrs in this episode written by Rod Serling. However, when it is discovered Casey is a robot, it is ruled that he cannot play baseball unless he has a heart and it is up to his inventor, Dr. Stillman (Abraham Sofaer) to give him one. Jack Warden plays Manager Mouth McGarry, after Serling personally paid to have scenes reshot when the original actor died of a heart attack shortly after production. "The Might Casey" is a mildly amusing episode. "Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up" by Serling finds State Troopers following tracks from a U.F.O.... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Ida Lupino - Alvin Ganzer - Richard Donner - Allen Reisner - John Rich DVD Release Date: Released the 23 January 2001 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Trying to avoid an unhappy ending is the unifying quest of the main characters in the quartet of episodes found on Volume 25 of "The Twilight Zone" DVD series. "Execution," written by Rod Serling and based on an unpublished story by George Clayton Johnson, features Albert Salmi as Joe Caswell, about to be hanged for shooting a man in the back. Just before the noose tightens, Caswell disappears and then reappears in the laboratory of Professor Manion (Russell Johnson), picked at random by the scientist's time machine. Of course, escaping your fate is not that easy in the Zone. One of my all-time favorite character actors, Arthur Hunnicut, plays hillbilly Hyder Simpson in "The Hunt," a gem written by Earl Hamner, Jr. When his hound dog Rip dives into the water after a raccoon, Hyder... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Twilight Zone - Albert Salmi DVD Release Date: Released the 16 May 2000 Usually ships in 24 hours
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"The Chaser" Based on a story by John Collier, this comic tale of ill-gotten love features a spurned lover (George Grizzard) gaining the affections of his phlegmatic coquette (Patricia Barry) through the agency of a love potion--with not quite the delightful outcome he had expected. The bookish, wizened dealer in potions is played with crusty effectiveness by John McIntire.
"The Rip Van Winkle Caper" A criminal mastermind (Oscar Beregi) and his ruthless accomplice (Simon Oakland) steal a fortune in gold bullion, then go into suspended animation so they can enjoy their take a hundred years hence. Only the desert in which they wake up makes water more precious than gold. Splendidly acted by the two leads, though the episode's ironies are too easily... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Ida Lupino - Alvin Ganzer - Richard Donner - Allen Reisner - John Rich DVD Release Date: Released the 14 November 2000 Usually ships in 24 hours
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PRINTER'S DEVIL is funny as hell--Burgess Meredith submits an unmatchable performance for his final Zone appearance. The best one here, though, has to be PERSON OR PERSONS UNKNOWN. People often compare this one to Matheson's A WORLD OF DIFFERENCE, but I think Beaumont's take on the subject is even better. NIGHTMARE AS A CHILD is not bad at all, either.
THE REPORT CARD:
Printer's Devil: B+ (droll and thrilling at the same time!)
Person or Persons Unknown: A- (creepy ending)
Nightmare as a Child: B (cool idea for an episode) More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Twilight Zone - Burgess Meredith DVD Release Date: Released the 12 September 2000 Usually ships in 24 hours
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The three episodes featured in this volume of The Twilight Zone are either from the fourth or fifth seasons of the Zone, arguably the 2 worst seasons of the series.
"Miniature" hails from the hour-long episode season (the fourth). It tells the tale of a young man (Robert Duvall) obsessed with what he believes to be a living doll (Claire Griswold) residing in a doll house. While good, it, like most of the hour episodes, could probably been written to be shorter. I should state however, that it succeeds more than most of the hour episodes.
The last 2 episodes on the disc are from the fifth season.
"Stopover In a Quiet Town" stars Barry Nelson (James Bond in the TV adaptation of Ian Fleming's Casino Royale) and Nancy Malone as a squabbling couple who wake up after a late... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Ida Lupino - Alvin Ganzer - Richard Donner - Allen Reisner - John Rich DVD Release Date: Released the 15 August 2000 Usually ships in 24 hours
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