Millicent Barnes (Vera Miles) is stuck at a bus station and a lot of weird things begin to happen.  Everyone seems to know her and the ticket agent (Joseph Hamilton) is very frustrated with her.  He’s lucky his boss isn’t around.  The way that he treated Millicent should not be tolerated, but he’s probably paid minimum wage and is upset that all of his friends are retired and he still has to work and deal with bullshit all day.

Barnes tries to figure everything out, but can’t find any rational explanation.  She can’t speak to the ticket agent about it because he’ll just scream at her or give her dirty looks.  The girl in the bathroom that she met was too strange to talk to.   Thankfully, she meets another traveler, Paul (Martin Miner), and starts confiding in him about the situation.  At first, you can see that Paul was considering romance, but he’s not into crazy chicks.   I don’t know why.  Crazy chicks are great fun.

Paul walks his new gal pal to the bus and she totally freaks out and runs away.  There is a woman that looks identical to her sitting on the bus with a sinister smile.  They miss the bus and Millicent starts talking about different dimensions and how they come together and how we all have doubles.  It was great stuff.   Of course, Paul doesn’t take it seriously and that asshole at the ticket desk isn’t any help. He keeps trashing poor Millicent.

Millicent is taken away by the police to the asylum and Paul now relaxes and waits for the next bus, but he soon begins to encounter the same madness that Millicent received before.  

MIRROR IMAGE is a great episode and if you love stuff like the Mandela Effect, this is a great episode to watch. I highly recommend it!

Rating: 8/10

The post Mirror Image (1960) – Twilight Zone TV Episode Review appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

By Melissa Antoinette Garza

This is one of my favorite and one of the most underrated episodes in THE TWILIGHT ZONE series. I like to think of this as a precursor to THE STEPFORD WIVES (1975) as it deals with many of the same themes, but in very different ways.

Marilyn (Collin Wilcox Paxton) is turning 19 years old which is a huge milestone. In this society, at age 19 each person chooses their appearance from a series of pictures. It’s a full transformation that results in many of the residents looking identical to one another.

Marilyn’s mother Lana (Suzy Parker) is excited and can’t wait for her daughter to choose between identities #8 or #12. Lana chose #12 which is so popular that even her maid appears to be a twin.

Marilyn is not excited. Her Uncle Rick (Richard Long) who also went thru a transformation comes by to talk with her. It is there that Marilyn says the best line in the episode, “but is that good – being like everybody? Isn’t that the same as being nobody?”

Marilyn tries to convey her concerns to her Uncle and mother. She talks of how when her father was alive they would discuss real topics like individualism. Her uncle doesn’t understand and offers her a cup of “instant smile.” She tries desperately to relate to him saying that sometimes she doesn’t want to smile. She wants to keep her autonomy in tact and feel real emotion, but everyone around her is content with this false reality they’ve created. Not only are they content with it, but they insist on dragging her down too.

No one can understand why Marilyn would choose to remain her own self when the alternatives were so much more beautiful and voluptuous. None grasp the concept of self-determination or self-identity. They buy into the glam of it all – hook, line and sinker without ever questioning the methods.

I won’t spoil the conclusion, but I definitely suggest seeking this one out. It’s absolutely fantastic and gut-wrenching at times.  Enjoy this on PRIME – Sesason 5/Episode 17!

 Scared Stiff Rating: 8/10

The post The Twilight Zone: Number 12 Looks Just like You (1964) TV SHOW REVIEW appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

By Geno McGahee

“That monster stole my dollar!”—Franklin (Everett Sloane)

Everyone knows somebody with a gambling problem. In fact, most of my family has a gambling problem. How many times do you see an elderly man, high on Viagra, screaming “let it ride” while playing Bingo, only to later find out that “let it ride” refers to a totally different sort of game? Rod Serling captured the issue of gambling in an episode called “The Fever,” which is one of my favorite Twilight Zone Episodes ever.

We begin with Franklin (Everett Sloane) and Flora (Vivi Janiss) Gibbs, winners of an all expense paid trip to Las Vegas. The only problem is that Franklin is against gambling, believing it to be a waste and immoral. When his wife places a nickel into the machine, he throws a tantrum and openly comments just how stupid and foolish she is and how all the people that do this sort of thing are morons. She takes the chance and loses.

Franklin on his way back to the hotel room gets stopped by a drunk who puts a dollar coin into his hand and places it into the machine and he reluctantly pulls the lever. He wins, and vows to quit with his winnings a happy man, but the temptation gets the best of him and he returns to the casino, where he gets the fever.

Writing check after check, he clears out his bank account and when he is down to his last dollar, the machine malfunctions and he loses the play, driving him insane. He tips over the slot machine and is dragged away by security. It felt good to see him do it though. Slot machines have gotten the better of me in the past and it was nice to see sweet revenge occur, even if it were merely vicarious. Those fucking one armed bandits!

My favorite part of this entire tale is when Franklin becomes consumed with the casino and the slot machine begins tormenting him, saying “Franklin” in a creepy, robotic-like voice. “Franklin, Franklin, Franklin, Franklin.” It is very amusing and you wonder why Gibbs is running from it. It is only a slot machine and he knocked it over once. He could do it again…but then again, he was going crazy and wasn’t thinking straight.

Everett Sloane owned this tale. When he is on the screen, he steals it and when he erupts at his wife, it’s hilarious, as he calls her a “shrew” and demands that she leaves his side because she is bad luck. When he gets dragged away from the casino and screams over a dollar, it is fantastic. This tale is great and I can’t see giving it anything other than a perfect rating.

Scared Stiff Rating: 10/10. Leave Franklin alone you stupid slot machine!

THE NEWEST HORROR COLLECTION IS UNLEASHED – ORDER NOW!

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This was the very first Twilight Zone episode and concerns a man alone in a town. Mike Ferris (Earl Holliman) wanders aimlessly and confused, seeking humanity but not finding it anywhere. He roams into a diner looking for some grub and the place is empty…not a soul. He sees a woman in a car and when he runs over to speak with her, he discovers that it is a mannequin, but still talks with her because she is the closest thing to another person.

He decides to the police station and once again, there is nobody there. There is some activity however. There is a lit cigar and the water is running in one of the cells. When he makes it to a movie theater, he realizes that there is a film playing but when he makes it into the projection booth, nobody’s home.

This episode is what may have inspired the movies “The Last Man on Earth” with Vincent Price and “The Omega Man” with Charlton Heston, but it cannot be compared with either. Although this is not a bad tale, it’s not a very good one either. By Twilight Zone standards, it doesn’t match up, but it is watchable and if you like the two above mentioned movies, you will like this one, even if it is merely to compare them.

The ending of this episode is satisfying and probably played out a lot better at the time it was released, but knowing history, you will appreciate it. I thought that the ending was the best part of the entire story, and for that, I recommend it.

Scared Stiff Rating: 6/10. A Mediocre Episode

THE NEWEST HORROR COLLECTION IS UNLEASHED – ORDER NOW!

The post Twilight Zone: Where is Everybody? (1959) – Classic TV REVIEW appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

Tied only with the fourth incarnation of Dragnet (including both the radio program and movie), The Twilight Zone (1959) is my favorite television show of all time.  I think few fans of the genres would disagree that Rod Serling’s masterpiece is the finest horror/sci-fi series ever produced.

It goes without saying that Serling was an amazing storyteller who utilized his intellect and humanity to bring viewers into his work.  He never shied away from incorporating politics and religion into his tales.  Instead, his writing would express prejudice, discrimination, and the worst aspects of human behavior.  His method allowed viewers to openly discuss topics that would typically be considered too controversial to discuss.

In 1970, Serling returned with a show that though reminiscent of the eerie emotion invoked by The Twilight Zone was original in nearly every other way.   It targeted a straight out horror audience by offering legitimately scary storylines, excellent characters, great actors and plots that captivated.

Each episode opens with Serling introducing the story by commenting on a painting displayed in the Night Gallery.  Of course, each work of art provides insight into the segment that follows.

The Cemetery which is my personal favorite stars two of the finest actors who are sadly no longer with us.  Both the late great Roddy McDowall and the equally amazing Ossie Davis give stellar performances in this tale which is filled with chills and is downright creepy.

Jeremy (McDowall) is a lazy ungrateful lout who moves in with his rich elderly uncle.  He finds out that upon his uncle’s death, he is the major heir and would inherit everything. He doesn’t even try to hide his greed nor does he show anything but contempt for his uncle.  He even pokes fun and speaks of his distaste for a painting that the old man created.  The painting was merely of a graveyard that depicted the family plot.

The butler Osmund Portifoy (Davis), who cared for the old man for over twenty years both disliked and distrusted Jeremy.  One day, Jeremy took his uncle who was under strict instruction to stay away out of the cold, and wheeled him in front of the window.  Immediately, the old man fell into a coma and died.  Though everyone knew that Jeremy was at fault, no one had any evidence.

While enjoying his uncle’s blood money, Jeremy notices that the painting he had criticized had been altered.  The first change depicts a six-foot deep hole directly in front of the gravestone where the old man is buried.  Then, another modification is shown.  He decides to burn the painting, but despite him watching it go up in flames, it remerges back on the wall untouched.  The casket is standing up.  The portrait continues to shift before Jeremy’s eyes.  When the coffin is opened, his uncle’s corpse is shown.  Then the corpse begins walking.

Soon, the zombie can be seen at the door knocking and Jeremy hears the pounding in real life.  He fears what is on the other side.

I highly recommend this tale.  It’s fun and twisted.  It’s actually scarier than many “horror” movies which come to theaters today.

Though, HULU claims to have this on their programming list, the wrong show has been uploaded.  One can either download it on youtube or purchase the DVD set.  I recommend buying it as the rest of the episodes are certainly worth the watch.

Scared Stiff Rating:  8/10

The post Night Gallery: The Cemetery (1969) – Horror TV Show Review appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

Reviewed by Melissa Antoinette Garza

“I’m Talking Tina – and I’m going to kill you”

As we are fast approaching Halloween, horror films have found themselves on the shelves of stores once again.  It’s great to walk in and see more than the Saw series available for purchase at shops like Best Buy.

One of the greatest aspects about the holiday is thinking back to the movies and shows that were the most frightening during childhood.  For me, the movies Don’t Go to Sleep, Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things, The Amityville Horror, and television shows like Tales From the Darkside and of course the iconic The Twilight Zone kept me up at night.

One of the episodes of The Twilight Zone that scared me the most was the very popular The Living Doll. In all honesty, it still holds up today and causes chills every time I watch it.  Had it not been for this great tale classics like Child’s Play, Magic and Dolls may never have seen the light of day.  Even in more recent films like Dead Silence and Pinnochio’s Revenge one can see the influence of this simple but very effective episode.

Eric (Telly Savalas) is an angry and dissatisfied husband and step-father.  He’s upset at the attention and money his wife Annabelle (Mary Laroche) spends on her young daughter Christie (Tracy Stratford).  He is incapable of having children and despite Annabelle and even Christie’s efforts the bond between Eric and the girl is strained.

When Annabelle brings home a talking doll named Talking Tina, Eric is upset about the money spent.  When mother and daughter are present, Tina only says kind things, however whenever the duo are not in the room and Eric is left alone, the doll says not only mean but threatening things.  At first, Eric is convinced that his wife and stepdaughter are messing with him, but when the phone rings and Tina is on the line talking to him, he knows that the doll is evil.  He attempts to destroy by hacking it with an electric saw but the doll remained unharmed.  He finally just discards it in the trash, but when his wife threatens to leave him, he agrees to give it back.

Talking Tina is one of the most popular and recognized inventions of The Twilight Zone. That’s a large accomplishment considering some of the amazing contributions the show has given.  Whether referring to the cook book in To Serve Man, the mystic seer in Nick of Time or the Gremlin in Nightmare at 20,000 feet. There are so many memorable moments within the show.   Though Living Doll, isn’t the most intellectually stimulating episode nor is the moral message as deep as some of the other episodes, it still leaves its mark in horror history.

It goes without saying that Telly Savalas shines as Eric.  He is after all the man who created the character of Kojak and boasted enough charisma, confidence, and suaveness to sell ice to an Eskimo.  Even as a villain, his brilliant one-of-a-kind portrayal is riveting.  His talent pours off the screen and one is instantly taken in by the episode.

Overall, this is a show fans can watch over and over again without getting tired.  It’s also one that scares repeatedly.  Hearing the doll utter threats is truly frightening.  The fact that the doll is designed to look sweet and innocent only makes her true nature more terrifying.

For those who haven’t seen this episode, find it immediately!  It’s season 5 episode 6.  For those who are already fans and in the mood for a freaky, fun time, give it a watch this Halloween.

Scared Stiff Rating:  9/10 

The post Twilight Zone: Living Doll (1963) – Horror TV Show Review appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

Criminal and cop killer Rocky (Larry Blyden) dies in a shootout.  He awakes and meets Mr. Pip (Sebastian Cabot) who is all dressed in white.  Rocky robs him at gets $700 from him but it doesn’t faze Pip who says he has more to show.

He leads Rocky to his new place of residence.  He soon realizes he died and believes himself to be in heaven as every wish he has is granted by Pip.

He wishes for a girl who appears in a beautiful dress with sequence.  I miss sequence and sparkles on dresses that come with gloves to match.  Back in the 50s and early 60s things were classier.  Even the way in which we spoke had a certain level of respect and dignity to it.  It is so much cleaner to say a woman is with child than pregnant.  Rather than “females” (which seems to be the new term for ladies and I hate it!) we were called dolls.  It was just a classier time.  You’d never hear someone  say that their “baby daddy” could be 5 different people or a woman had 4 kids from 4 different men.  Douches like Maury Povich wouldn’t be tolerated.

People expected more from one another and single mothers were not made out to be the heroes they are today.  There’s nothing wrong with a woman leaving an abusive husband and caring for her child on her own; but when a woman screws around, gets pregnant and has a child, the consequence is that she has to raise the child on her own.  If she does a good job she can be proud of herself but the fact that she gave birth without a spouse around to assist is not anything to applaud or to idealize.  Romanticizing a group labeled as “single mothers” is the wrong message to send to teenage girls.   It’s bad enough there are shows like Teen Mom and movies like Juno which are aimed at the young girls where the mothers are not criticized for their lack of responsibility but instead given a platform to express themselves in a way that teenagers can relate.

When I was a kid there was one movie I remember about a teenager getting pregnant.  It had Molly Ringwald in it and it was called For Keeps. It showed the Ringwald’s character Darcy unable to hold her child or look at her child.  It showed her old friends from school making fun of her and showed her working at a fast food restaurant to get by.  It showed the fights it caused between Darcy and her boyfriend.  I remember watching it and thinking, “No Way.  I will never go through that.”  She wasn’t glamorized and they often made her look pretty bad.

Now on Teen Mom we basically tell teenagers that if they get pregnant they could possibly be on a reality show.  They don’t have to work.  The protagonists are generally all scum.  They break the laws and get arrested.  It’s basically Jersey Shore for teenyboppers which do not need to be influenced to be little tramps.  I can’t stand that show.  It’s pretty bad when the reality stars of Sister Wives are the most normal people on television.

It’s pretty disgusting when we have all these scummy shows aimed at teenagers and then we have something like To Catch A Predator which was cancelled.  It was partially given the axe because idiots cried for the rights of pedophiles and  raised their arms up when one killed himself while being confronted.

We actually had a show that was protecting teenagers and rather than applaud its efforts, people say that the techniques used were improper.  They accused the show of entrapment, and that paying the team that helped catch the perverts was against the ethics of journalists and that it lacked integrity.  Frankly, it was all BS.   They put forth basically anything  they can think of to protest the show.  I’m sure the ACLU was yelling with the rest of the fools.

Hey, how about we care more about getting the pedophiles off line and a little less about the nutsos who kill themselves because they were caught.  I said it once before and I’ll say it again,  GOD BLESS CHRIS HANSEN!

I digress.

Rocky goes to a casino and he can’t lose.  He plays roulette and slots and wins every time.  Once he leaves he harasses a police officer strolling the area.  He soon gets bored with the same old same old.  He calls Pip and tells him he can’t stand how everything goes in his favor.  He asks to go to hell as he doesn’t belong in heaven.

SPOILER:  As expected, Pip tells him that he is in fact in hell.

Nearly always The Twilight Zone delivers, and this is no exception.  Rocky is easy to hate.  When he talks about killing a dog the lack of remorse is enough to want to see him suffer.   The acting is great and the characters well developed.  It also leaves one knowing that what you wish for is not necessarily what you want and when you have it, it may be a curse.

As always Rod Serling delivered.  He always provided a deep, intelligent program that made one think.  His show entertained and though only 30-60 minutes long left one with a message that stayed much longer.  Episodes like The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street, Four O’Clock and The Shelter are just a few examples of his brilliance and ability to make one take in something with depth and a well learned lesson.

Scared Stiff Reviews:  8/10

The post Twilight Zone: A Nice Place to Visit (Netflix Instant Watch) appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

“Some maniac smashed into him and left him lying in the rain.” – Pete Radcliff (Kevin Hagen)

Oliver Pope (Edward Andrews) drives home after a long day of work.  His mind isn’t on driving though.  Instead, he is thinking about his job and how another employee is aiming for it.  Though, Pope is paranoid and his co-worker Pete Radcliff (Kevin Hagen) is not after his job, the thought alone consumes him.  Before he knows it, he rams into a young boy who was merely riding a bicycle.  In a state of panic, he leaves the child for dead and takes off.  The boy lives but just barely and only for a little while.  While alive, the child remains in the hospital and the accident is the talk of the town.  Though there was a witness present, all that is known among the townspeople is that the hit-and-run driver is a man.

The townspeople may not know, but Oliver’s car does.  Soon, the vehicle begins acting strangely.  The horn goes off all hours of the night.  When Oliver descends into the garage, he sees that the car is alone.  Still, the horn goes off.   Oliver decides to take a day off of work to clear his mind.  Radcliff arrives and though the two bicker, Pete apologizes to Ms. Pope (Helen Westcott) and explains that he has just received word the young boy had died.

The next day, Mrs. Pope takes the car out only to have it begin steering her in an alternative direction before going dead.  She brings the car into the repair shop, but later on it appears in the driveway.  The shop calls and asks if either she or Oliver picked the car up, admitting that they had lost it.  Once again, the car’s horn begins to blare.

Soon, Radcliff s mistakenly arrested for the crime.  Instead, of showing shame or regret, Oliver instead expresses glee at his co-worker’s misfortune.  That is until of course the car once again begins to make noise.  This time it starts of it’s own accord without the keys in the ignition.  Later, the car plays the radio at full-blast in the middle of the night.  Fed up, Oliver begins destroying his own car.

The next day, Oliver decides to walk to work only to have the car drive itself and follow him.  It moves along at a snail’s pace demanding him to get inside.  It nearly runs him over but stops itself.  It then swings open its own door in a forced invite.  Oliver, without choice, gets inside the car.  The car’s motivation becomes clear as it bring Mr. Pope to his destination.

Long before STEPHEN KING’S CHRISTINE there was YOU DRIVE.  Simple in premise; it followed a car with a conscience.  Though the car in this tale is not a villain but a hero of sorts, there is still something unsettling about one’s own vehicle turning on them – even when the owner deserves it.

This is a fun tale and like most episodes offers a moral and a wonderful short soliloquy by the great Rod Serling.

Scared Stiff Rating:  8/10

The post The Twilight Zone: You Drive (1964) Horror TV Show appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

Reviewed by Melissa Antoinette Garza

 “He cried because he had no more worlds to conquer.” – Hecate (Wright King)

 William Feathersmith (Albert Salmi) is a ruthless old tycoon who lacks decency and conscience.  He gained his riches and powers with conniving methods and deceitful ways.  All who work for him despise him, and talk behind his back.  Still, it bothers him none.  He enjoys winning and strategizing against others to get ahead.

The episode opens with Feathersmith calling a meeting with Diedrich (John Anderson), a man he had known and rivaled against for years.  As Diedrich walks into the office, the secretaries discuss what they know the poor man is in store for.  He’s about to be told that all that he has worked for is being stripped of him.   It was a common occurrence with Feathersmith, and something that the crew had obviously seen many times before.  Just as they had predicted, William offered his rival a cigar and gloating all the while, told Diedrich how he was now bankrupt.  As Diedrich walks out of the office, Feathersmith calls into the speakerphone and laughs obnoxiously as the beaten man leaves.

William then celebrates with liquor.  When everyone else goes home for the evening he sticks around.  Soon, the janitor Hecate (Wright King) appears to clean his office.  The two begin talking and Hecate reveals that he had grown up in the same small town as Feathersmith.  Cliffordsville was where William had made his mark, and discussing the place, made the old man nostalgic.  He discloses to Hecate that if he could he would return to that town to do it all again.  When he discusses his power and assets , he states that “getting it, that was the kick.  Getting it – not having it.”

Feathersmith then exits to the elevator but instead of bringing him to the lobby, the elevator stops at an unknown floor.  A single door displays “Devlin’s Travel Agency.”   Being that William owned the building he didn’t quite understand how this place existed.  Nonetheless, he enters.

Ms. Devlin (Julie Newmar) strikes a deal with Feathersmith.  She agrees to send him back to Cliffordsville to do everything again.  Of course, like everything in the “Twilight Zone,” things don’t go as the lead character had planned.  When he is placed back into the field as a novice and is forced to make a name for himself, he trips up.  He makes foolish mistakes and soon it is apparent that instead of ending up the rich man he was, fate had something else in store for him.

Rod Serling always captivates.  His ability to tell a story and give depth to characters who are on for such a short period of time still astound.  Though this doesn’t pack the punch that many of the other episodes do, it still delivers an interesting tale and offers a lesson in decency.

“The Twilight Zone” always cast remarkably.  Serling understood the importance of having great actors, and this was no exception.  Albert Salmi was fantastic in the lead and played the part perfectly.

Overall, “Of Late I Think of Cliffordsville” is a fun episode with a just conclusion.  Though the ending is expected, it is always good to see a villain get what is coming to them, and this does not disappoint.

Scared Stiff Rating:  7/10

The post The Twilight Zone: Of Late I think of Cliffordville (1963) – Horror TV Show appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.

Burgess Meredith is one of the finest screen actors of all time.  He can captivate easily.  In many ways, he was the reason the original Rocky was such a success.  His personality and talent easily grabs the audience and doesn’t let go.

The same is true for his performance as Mr. Henry Bemis.  For the few who haven’t seen the classic episode; he’s a banker who absolutely adores books.  He is so focused on Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield.  He accidentally shortchanges a patron which isn’t unusual, but this time he gets fired.  He goes home to an angry wife who grabs the newspaper out of his hand stating that he buries himself in the written word and avoids conversation.

The wife is so wicked that she destroys his books.  Bemis is a sympathetic character as despite the standoffishness of Bemis, he never loses his human side.  He’s awkward, and anti-social, and completely wrapped up in anything written down.

Catastrophe strikes and all the occupants of earth are killed in a nuclear war where Bemis is the only survivor.   He looks around at what’s left of his planet and says in the most chilling way that hits directly home, “The thing of it is, I’m not so sure I want to be alive.”   When you think of his predicament as the sole survivor of the world, the question has to come to mind.  To drive it home the way that Meredith does is mastery.

After the shock and dismay wears off and after a near suicide attempt, he finds a library filled with books and realizes he can finally read them without anyone interrupting him.  Then as fate would have it – his glasses break.  Henry Bemis needs someone.  He needs human interaction.  He needs something that neither a book nor he himself can provide -and there’s no one there to help.

It’s a fantastic tale with the type of moral you’d expect from the Twilight Zone.  A place where nothing is black and white despite what the color of your television is telling you.

Scared Stiff Review 10/10 I want Burgess Meredith cloned!

The post Twilight Zone: Time Enough at Last (1959) Classic TV Review appeared first on SCARED STIFF REVIEWS.