Reviews (73)

The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street 2 KA
Rod Serling was a very odd person. He went to school to become a P.E. Teacher and ended up wrighting over one hundred stories for T.V. One of these stories is Monsters Are Due on Maple Street. This story, as you've probably guessed, takes place on Maple Street. The characters Charlie, the annoying, smart-mouthed neighbor, and Steve, the actually intelligent neighbor, are two of the lead characters in the story. I think that if Charlie had only listened to Steve a lot of bad things wouldn't have happened.
I don't think this story was very realistic. In a real neighborhood people would go crazy just because the power went out and they certainly wouldn't think it was aliens that did it. People would say, "Oh, there goes the power again." Not "The electricity's off!!"(669). Oh no! The powers out! What are we going to do? (sarcastically) The electricity goes out in our neighborhood at least once every other month. Most people would be in side all day so only about three people would have seen the U.F.O. and they would have been kids. Who would believe them? I think the people in the story really over reacted.
There were a few parts of the story that were unbelievable, like when Mr. Goodman's car started. That was really weird. I really didn't see that coming. There was also when Pete Van Horn got shot. I didn't think anything like that would happen. I knew the ending couldn't be happy. The Twilight Zone never is. The stories always seem to be so tragic. What was Rod Serling thinking? He must have been a troubled child. Any way; I can't believe that Charlie actually thought that Pete Van Horn was a monster. "You killed him Charlie. You shot him dead!"(679) How dumb could he be?
I didn't really pick this story. Ms. Chabot told us to read it. I liked it though. I think it's funny to watch old science fiction shows. I laugh at the cheesy acting and the corny special effects. You can see the strings holding them in the air. I thought it was funny how one little boy made all the neighbors think that aliens were attacking their neighborhood. Nobody would believe that now-days. Maybe people were more easily convinced of those things fifty years ago.
I think the video Monsters Are Due on Maple Street and the teleplay Monsters Are Due on Maple Street are a lot the same. They used most of the same lines and used the same camera angles. Just like this line, "What was that? A meteor?" The story took a lot longer to read though. The video was only a few minutes. The book took days. It had more detail than the video did. Just like when they showed the space ship. You could see at least five strings coming off of it. Every body in the class laughed. It was really funny.

4jk
Rod Serling was a former boxer and a future PE teacher. He takes a path uncommon to jocks and science fiction. He wrote a movie called "The Monsters Are Due On Maple Street." The characters in this movie are: Charlie the wise-cracker know it all, Steve the wise one, Don the laid back one, Tommy the kid who knows what's gonna happen, Sally his mother, and Pete Van Horn a scientist. You don't here a lot about Pete Van Horn because he leaves Maple Street at the beginning of the movie because he goes to another neighborhood to see if the power is on there. It all happens on Maple Street, USA.

My feelings as I read this book were that I couldn't understand why everybody was fighting and blaming each other. It's like you wanna yell " Jiminy Christmas." It's like what Rod serling said, "The tools of conquest do not necessarily come with bombs and explosions and fallout. There are weapons that are simply thoughts, attitudes, and prejudice to be found only in the minds of men. For the record, prejudice can kill and suspicion can destroy and a thoughtless frightened search for scapegoat has a fallout all its own for the children... and the children yet unborn.
Pg [684.]

I wonder why the town is so peaceful, now and days you see kids about 13-16 on the street smoking, drinking and doing drugs. You might see parents telling there kids there grounded and then later you see the kids sneaking out the window. I mean come on who in the right mind would believe that? "Maple Street, U.S.A., late summer. A tree-lined little world of front porch gliders, hopscotch, the laughter of children, and the bell of an ice cream vendor." Pg [668.]

My favorite part of The Monsters are Due on Maple Street, is when everybody was accusing each other of who where the aliens. Everybody was bickering and fussing about this and that and everything that was going on. Tommy came running up the street yelling an alien is coming, so Charlie took his shotgun and shot what was coming up the street. It was Pete Van Horn, Charlie shot Pete Van Horn. [He swings the gun around to point it toward the sidewalk. The dark figure continues to walk towards them. The group stands there, fearful, apprehensive, mothers clutching children, men standing in front of wives. Charlie slowly raises the gun. As the figure gets closer and closer he suddenly pulls the trigger. The sound of it explodes in the stillness. There is a long angle shot looking down at the figure, who suddenly lets out a small cry, stumbles forward onto his knees and then falls forward on his face. Don, Charlie and Steve race forward over to him. Steve is there first and turns the man over. Now the crowd gathers around them.] Pg 679.

I felt that the book was good. It was very weird I wonder what's going to happen to all of the other people in the book. I wonder if the aliens are going to take over the whole world. Like hypnotizing all of the animals in the whole world to attack and kill all the people in the world except for one person to tell them how all humans lived and the aliens will all move down to earth and start living like humans. Then the whole world will never be the same again. Are you wondering what happened to that one guy? Well they kept him alive, and hypnotize him to think that the aliens are really humans and he married an alien, which he thought was a human. Are you wondering what happened to the animals? Well there alive to but the aliens experimented on them and mixed all of them up. It is freaky dude. I just hope that one of you aren't the one left not killed, because if I were I would just not feel right but I couldn't feel right because I would be hypnotized. Well I change my mind I would want to be the one left behind because I would act like I was hypnotized then I would get some weapons and kill all the aliens in the world. Then I would search all over the world and try to find pieces of the people that were killed then I would go to a lab and clone everybody so that all the people in the world would be back to life but they would be clones but I still would be happy because all of my friends, teachers, family members and other people in the world would be alive. But before I could clone people I would have to read the manual on how to work the cloning machine, then after I read that I would have to read the manual on how to clone people. Then I would fix all the animals back together. Wow! Sorry got off the subject there. Well the book was good I like it a lot I hope you like it to. So you have to read "Monsters are Due on Maple Street"

1VJ
"The Monsters are Due on Maple Street," is a classical episode of the Twilight Zone. I like how it showed that we can be prejudice and suspicious. It's also interesting how all the "monsters", or aliens, had to do was flick on and off a few lights to scare the people. Then the rest was the peoples own doing. The movie is very dramatic, and is almost exactly the same as the teleplay. The fact that it is in black and white makes it even more intense, in my opinion. The video and the teleplay both had the same scene of fright where the lights go out and nothing works. This then goes on to mass confusion, foreshadows the coming of aliens, and shows the weak points of the human race.
The plot advances with chaos. The people get scared and confused. They blame each other for having something they don't. This causes mass confusion and general panic. Things only get worse after that. One thing happens after another. The suspicious grows and the people get paranoid, until someone is killed. This person was Pete Van Horn. "You killed him, Charlie. You shot him dead!" (679)
As the plot advances they also foreshow what will come. The aliens are the ones who cause all the lights to fail, but the humans are the ones who became suspicious. This foreshadows the doom of the humans. The aliens plan to go from Maple Street to Maple Street and do the same to cause the fall of humans. "Then I take this place... this Maple Street...is not unique."
Rod Sterling's theme for "Monsters are due on Maple Street" is you shouldn't be too quick to judge people. Or be suspicious of people who have things you don't. Chaos supports this theme in showing how easily we can become suspicious of others. Then from there chaos and mayhem come. The theme could also be a kind of moral. "They pick the most dangerous enemy they can find... and it is them selves" (682) I think this quote is a good quote to describe the theme.
I think "Monsters are due on Maple Street" is really great. It has a wonderful plot. When I read the teleplay, I thought it was just like the other Twilight Zones. (I have seen a few others. One was about a man being in isolation.) I really enjoyed the Monsters are due on Maple Street. The teleplay was almost exactly like the movie or visa versa. My favorite part in this one was at the end where the sudden quietness is shocking. Then the aliens come and start talking, and it fades out to Sterling's face and he said his "And this is the Twilight Zone." I also like the beginning/ending songs. In conclusion I think the teleplay and the movie were both equally interesting.

The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street 1KC
" The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street"

Rod Serling, a screenplay writer for MGM in the 1950's wrote many famous science fiction teleplays, movies, Broadway shows, and television entertainment shows. Serling has won multiple Emmy awards for his work. He wrote 92 twilight zone episodes that were aired on CBS. They became one of America's most recognized, and most popular television series.
Some of Serling's most famous writings include: "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" and "Time Enough at Last". "Time Enough at Last" was written in 1959. I do not know when "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street" was written but I assume it was around 1959.
Rod Serling died on June 28th, 1975. He died during a coronary bypass operation in Rochester, New York. Rod Serling's stories of aliens and super natural happenings are entertaining for all to this day. His name will live on in science fiction history forever.
"The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", a teleplay and television entertainment show, was written by Serling in the nineteen fifties'. I love how Serling describes les Goodman's car starting up with no one in it (673). This event brings chaos and unproven assumptions. Other things, such as flickering lights, happen all down Maple Street. They are mostly all blamed on Les Goodman because of his insomnia. These things bring complete and utter chaos.
Confusion breaks free when all of the lights and appliances down Maple Street turn off and stop working (668-669). This advances the plot to confusion. Chaos doesn't come until Les Goodmans' car starts up with no one inside. People turn wild as new and crazy things happen down Maple Street. Sound effects in this section of the teleplay are screams, crying, and gunfires.
Other crazy things happen down Maple Street. Lights flicker, appliances turn on and off, and again chaos starts up (683). Mostly these things are blamed on Les Goodman. They think he is an alien because his insomnia sometimes wakes him up. So to occupy himself he takes walks at night and claims to be looking at stars. But the families all down Maple Street think he is looking for his alien friends. This foreshadows who is behind all of the chaos and confusion.
I thought Rod Serling's teleplay, "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street", was very realistic when referring to human nature. Even though it is believed that alien or outer space life forms are not real. The car starting then produces this assumption.
I thought it was interesting how Serling never gave a definite ending to "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street". He never gives a definite ending to the teleplay. I just assumed the chaos went on until every human life on Maple Street was dead or confused for their lifetime. Even though I am not into science fiction writings, I really enjoyed "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street". I would call this science fiction movie and teleplay one of the best from the 1950's.

1OE
The Monsters Due On Maple Street

"The Monsters Due On Maple Street" was probably the only kind of movie that was supposed to be scary back then. Since I'm in the year 2003 that movie was pretty dumb, but back in that time it must have been awesome. The aliens looked really dumb with those two antennas. I liked seeing all the fake shooting and killing. I can now see how far we have come with movies since then. The movie was confusing until the alien started to talk. They told their plan of taking over the Earth by flickering some lights and making some stuff mess up. When they said that, it put all the pieces of the movie together, and foreshadowed that the human race would end because of prejudice.
I think the way he ended the movie was great. He told about the plan and makes you think, could that happen to us? That is how he advanced the plot, he told the story about the alien's plan and then had them talk and tell how everybody is the same. He had the aliens take off saying they were going to take over the world just by sitting down. Then left for another place to terrorize.
When the aliens talk it foreshadows the Earth in complete destruction. Dying because of them assuming that their friends are the enemy, when really they are the most dangerous because they terrorize people as innocent as them. When the aliens talk they say the theme of how people can be so prejudice. "They find the most dangerous enemy they can find............and it's themselves" (682). It is the probably the best and easiest plan the aliens have ever come up with.
The theme in this story is not to be prejudice. My part advanced the theme by talking. The aliens tell their plan about using prejudice to destroy the humans. As much as that sounded stupid, it was smart. The aliens could actually make their plan work, and that is what The Monsters Due Maple Street shows. About everyone has a little bit of prejudice inside him. After reading the story, realizing the theme, and thinking about it, you will think could that happen to me?
The book and movie are so close to each other. You can read from the book and they will say almost all of the same lines in the movie. That is what helps me relate to the movie. I can just see if the picture was same in the movie as in my mind. In other movies they are far off from the book, so it changes the whole view of the story. The author picked a great way to show how everyone can be so prejudice. When I read the story I also was prejudice. I thought Charlie was the alien, but as I found out nobody was. That surprised me a lot. This was the first book that showed that nobody was the bad guy, and that made the story's end great. ... Read more

Reviews (24)

A fun WWII movie with great flying footage
Ditto to the reviewers who gave this film high marks for the great footage of the vintage RAF Mosquito fighter-bombers. The Mosquito was an exceptional aircraft, and 633 Squadron deserves praise for showcasing it.

As for the rest of the film, the story line staggers and doesn't fully develop. The end of the film does provide an exciting bombing run that results in the destruction of a Nazi fuel factory in a Norwegian fjord. But it then ends abruptly while there's still some story to tell.

The music fits in really well with the flying scenes. All in all, a fun World War II movie, but it doesn't rank as high when compared to others.

A MUST SEE FOR WW2 FILM FANS.....
It's already been said in other reviews posted here, but I just cannot overlook adding to it... Cliff Robertson plays WING CDR. ROY GRANT, the American commander of an RAF light bomber squadron who are given one extremely urgent mission: destroy a Nazi factory helping develop a weapon (an A-bomb?) that may threaten the pending Allied invasion of Europe. Working closely with the squadron is George Chakiris as LIEUT. ERIK BERGMAN, a leader of the Norweigan Linge. Those aerial sequences involving the actual Mosquito aircraft are a sight to behold and the special effects model use are adequate as well (remember this is 1964 vs. 1999). The Ron Goodwin score is a catchy one and keeps you glued as the climatic bombing mission unfolds. (This is probably where George Lucas got the idea for the Death Star finale in STAR WARS). Overall, I say this film is a must for those who love other mid-60's WW2 films like VON RYAN'S EXPRESS, THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN, THE BRIDGE AT REMAGAN.

Mossies and their crews are the stars
Okay, I admit it - I excuse all the obvious failings of this forty-year-old film already noted by other reviewers because of the airplanes. DeHavilland's experience building high-performance airplanes from the original naturally-occurring composite material (wood) conserved strategic materials and produced the fastest airplane in the world for at least two years running during World War II. One of the few successful airplanes designed after the beginning of the war to be produced in quantity (over 7700 in dozens of versions in six factories on three continents), the Mossie is truly the star of this film. We may not think much of most of the scenes on the ground, but losses were a grim reality. The determination of the crews to defend their homeland and fight to liberate others while coping with their own fear and mortality shows us the best qualities of that great generation. Even if some of the acting was as wooden as the airplanes.

My biggest complaint about the show was the actual destruction of two or three precious Mossies (Robertson's two prangs and another plowing into a fuel bowser). I second the craving for better sound - for those of you who can't get enough of the sound of a Merlin or two singing that most beautiful and alluring of mechanical siren songs, visit www.mossie.org, and go to "Donated Files." Scroll down to "Sounds," and get an earful. I turned up the computer speakers and played the "fly-past" clip, and my wife (upstairs in the bedroom) thought we had been buzzed!!

633 Squadron gave their lives for D-Day
633 Squadron is a great war movie to see. I read the back of my DVD version of this epic drama and I saw at the beginning of the story that the movie was based on a true story in WWII.
The Allies learn that the Nazis are building launch pads for their new V-1 rockets to launch againist the Normandy invasion, but the one thing that keeps them from launching is a special rocket fuel that they need from fuel factory located underneath a mountain inside a Norwegian fjord. The only way to stop the threat is send a group of Mosquito bombers to bomb the mountain because it has a earth fissure inside of it. If the bombers succeed, the mountain will bury the factory forever. Can Roy Grant and 633 Squadron pull it off? You'll find out in this exciting epic war drama. I recemend it for war movie buffs and model buffs too. Give this movie a try, those who liked Battle of Britain, will love this movie.

Give these planes the Oscar...
Loved this film when I first saw it as a 9-yo ww2 airplane-crazy kid at a neigbors house, none of the limited special-effects taint it then, anymore than they did 'The Battle of Britain'. This movie is based on a book of the same name, I've never read the book, cant name the author, but the mission itself is an imaginary-one, but does reflect bits and pieces of actual Mosquito-bomber exploits in ww2: the mid-film raid on the Oslo Gestapo building to kill their own captured Norwegian-resistance friend before he can give it up under torture was resembling a job Mosquitos did in both Oslo and Copenhagen Denmark-tragically also hitting a school and killing many Danish school-children in that otherwise successful raid. One other famous Mosquito exploit was the aptly-named 'Jericho' raid on Amiens medieval prison in the French countryside, to blow -down the walls and release French resistance fighters held by the Nazis.This raid is imitated in the later film 'Mosquito Squadron', with David McCallum, which is a perhaps inferior film to this one, and re-uses some of 633's canned Mosquito flying footage.
The film is a fair-classic of the genre and like the even more atmospheric and heady (and true-fact) 'Dambusters', has a memorable and rousing score, this one by Ron Goodwin, who wrote many scores for war-films-this would be the best one, and is worth checking-out on your legal pay music download site, frankly(winks)

The comments by people here concerning the special-effects are true,as Ive attacked to some degree the special-effects of 'the Battle of Britain', 633 has more excuse, would have been far less ambitious lower budget. But the twin-merlin Mosquitos are as gloriously acoustically and visually British as Dambusters Lancs and 'Battle of Brits' Spits and Hurricanes.
And '12 Oclock High's Fortresses, one might add.

George Shakira's casting as a Norwegian Resistance fighter(or any Norwegian!)goes down as one of the casting oddities of celluloid history.
If you havent seen it before, youll like it, if you love good airplanes, airplane footage and sounds, it'll probably actually get you high.

The remarks I saw here about the rationale of the Mosquitos wooden construction being about shortage of aluminium, well, cant rule it out totally,without loking into it first, but would point out that the specially glued plywood skin obviated the need for 100s of flush-rivets as metal-skin planes have, resulting in drag,and loss of speed, and this aircraft was conceived to be fast enough to evade enemy fighters by speed alone, without the need for defensive or offensive guns, which the bomber and recon glass-nosed Mosquitos actually were unarmed, and Luftwaffe found it almost impossible at first and always difficult to intercept them, even when they could see them comiing. Despite being wooden, they were also regarded as a remarkably sturdy aircraft that frequently returned with major battle damage. The Mosquito was also one of the few twin-engined planes which was claimed could not merely fly on one engine, but even climb comfortably with one engine stopped and 'feathered'. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

I just wanted to come back and hear the calliope
WALKING DISTANCE is probably the best episode ever produced. Gig Young acts out Serling's prose so perfectly that he speaks for every man that ever wished he could go home again. It is a very moving episode. Bernard Herrmann's score intuitively picks up the emotion and heartfelt sincerity that Serling wrote into this story. This was Rod Serling's, Bernard Herrmann's and Gig Young's finest work for any medium. I think it is the finest piece of work ever put on film. KICK THE CAN is thematically similar and also very moving. It examines what it means to grow old and if one must give up the very things that makes us who we really are. It too is a very heartfelt episode, sincere and remains one of the best.

Timeless and Forever.
Long ago when Television was young there were indeed programs of quality and value. One of the great icons of the era was for sure Rod Serling. Mr. Serling has been gone now since 1975...but his vision and talent and taste for the ironic live on in " Twilight Zone" episodes.

In "Walking Distance" Martin Sloan( Gig Young) gets to look back on his life in a very special way. A shock to himself when he sees himself, as a boy, carving names into a post on a gazebo..( a gazebo that could have been possibly in Serling's home town of Binghamton New York.

The quagmire of time and space are now imposed on Martin Sloan..and this unique teleplay is one of the best 26 minutes you might see on Television. The montage scene on the merry go round...the field is at first tilted...then corrects itself with a return to Mr. Sloan's reality..Frak Overton, Byron Foulger and Ronnie Howard round out the singular cast.

If this were all not enough, Bernard Herrman lends a most meloncholy score to the whole proceedings. This is what happens when great artists combine talents to produce something timeless.

Some " Wisp of Memory" indeed!

This tape has Serling's classic episode "Walking Distance"
In Rod Serling's classic episode "Walking Distance," Martin Sloan (Gig Young) leaves his car at the gas station and walks into his hometown, where suddenly everything is just as it was when he was a child. In fact, he encounters his younger self (Michael Montgomery), and has to come to terms with the fact that he has not been happy with his life for a long, long time. The episode, directed by Robert Stevens, is one of Serling's best evocations of nostalgia, with a cast that includes Pat O'Malley and young Ronnie Howard. "Kick the Can" was George Clayton Johnson's final script for the series, and was the episode adapted by Steven Spielberg in "Twilight Zone: The Movie." Charles Whitley (Ernest Truex) and his friend Ben Conory (Russell Collins) are residents of Sunnydale Rest, a home for the aged. Charles becomes convinced that the secret to being young is acting young, and one night he begs the others to join him for a game of kick-the-can. Everyone agrees to join in the game, except Ben. Because this is the Twilight Zone, this is a tragic mistake and one that Ben will regret the rest of his life. This is an okay episode, but not a classic like the first one on this tape.

Short subjects as timeless as their medium...
This is another fine package in the series, two classics that have obvious but effective stories to tell. "Walking Distance" is about Martin Sloan, successful in business but not successful in that walk of life that all men try sooner or later: trying to go home again. "Kick the Can" is an enormously moving and engrossing piece with Charles Witley dilivering the goods as an old man who refuses to die in Sunnydale Rest. He is a man who knows that he will die in this world if he does not escape...into the Twilight Zone. This is one you should see.

The Human Side to the Twilight Zone
Rod put a lot of humanity into these two episodes of the Twilight Zone. The first story deals with a man's return home to his childhood trying to find his younger self that he left behind. The second story deals with people in their senior years who play a game of "Kick the Can" and discover that being young and old is very closely linked, and not seperate. Even if you don't like science fiction, watch these two Twilight Zone stories, they are human stories. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The best television detective series ever made!
PETER GUNN remains a television landmark. A half-hour show with enough material for a feature film in every episode. A groundbreaking marriage of narrative and music--many scenes play like Henry Mancini music videos (from the era when Mancini was cutting great jazz tracks with talent like Shelley Manne). The series' low budget is cleverly disguised behind the minimalist film-noir atmosphere. Blake Edwards created the series in response to the poor television handling of his RICHARD DIAMOND radio show--many episodes were actually rewritten from RICHARD DIAMOND radio scripts! Edwards proved he was an authentic successor of Hammett and Chandler (simply working in a different medium). Gunn is sophisticated, amusing, classy, tough, and always likable. His friendly relationship with Police Lt. Jacoby was a welcome change from the hard-boiled stereotype of P. I.'s who hated corrupt and/or stupid cops. The racy (for the 50's) banter with his night club singer/girlfriend and the bizarre, comic-relief contacts round out the format for this great series. The only complaint with this box set is the poor quality of the picture (it helps explain the low price). Collectors take note that three of the ten episodes were previously issued by Rhino Home Video about ten years ago. A must for mystery fans--PETER GUNN was Blake Edwards at his creative pinnacle.

Not A Bad Deal!
These are the only videos currently available for the vintage television series, "Peter Gunn", starring Craig Stevens. They are not too easy to find and Amazon.Com is one of the few places I've seen them available. This is a box set of five (5) videotapes with two (2) thirty minute episodes per tape for a total of ten (10) episodes. To begin, I bought this set with a little bit of apprehension. First, the price for the five tapes was very inexpensive ($15.83). Second, they are distributed by a company that I am unfamiliar with, Diamond Entertainment Corporation. However, for the price of $15.83 for ten episodes, I thought I would take my chances. Well, the episodes themselves were no surprise, your basic classic late 1950's/early 1960's detective show. The show was filmed in black and white which adds a film noir effect. This, combined with jazzy background music by Henry Mancini, are a "cool" combination. This is what "Peter Gunn" is known for. As for the quality of the tapes, well, they were okay. These are not digitally remastered copies by any stretch of the imagination, but the quality was decent. In fact, I was expecting a lot worse. Belive me, I've paid a lot more and seen a lot worse. With this in mind, if you like Peter Gunn or vintage detective shows, go for it! ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Two Good Episodes: Focus on Motivation not Action
In WORLD'S END and NEMESIS, both from the start of season two, directors Robert Butler and Jerry Hopper continue the high quality of scripting and plotting that came to characterize the first season. Since the audience was both large and loyal, the scripters thankfully did not feel the need to jazz up their scripts with ideas that abandoned strong character development and frequent use of Kimble's past. Suzanne Pleshette, who plays Ellie Burnett in WORLD'S END, is one of Kimble's most memorable leading romantic interests. Off screen, they were carrying on a real life relation and that chemistry showed. Miss Pleshette was also used successfully in another episode, ALL THE SCARED RABBITS. The booming voice of narrator William Conrad, besides being used to repeat the most famous example of a run on sentence in literary history that began each episode, also narrated prepared introductions that provided useful information. Conrad tells the viewer that Kimble is reading from his hometown newspaper and sees in the classifieds: 'Personal to R. K. Have information, regarding September 17th. Phone me at home. Urgent. E. B.' Unfortunately for Kimble, Lieutenant Gerard reads the Stafford Sentinel too and guesses correctly who 'RK' and 'EB' are. Burnette has long loved Kimble and will do anything to be with him. She has information about the one-armed man that disheartens Kimble--the one-armed man is dead, thus opening the way for Kimble to cease looking for him and perhaps settle down permanently somewhere with her. At the last moment, she receives word that her information was in error. The one-armed man yet lives. The dramatic focus is on Gerard's tailing Burnett to catch Kimble and on whether she will hide the error and keep Kimble or tell the truth and lose him to further searches. This episode is a fine one in that it explores the ethical limits that a woman will go to keep a man. Plus the aura of Gerard in the background generates further suspense.
NEMESIS is another superb episode because it contains a number of themes that enrich the complexity of the relation between pursued and pursuer. The focus is mostly on Gerard and his son. The audience has seen Gerard mostly as a monomaniacal hunter of Kimble. He seems to live and breathe his job to catch the fugitive. But this total involvement comes with a price. Every day that he is on the road chasing Kimble is one day less that he has for himself and his family. NEMESIS shows Gerard in one of his rare days of relaxation with his son as they go on a camping trip. The boy, well-played by Kurt Russell, likes his dad and looks forward to spending time with him. By coincidence, Kimble is working near where Gerard plans to camp. When a local cop notifies Gerard that Kimble is in the area, Gerard is seen as having to make a choice that he must make often in future episodes. He must sacrifice his family for his duty. He does so here, and asks the cop's wife to mind the boy for the duration of the hunt. A plot complication is the boy's decision to hide out in the sheriff's car which Kimble steals to escape. Thus Gerard's son, Phil Jr., is an unwitting hostage. When his father finds out where his boy is, he reveals a side of his personality that he tries hard to suppress, that Kimble may not be guilty of murder after all. Gerard does not show concern that Kimble might harm his son. He tells the sheriff: 'He'll feed the boy.' Phil Jr. tries to help his father by leaving clues as to his whereabouts. Kimble again shows his inner goodness by helping Phil Jr recover from an injury even at the risk of recapture.
This episode and its companion are well-written and show aspects of the universe of Kimble and Gerard that immeasurably enhance the pleasure of their watching.

The Fugitive finally gets his man!
I had seen this episode years ago when I was a kid. I remember everyone was so anxious for the conclusion the following week. I had looked for this episode for years, I was finally able to find it on Amazon.com. Anyone who ever enjoyed "The Fugitive", absolutly must have this. I only wish it was available on DVD.

Great Volume Of A Great Series!
These two episodes of David Janssen's 1963-1967 Classic TV drama, "The Fugitive", are both favorites of mine! The best episodes are the ones that feature that relentless of all police detectives, Lt. Philip Gerard (Barry Morse)! And both of these classics contain Gerard in all his chasing splendor.

Two fine guest-star appearances are on tap here as well. .........
In "Nemesis", a very young Kurt Russell is featured as Phil Gerard, Jr. (Kurt also appears in another Fugitive episode later in the series, but NOT as Lt. Gerard's son). Kurt is very good in "Nemesis", as he accidentally stumbles upon his dad's #1 prey. Slim Pickens also guest stars in this program. It's another one of the many stellar cat-and-mouse episodes in this series, with Gerard hot on the trail of Dr. Kimble, only to have him slip through the dragnet at the very end! It's implausible, indeed, when you stop and think about it, that Kimble could evade capture time and time again during the course of this series' 4-year run [especially considering such a shrewd pursuer as Gerard is chasing him]. But, heck, it's fun anyway! And, obviously, if he's captured, the series is over! So Kimble must elude the authorities each week.

The beautiful Suzanne Pleshette stars with Janssen in this volume's second offering, "World's End". Suzanne, like Russell, also was featured in other episodes of the series (at least 1 that I can think of), but not as the same character.

There's 98 minutes of chases and thrills on this VHS cassette, and you'll also get to see the episode previews (or "trailers") that were shown before the main titles on each show.

Richard Kimble vs. LT Gerard In Two Episodes Of TV Classic
This tape contains two episodes of the classic 1960s drama starring David Janssen and Barry Morse. Nemesis originally aired in October of 1964 while World's End aired in 1965.

Nemesis is the more fascinating of the two episodes. While driving his son Phil Jr. (Kurt Russell) on a camping trip, LT Gerard learns that Kimble is in the area. He leaves Junior with the wife of Sheriff Deebold, but the youngster hides in their car as they close on The Fugitive. Kimble steals the car - and is shocked to find the son of his enemy in his presence.

Junior does all he can to leave clues to Kimble's whereabouts - he leaves a trail of football cards (Kimble confiscates the cards, then mails them back at the end), he lights a campfire, then leaves a sweater folded into an arrow delineating their direction (Gerard Sr. notes that "Phil never folded a sweater that neatly before in his life"). Eventually the two fugitives are caught by a local hunter named Corbin (Slim Pickens), but Kimble beats him up and escapes. Junior pursues but steps on a bear trap. Kimble frees him, and Junior's view of The Fugitive changes completely. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

the best movie
it was a good movie i would reccamond it for other people.

A copy of airplanes fly into "The Twilight Zone"
Airplanes taking trips into "The Twilight Zone" is obviously the common denominator for these two first rate episodes from the celebrated television series. "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" stars William Shatner as poor Bob Wilson, who has left a sanatorium only to take a plane flight where he keeps seeing a gremlin trying to sabotage the engine. Of course, no one wants to believe him. Written by Richard Matheson, who wrote the original short story, "Nightmare" was directed by Richard Donner, who went on to be a film director of some note. "The Odyssey of Flight 33" might be a notch below classic status but it is still a solid "Zone" episode. The story by Rod Serling, directed by Justus Addiss, is of a plane that picks up a freak tail wind that sends it back in time. John Anderson as Captain Farver leads the excellent cast that makes this rather far-fetched idea utterly believable. Serling made a point of finding out what real pilots say in the cockpit, which certainly helps the story along. But Shatner's performance is what you will remember from this tape.

THE SKY IS THE LIMIT IN THE TWILIGHT ZONE
These are two of the best episodes from this great TV series. In one episode a commercial airliner Captained by veteran actor John Anderson goes back in time in THE ODYSSEY OF FLIGHT 33. Writen by Rod Serling this modern-moody episode is both memorable and entertaining. In the other episode, William Shatner gives a dazzling performance in NIGHTMARE AT 20,000 FEET written by Richard Matheson from the 5th season. As a just-released mental patient on an airplane flying home with his wife (Christine White), Shatner peers out the window and sees a wooly creature on the wing, dismantling one of the engines. This is one of my favorites and is probably the most recognizable episode from the entire series. Richard Donner ingeniously directed it.

Great Stocking Stuffer from the Twilight Zone
From the 2nd season "THE ODYSSEY OF FLIGHT 33" is a good episode about a commercial airliner that goes back in time to a prehistoric era and that's only the beginning. John Anderson is very good as the plane's pilot. William Shatner gives a brilliant performance in "NIGHTMARE AT 20,000 FEET" from the 5th season and directed by Richard Donner. As a newly recovered patient from a psychiatric institution, Shatner peers out the window of commercial airliner and sees a bestial creature on the wing, tampering with one of the engines. One of the best scenes is when Shatner has to remove a gun from a sleeping passenger. Only Shatner could have pulled this one off. This is one of my favorites and still holds up to repeated viewing because it is so well crafted.

View these episodes before boarding your next flight.
Serling must have had a ball narrating and scripting these two classics, but he embraced them more than the average viewer will. Twilight Zone fans can't really say they are a fan until they've atleast watched these, but people who can't use their imaginations will be put off. Anyway fans, enjoy your flight! ... Read more

Amazon.com

In Lady in a Cage, Olivia de Havilland plays an aging, wealthywidow who is recuperating from a recent hip operation and is forced to use anelevator to get from one story of her home to the other. While she's headed forthe upper story of the house, a power failure occurs that leaves her stranded in the elevator car 12 feet off the ground. The elevator's alarm bell arouses the curiosity of a passing wino, who comes in and helps himself to the widow's wine cellar. The transient and a friend beginlooting the house until they are one-upped by a trio of feral, neobeatnik thugs (led by a very young James Caan). All the invaders merely ignore the widow's pleas for help as they toss her house in an orgy of violence. The thugs torture and kill the wino and hold his friend hostage along with the widow, until the tables are turned on them once again. For 1964, this is a surprisingly harsh and overwrought movie, easily 10 or 15 years ahead of its time; its nasty view of human nature and graphic violence led to its being banned in Britain entirely. James Caan, in his second movie role, is chillingly convincing as the pack leader whose violent streak comes as casually as, say, tying his shoelaces. Fans of Paul Schrader, Scorsese,or Tarantino films should especially take notice: Lady in a Cage is a nerve-racking viewing experience, one that still packs a noxious punch, with anending that's a real jaw-dropper. --Jerry Renshaw ... Read more

Reviews (21)

THE GOD NAMED "KILOWATT"...
Olivia de Havilland's performance in LADY IN A CAGE, like the film, was one of the truly Oscar-worthy performances of the 1960's which has remained underacknowledged, much less underappreciated. As is often the case with groundbreaking, visionary works, LADY IN A CAGE was difficult for audiences of 1963 to accept as something worth their time and money. Too often what shocks us is that which MAKES us have to THINK (which too often people don't enjoy because it takes effort).

But LADY IN THE CAGE was truly a hint of the increasing violence and growing state of social isolation in the United States in the 1960's and 1970's, and on to the future. Really, the film has to be seen to be appreciated. Instead of describing the plot for you, let me just suggest you watch the plot unfold without reading up on the plot before watching the movie. Ms. de Havilland's character survives, but the slow, creeping terror builds from the peacefulness of a beautiful, pleasant, sunny holiday to a psychotic's circus, all due to a few small coincidences that happen everyday. The real horror is psychological because this film reminds of us of how vulnerable humans are in general, and how vulnerable we are to the dependency on and failures of technology and industry, which can put us in danger. This film could be considered one of the early disaster films (on a very small scale), because like so many disaster films, some little situation starts small and slowly builds to a terrifying crescendo. As well, just like disaster films, the character(s) have to learn how to be shrewd and resourceful in order to survive...

Hopefully, Paramount Video will re-release this title, since having been out-of-print for some time has left the number of copies in the world greatly diminished. "PLEEEEEEEESE! Paramount! PLEEEEEEEEEASE!"

I finally found...
I finally found out what the name of this film is- After about 3 years of not knowing the name, and viewing it once, a long time ago on the late night classic movie channel. When I first saw it I was really surprised by the content, it being from the 60's. An interesting thriller to say the least, leaves one with an un-easy feeling after watching. This film must have some serious cult cred.- after all these years, and it being so violent for it's time. I enjoyed the film's intensity, and didn't even know that one of the thugs was a young James Caan??

The ultimate Late Night Movie ! ! !
I love this film... On one hand its quite brilliantly done... on the other hand, its morbidly sick and twisted. It is both a classic thriller, yet campy at the same time too - - ... and although the "angry juvenile deliquent", "slobbering whino", "'50s mother" and "knife wielding latino" stereotypes date it ridiculously, the disonant music and camera shots and music turn a "Donna Reed" house into the ultimate modern world gone mad... Clever "Ed Woodian" type use of stock footage, mixed in with some interesting camera shots and catchy dialogue make this a highly under-rated cult classic... The opening, seemingly disjointed sequences also let you know you're in for something quite different, though by the end they all pull together... though I missed that point the first few times I saw the film. - - Bizarre at times, yet told with the coolness of an Alfred Hitchcock film (or atleast an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents" or "the Twilight Zone") this is one film that can endure endless rewatches.... I LOVE IT !

If you like this film, one other immediately comes to mind : Whatever Happened to Baby Jane ! ! !

Where have I seen this before?
When I first saw this movie, I noted the following similarities with a 1962 "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" episode entitled "The Big Score".

1. Portrays a home invasion robbery by teenage gang.
2. Gang kills someone during the robbery.
3. Rafael Campos plays the Latino gang member.
4. There is an airheaded female gang member.
5. White male gang leader's arrogance gets gang in trouble.
6. Gang runs afoul of adult mobsters from fence's store.
7. Campos tries unsuccessfully to escape with girl.
8. Campos is actually smarter than the gang leader and is the
reader and speller of the group.

These elements appear to be found in many stories about juvenile criminality. In the "Hawaii 5-0" episode "Use a Gun, Go to Hell", Richard Dimitri plays a character named Tanami whose bizarre behavior is reminiscent of Campos as the latter stalks Ann Sothern in the driveway.

A Past Look At A Scary Future.
Walter Grauman directs star Olivia DeHavilland, as a woman who is trapped in her own home, when the power is cut on her electric elevator. She is recovering from a hip injury, and cannot reach out for help beyond screaming, and ringing an alarm hooked up the the elevator. ............. The story is in black and white, and this adds to the mood, like in Alfred Hitchcocks "Psycho". Sure, they could've used color for this 1964 film, but you'll see for yourself why the lack of color, matches the noir and bizarre mood here. ................ DeHavilland is over-dramatic, but superb too, as the "Lady" of the title, her facial expressions are so fitting of her consuming exasperation at the frustrating situation. You can feel the sweat as she swelters in the summer heat, trapped helplessly. DeHavilland also has her son Malcomb, from whom she ponders a letter while trapped. She finds out that sonny boy, whom she idolizes with a devout reverence, hates her. She agonizes over his plea "Release me from your love", leading to the great exclamation "I AM a MONSTER!"Wait, it gets even better. ................. As DeHavilland rings her alarm relentlessly, hoping someone will save her, she attracts the attention of an old pathetic semi-mute wino, wandering around the neighborhood. He comes into the house, ignores DeHavillands' pleas, and steals her wine cellar contents instead. He leaves, and comes back with a shady lady played by Ann Southern, who further ransacks the house. DeHavilland can't believe what's happening. That's just the start. ............... The nerve jangling intensity increases, upon the arrival of three beatnik punks, one geeky weirdo clownish guy, a positively filthy looking girl, and her abusive group leader boyfriend, an early role for a then 26 year old future star, James Caan. When this trio of trouble enters, the real show begins, as they let Southern and the wino know, they're in charge. All sorts of games begin, especially wild, is the psycho-sexual headgames an insidious Caan inflicts upon DeHavilland, as he enters the "cage" and starts in on her son, and the kind of mother he speculates she is. Caan is slimy, sinister and completely lacking in moral compunction, as are his two cohorts. You will watch this with a very uneasy feeling and you will be left with that feeling after viewing this as well. For a movie that was released in 1964, it is even shocking by TODAY'S standards. Way ahead of it's genre in that era, it stands up to the test of time quite well as a high quality, unique suspense thriller. ................. "Lady In A Cage" is a sad social commentary about isolation, cruelty, and dysfunctional sociopaths that is so far ahead of it's time, it must be seen, to be believed. The graphically gory and shocking ending, only adds to the surreal nightmarish feel of what has led up to the culmination of all the gruesome events of a horrid day. This is a definite must for anyone who wants to see a film unlike any other, and a truly shocking one in it's time, and today. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Never Wave Goodbye: Among the Best of the Fugitive
During the four year run of THE FUGITIVE, there were two kinds of episodes that stood out as exceptional: the kind that dealt with Kimble's past and the trial (like LANDSCAPE WITH RUNNING FIGURES and THE GIRL FROM LITTLE EGYPT) and those that developed Kimble's relation with another character, usually a romantic interest, so that the inevitable pain on parting is seen as the price he had to pay to maintain his freedom. NEVER WAVE GOODBYE is an example of the latter type, not only because of the terrific chemistry between David Janssen and his love interest Susan Oliver, but also because of the almost unbearable suspense generated by the oh-so-close chase scenes of Lieutenant Gerard.
Kimble as Jeff Cooper is hiding out in Santa Barbara, California, as a sailmaker. He has been on the run for only several months, but he is already fatigued, both physically and emotionally. This two part episode is the fourth entry in the series and in each of the first three, Kimble has had fleeting relations with Vera Miles (FEAR IN A DESERT CITY), Patricia Crowley (THE WITCH), and Sandy Dennis (THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN). With all three women, Kimble has learned the dangers of permitting love to cloud his judgment. Yet he yearns for more than superficiality. Now with Karen, played convincingly by the lovely Susan Oliver, Kimble can reassess the cost versus benefit of staying. At first, he tells her that he will leave, but he changes his mind, partly because of his love for her, and partly because he has seen a newspaper article about the arrest of a one-armed man in Los Angeles, and he is determined to see if this is the same man who killed his wife. Gerard, too,has seen this article and correctly guesses that Kimble will go to the jail to see this man. Kimble does only to find out that this is the wrong man. Gerard spots him in the jail, but Kimble manages to escape. It is at this point that Kimble tries reverse psychology on Gerard. Kimble assumes that Gerard will think that he would leave the scene after having been identified, and so Kimble decides to stay. Unfortunately for Kimble, Gerard is smarter than that and decides to stay to search for him. And search he does. Gerard locates the sailmaking store where Kimble works, but Kimble and Karen escape in a rowboat with Gerard pursuing in a dinghy. Gerard's dinghy crashes on the beach and he would have drowned had not Kimble saved his life. Kimble tells Karen that despite his love for her, he is now sure that he must resume his search for the one-armed man. This episode is one of the best of the series. The viewer can see the weariness vanish from Kimble's mind as he allows himself the very temporary luxury of the good life with the woman he now loves. There is also the personal confrontation at the end when Gerard is still weak from his near death and tells Kimble, 'Give yourself up. I'll always be one step behind you.' The audience can sense that this cat-and-mouse game that had so believably been enacted on the screen must be re-enacted in the future. The chemistry between Janssen and Oliver was so intense that when the finale of the series was aired four years later, I hoped that it would be Susan Oliver who would wind up as Kimble's permanent partner. It wasn't but NEVER WAVE GOODBYE captures for a brief time the barest suggestion of what it must have been like for the Good Man to have to walk the fine line between having a semblance of a normal life and having the freedom to seek to regain that life.

Richard Kimble And Friend Go All Out To Escape Gerard
Never Wave Goodbye is the fourth story of The Fugitive TV series, and is one of the best, combining gut-wrenching emotion with some exciting action.

Kimble now works as a sailmaker in San Diego. Susan Oliver plays Kimble's girlfriend Karen, and Will Kuluva is her uncle, who knows Karen is in love with Kimble and wants him to marry her - much to the consternation of a rival sailmaker (Robert Duvall).

LT Gerard learns of the arrest of a one-armed perp in LA and wants to interrogate the man, believing it will help bring out Kimble. His superior, Captain Ed Carpenter, is reluctant to let Gerard go off like this, disturbed as he is by the lieutenant's obsession.

But Gerard gets his wish and flies out to LA, just as Kimble learns of the man's arrest. He travels to the LA jail and finds he is not the one-armed man who killed his wife. But as he leaves, Kimble stumbles into Gerard, and a chase ensues. Karen helps Kimble escape, but he has to leave.

Or does he? Unable to abandon the woman who so loves him, Kimble decides he and she should fake their own deaths in a sailing accident. Perhaps then they can share the life together they both so desperately want.

It is often painful to see the effort Kimble and Karen undertake to fake their own deaths. It truly draws the audience into loving these characters and hating Gerard - all the right requisites for superb storytelling. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Hackers from the days of puched cards and reel-to-reel tape
This is a futuristic view from 1971 of college students messing with database records and computer networks. I saw this movie years ago before most people had ever heard of hacking. Back before before home computers had been invented, these students had unlimited access to the college's mainframe computer. Monitors were not used back then, so in the movie they interact with the computer through teletypes. See the amazing high-tech sight of every response being loudly and rapidly printed.

Attempts are made to awe viewers with impressive modern technology such as punched cards being read or sorted and also with views of large spinning reels of tape. It was a moderately good mystery movie. When I watched it in the early 1970's, I enjoyed the thought provoking futuristic ideas. I still remember my amazement when they showed the mainframe computers late at night exchanging information with each other without the help of any human. This was a view of the future from 1971. By the way, the movie does not use the word "hacker" which did not mean what it means now anyway.

Available on VHS. Can not wait for DVD
Computing the way it was and the way they saw it would be in the future. Add to this a mystery that may rival Stephen King fans.

It is interesting to see the actors as they were in this movie the girl that teaches the computer to say breath (death) is in the movie "Three Days of the Condor" Dean Stockwell plays the main computer nerd loaner that warns of the dangers of fooling around with digits. Stefanie Powers is the young cutie that is used to vamp Dean Stockwell into creating a virtual person complete with credit card. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Inger Stevens and Ida Lupino visit the Twilight Zone
Inger Stevens and Leonard Strong turn in strong performances as Nan Adams and the title character in Serling's "The Hitch-Hiker," based on the radio play of that name by Lucille Fletcher. Following a blowout, Nan repeatedly sees the same hitch-hiker as she travels along the highway. Since this is, after all, the Twilight Zone, we all know the true identity of the hitch-hiker. "The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine," written by Serling, stars Ida Lupino as Barbara Jean Trenton, an aging actress who just sits n her private screening room watching her old films. Martin Balsam turns in an nice performance as her agent, trying to coax her back to the real world. But trying to get her a part in a film and having her former leading man visit her only backfire. Watching this one certainly reminds you of "Sunset Blvd." with a rather happy ending. Both episodes feature fine performances by all the principles, which is why these end up being a couple of above average trips into the Zone.

stupid don't buy it
dum

Going My Way?
One of Rod Serling's masterpieces which features a young, attractive woman on her way to California, who cannot escape the haunting vision of an eerie man thumbing a ride wherever she goes.

Going My Way? For fans of the Twilight Zone, this is a must-see indeed! ... Read more

Reviews (138)

Great Movie, great disc
Like many, I was a BIG fan of both the "V" mini-series as a kid. Though even as a kid I found the dumbed-down weekly series to be sub-par, which is ironic considering I was the target demographic NBC was looking for. In rewatching the mini-series' as an adult it's apparent that "V: The Final Battle," while good, was also inferior to Ken Johnson's original. It's a shame he wasn't allowed to guide the further installments, "V" would probably still be on the air today in some form.

I wanted to clear up some of the confusion I'm seeing in these postings. First of all there is no missing footage, the mini-series is not cut in half. This DVD is exactly what it is billed as, "V - The Original Mini-Series." The original "V" was two parts which ran over two nights in 1983. It didn't have an ending, it wasn't really suppose to in order to tell its allegorical tale. The second mini-series, "V : The Final Battle" was three parts and aired over a year later. Both mini-series' were syndicated to UHF stations in the late eighties. Those stations usually ran all five parts over a week, though heavily edited. That might be what's confusing some. Considering this DVD has sold about four times better than Warner Bros. was expecting, I'd say it's a sure bet "The Final Battle" will be released on DVD before too long.

As to the Gag Reel, sadly it's not on the disc. It was supposed to be but unfortunately, Warner Bros. was unable to clear it for release. Too many of the actors wanted to be paid an additional fee for its inclusion on the disc. ... just never updated the information. Hope that helps!

''V'' is for ''Visionary''
*
"V," the NBC Television mini-series which first aired nearly two decades ago, was intended to be seen for its entertainment value though, admittedly, using some pre-mid 20th century historical elements to contribute to the overall plot and theme of the story -- specifically World War II Germany (the alien "national symbol" even resembling an incompleted 'connect-the-dots' swastika). Little did the writers, directors and producers of this mini-series realize that their sci-fi project was a late 20th century prophecy which would begin seeing fulfillment in the just few months shy of the dawning years of the 21st century.

The purchase of this DVD marked the very first time of my ever seeing this feature, and I was instantly hooked, especially by its dazzling high-octane opening sequence. The special effects were also nicely done considering the time period in which it was made, that it was a "made for television" movie, and the fact that it was made on the cheap. (It was also nice to see Robert Englund as something other than a flame-scarred tragedy figure.)

The story of "V" revolves around a race of seemingly benevolent space aliens who look, sound and act a lot like us. They convince the world that they are our friends and only wish to extend the hand of cooperation & unity and work toward a "common good" where all will benefit. But there are those who have some very gnawing suspicions about the "Visitors," that they are not quite everything they appear to be -- which is a serious understatement, for it turns out that the real agenda of the "Visitors" is to rape the planet of its most precious resources and enslave humanity.

"V's" creators obviously tried to parallel the story with National Socialist Germany, but in hindsight it becomes frighteningly obvious that "V" was as much a vision of the "historical future" as it was a view to the "historical past!" That unintentionally forseen future sneaked up on us and, just like in the mini-series, nobody took notice... until it was too late! That "future" which "V" foreshadowed occured during the "Campaign 2000" ("C2K") presidential [s]election! The similarities are too hauntingly similar:

> "V": "Visitors" came as "friends" promoting "brotherhood" and prosperity for all.
> "C2K": Republican nominee presented himself as a "compassionate uniter" who promised a strong, vibrant economy.

> "V": "Visitors" took control without being duly elected and under suspicious circumstances.
> "C2K": Republican presidential administration took control without being duly elected and under suspicious circumstances.

> "V": In order to usurp power, "Visitors" took advantage of impotent elected government officials.
> "C2K": In order to usurp power, Republicans took advantage of impotent elected Democrat government officials & politicians.

> "V": "Visitors" fabricated a non-existent energy crisis on their homeworld in order to plunder & exploit the precious natural resourses of earth.
> "C2K": Republicans fabricated a non-existent energy crisis in our homeland (in California specifically and in the whole of the United States in general) in order to plunder & exploit the precious natural resourses of the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve.

> "V": Major news media almost unilaterally gave supportive non-critical "pro-Visitor" spin to the news and did all they could to suppress independent media outlets and put a halt to, or discredit, any serious investigative news reporting.
> "C2K": Major news media almost unilaterally gave supportive non-critical "pro-Bush" spin to the news and did all they could to suppress independent media outlets and put a halt to, or discredit, any serious investigative news reporting.

> "V": Scientists were demonized by "Visitors" as unwholesome, unpatriotic, and even dangerous elements of society.
> "C2K": Environmentalists, corporate regulation advocates, and civil rights advocacy groups were demonized by Republicans as unwholesome, unpatriotic, and even dangerous elements of society.

> "V": "Visitors" preached peace and tolerance while instigating a very one-sided "endless war on terrorism," resulting in the repeal of certain rights guaranteed under Constitution-- including and especially 'free speech' --and labelling anyone critical of their unconstitutional actions as having sided with terrorists.
> "C2K": The Bush Administration preached peace and tolerance while instigating a very one-sided "endless war on terrorism," resulting in the repeal of certain rights guaranteed under Constitution-- including and especially 'free speech' --and labelling anyone critical of their unconstitutional actions as having sided with terrorists.

> "V": "Visitors" operated a 'secret government' from a base on their homeworld.
> "C2K": The Bush Administration established a secret government in an undisclosed location here in our homeland.

Where does one stop with all of the comparisons? The similarities are virtually endless! The only thing missing is a distinctive insignia to rally behind (that is, of course, if one doesn't already consider the American Flag to be it), designer costumes for the "Youth Brigades," and entire sweeps of towns and mass imprisonments.

In "V" the violators of our basic and most cherished rights were lizard-creatures wearing human-looking skin; In 21st century America they are human through-and-through, though they often speak with the 'forked tongue' of a reptile!

The makers of this mini-series probably had no idea they were developing a story with an eye on a direct future outcome, which makes this series even more enjoyable and even more disturbing to watch. Everyone should watch this video, not only for the entertainment value, but also as a warning and a wake-up call!

[Dialogue from the film]:
(Mike Donovan): "How did someone like that get to be your leader anyway?"
("Martin"): "Charisma. Circumstances, promises. Not enough of us spoke out to question him until it was too late."

* * *

"Do it Right.....V.......For Victory"
Sure the hair, Ferrari Sunglasses, and fashion scream 80's! The opening montage of the movie's stars pictured with thier names is straight out of any cheesy "movie-of-the-week" opening. But that is where "V"'s comparison to other made for TV movies ends. Look beyond all of that and you will find an engrossing story. A true underdog story that everyone will enjoy. Sure, "V" is basically a science fiction retelling of the Nazi takeover of Europe, but it is also much more. When I was a kid and this Mini-series first aired, me and my buddies couldn't get enough. Now watching it 20 years later, I wasn't sure how it would hold up. My wife who had never seen "V" figured I had just doomed her to another evening of "rubber" alien suited actors chasing half clothed women who are stupid enough to seperate themselves from the hero/heroine. But after about half an hour, "V" captured her imagination and attention as well. If you have never seen "V", then try not to find out too much of the story, and get this disk. Let if unfold for you the way it did for me back in 1983, and for my wife just the other night. You will be swept along on a journey that will not disappoint. The special effects hold up well, considering this was done before computer animation (which usually ends up looking worse than a guy in a rubber suit). The acting is okay too (I mean let's face it, "V" stars the Beastmaster guy and one of the students from The Greatest American Hero, plus a few scenes with Freddy Krueger), but it really is just the basic story that is so gripping. And now that this DVD is around $10 you just can't go wrong.

Not a complete piece
V is a rarity - a seminal achievment of classic sci-fi in a made-for-TV movie. This mini-series provides the groundwork, primarily the expository "these are the aliens, these people are the good guys, who's right and who's wrong" setup of the larger story. I remembered V very fondly from my youth, and was a bit dismayed to discover how seemingly incomplete this first mini-series was. When viewed with the now-available "V - The Final Battle" it's quite a satisfying ride. I would highly recommend buying "V" with "V - The Final Battle" and watching them as one. If you just buy this one, you'll be left wanting more.

Soon to be available? V - The Complete Series. A worthy continuation of the TV epic. At the time of its production, it was the most expensive per-episode TV series ever made. Now, a single cast member from "Friends" makes more per episode than an episode of "V" cost to make.

This mini-series is still awesome after 21 years!
After seeing this again, after 20 or so years, I still love it. Truly it is one of my favorite pieces of film of all time. It was way ahead of it's time in 1983. The storyline, special effects, and acting were all excellent, and the ending is climatic. Although it is 10 hours long, I didn't want to stop watching it, then or now. It really parrallels life, and hopefully will continue to open people's minds. I've now showed it to my children and pointed out how it is reminiscent of the holocaust in many ways. I definitely recommend that if you have never seen this, you do, and if it's been awhile, check it out again. It's fun the second time around. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Rod Serling + Art Carney = MAGIC!
Every time I watch this I tear up at the end.

This was a hastily done show to get it done in time for Christmas. Serling himself said that there was a holiday spirit on the set, maybe because they had more children than usual on the set.

Art Carney's acting ability makes this episode shine with the magic of the season.

A must have for sentimentalists who still enjoy the Magic of Christmas.

Art Carney stars in Serling's Twilight Zone Christmas Gfit
Night of the Meek," written by Rod Serling, finds poor Henry Corwin (Art Carney), a department store Santa who shows up drunk on Christmas Eve and is fired. Wandering the streets, he discovers a magic bag that can dispense any gift he asks for. The question is, what will Henry do with this most unusual bag? Definitely a seasonal message from Serling and directed by Jack Smight, this episode originally aired on December 23, 1960. Legend has it Serling wrote the episode just to see Art Carney play Santa Claus, and if that story is not true, then it should be. The excellent support casts sports the recognizable John Fielder as Henry's short-tempered boss and Burt Mustin as a friendly bum on the streets, but this is Art Carney's triumph.

still has it
Art Carney (star of THE HONEYMOONERS)(still has it). What I mean is great acting. Rod Serling is a genious making this episode. This is one of my favorite Twilight Zone episode.

Pure Serling
Rod Serling's yearning for those cherished days long gone or a part of ourselves that we think was lost is always evident in his best works. NIGHT OF THE MEEK is very uplifting and may bring a tear to those who cherish this episode. Art Carney showed us all a great dramatic side and depth which enhances this beyond the ordinary. The fact that this was one of the six episodes of the "Twilight Zone" that were recorded directly onto videotape instead of film gives it that 'live' appearance and helps add to its validity as an icon of the days of 'good television.' NIGHT OF THE MEEK is pure Serling.

A Great Christmas Film
I rate this as one of the best Christmas films to come off of televisions. Compassionate and moving, and not overdone. Arguably the best Twilight Zone. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Living Doll, one of The Twilight Zone's scariest episodes, written by Charles Beaumont, stars Telly Savalas as a mean-spirited man who makes a pint-sized enemy in his stepdaughter's new and very protective doll, Talky Tina (June Foray, the venerable Queen of Cartoons, who is best known as the voice of Rocket J. Squirrel). He thinks after tossing her in the garbage can that he's seen the last of Tina. But then the telephone rings: "My name is Talky Tina ... and I'm going to kill you." This video also includes one of Rod Serling's best episodes, the thoughtful The Eye of the Beholder, in which unseen plastic surgeons labor intensively to make their desperate female patient look "normal." This is one of three must-own volumes of vintage Twilight Zone episodes released to commemorate this timeless series' 40th anniversary. Tape 1 features the video premiere of The After Hours (the one with the mannequins) and Time Enough at Last starring Burgess Meredith as the post-apocalyptic bookworm. Tape 3 features the alien-in-a-diner puzzler Will the Real Martian Please Stand Up, as well as the signature episode To Serve Man, which TV Guide rightfully ranked as one of TV's top 100 episodes of all time. --Donald Liebenson ... Read more

Reviews (9)

The classic "Eye of the Beholder" and deadly Talky Tina
"The Eye Of The Beholder,"