A Few Words On

”There is a fifth dimension beyond that which is known to man. It is a dimension as vast as space and as timeless as infinity. It is the middle ground between light and shadow, between science and superstition and it lies between the pit of man’s fears and the summit of his knowledge. This is a dimension of imagination, it is an area which we call THE TWILIGHT ZONE.”

The 11th of May is the perfect time to reminisce about one of the classics: Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone, as it is has become a National Holiday in America and yet no one seems to find a connection between this date and the series. Talkin’ about mysteries!

And I keep asking myself how it is that I didn’t find out about this moralizing, eerie, mind bending, Hitchcock-like TV Show sooner…so full of things not quite as they seem to be, macabre twists  and unexpected endings, so compelling, so ahead of it’s time, so damn good. And the greatest thing about it is that some of the scenes get in your head and stay with you long after the episode is over making you question most of the truths you’ve been taking for granted.

And then, you discover these amazing actors with extraordinarily versatile repertoirs such as Bergess Meredith who abruptly metamorphizes into completely different characters of complex personalities, from “The obsolete man” to Satan himself (in “The printer’s Devil”).

The Twilight Zone has become an inspiration to many writers, directors and actors alike for movies such as “Jacob’s ladder” (from “An occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”), “Midnight in Paris” (from “A stop at Willoughby”), “Final destination” (from “Twenty-two”), “Poltergeist” (from “The girl lost”) and, of course, the movie that absolutely haunted my childhood: “Child’s play” (from “The living doll”).

With a wide range of topics such as AI (“From Agnes with love”), global warming (“The midnight sun”), racism (“He’s alive”), a future where all factory workers would eventually be replaced by robots (“The Brain Center at Whipple’s”), unattainable beauty standards imposed by society (“Number 12 looks just like you”), government intrusion in the citizens’ private lives (“The obsolete man”) and a mix of suspense, horror, drama, fantasy, allegories, parables, superstition and Sci-Fi with a special focus on human nature, The Twilight Zone remains one of the most powerful statements that the American movie industry has ever made.

 

                                                                            (left: “The fever” right: “The chaser”)

And of course, the general public has it’s favourites, but I’d like to spend a few moments on some of the episodes that, even if they’re not on anyone else’s “to freakin’ see” list, I believe should be on yours either for the story, the unpredictable, jaw-dropping ending, a powerful lesson or a psychological dilemma that you might someday find facing yourself, or simply as an exercise for the imagination in an unthinkable “but what if..?” scenario.

But before you proceed, SPOILERS ALERT!

From the first season, “The monsters are due on Maple Street” is definitely in my Top 3 – as an incredibly moralizing story about the irreversible harm that suspicion, prejudice, fear and paranoia can cause among friends, neighbours and otherwise peaceful members of a community.

(“The monsters are due on Maple Street”)

I find “Escape clause” incredible for it’s irony: a story about an hypochondriac man who sells his soul to the Devil in exchange for eternal life which he gets, along with an “escape clause” to be used in case of extreme boredom or desperation but who, in a strange turn of events finds himself sentenced to life in prison.

“Perchance to dream” which leaves the audience in a wonderfully Hitchockian state of mind, is my absolute favourite of the season: a plot so beautifully maddening, I guarantee you will not manage to guess the ending to; a man with an extremely vivid imagination and a severe heart condition who believes he’ll die should he fall asleep. The setting involves thrilling scenes, suspenseful moments, incredible shading effects, a psychiatrist’s office and the creepiest amusement park atmosphere you’ve ever experienced.

(“Perchance to dream”)

And I never thought I would be able to watch a military Sci-Fi without instantly passing out, bored out of my teeth. But then the episode called “And when the sky was opened” started, blew my mind, then finished and I had to watch it again. And again. That’s how great it is.

(“And when the sky was opened”)

“Mirror image” is said to have been the inspiration for Jordan Peele’s “Us”. It’s a frightening doppelganger story which makes you, if not completely doubt your existence, at least make you ask yourself which one of the twins you really are after all masks have fallen.

Another episode that tackles human nature revealing it in all it’s splendour is “People are alike all over”, the story of two astronauts who land on Mars. One of the two believes that people’s nature is the same anywhere in the universe, whilst the other is the pessimistic type (we all know one, don’t we) and believes quite the opposite. In the end we learn that, indeed, human nature is the same anywhere and everywhere, just not in the way we would hope for.

 

                                                                                 (“People are alike all over”)

In the end, a few honorable mentions: “Where is everybody?”, “Time enough at last”, “The hitch-hiker”, “Elegy”, “The chaser”, “A nice place to visit”, “A world of his own”.

 (“The hitch-hiker”)

“Obscure and metaphysical explanation to cover a phenomenon, Reasons dredged out of the shadows to explain away that which cannot be explained. Call it “parallel planes” or just “insanity”. Whatever it is, you’ll find it in the Twilight Zone”.

(Rod Serling, the creator and writer of 80 of the 156 episodes of the original TV series, in his natural habitat)

Green Eyed Kisses,