Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Complete Season Three Review
Reviewed by Colin Hewitt
Starring: Alfred Hitchcock, Jessica Tandy, Mildred Dunnock, Barbara Bel Geddes, William Shatner, Peter Lorre and Vincent Price
Directors: Alfred Hitchcock, Robert Stevens, James Neilson, Paul Henreid, Robert Altman, Don Taylor
Certificate: 12
Running Time: 963 minutes
Number of Discs: 5 Discs
Format: DVD
Release Date: 26 October 2015
The word genius is far too often overused, however to use that description when talking about Sir Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980) is not an exaggeration.
Considered by many to be one of Britain’s best filmmakers, his movie career spanned over fifty years. From his first steps in silent films, through early sound movies to a glittering Hollywood career, Hitchcock broke boundaries, and maintained a level of quality control second to none. His understanding of the craft gave him the deserved title ‘The Master of Suspense’.
Whilst most people are familiar with many of his cinema films, ‘Psycho’, ‘The Birds’, ‘Vertigo’ etc., there is an important part of his career which is often overlooked. Through series such as ‘The Alfred Hitchcock Hour’, and ‘Alfred Hitchcock Presents’, and in parallel with his movies, he produced numerous short stories for the, then fledgling, television industry.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Complete Season 3, is a 5 DVD collection of 39 episodes, broadcast (in the USA) between 1957 and 1958. Each story is approximately 25 minutes in duration.
I’m a little too young to remember these being originally transmitted, but I do remember the numerous repeats. Each episode begins with the familiar Hitchcock theme tune (Funeral March of a Marionette), whilst the master’s silhouette steps into a cartoon outline of his physique. “Good Evening”, the trademark monotone voice booms, before he delivers a humorous and often sarcastic monologue, introducing each tale. The story is bookended with an equally amusing epilogue where he ties up any loose ends or playfully mocks whatever advertisement has been broadcast prior to his reappearance.
The films themselves have no flashy special effects, they rely on good solid acting, remarkable writing and exceptional direction. It is fascinating to spot fledgling and established movies stars. In this collection alone I noticed Vincent Price (numerous Hammer Horror films), Jessica Tandy (Driving Miss Daisy), George Peppard (The A-Team), Barbara Bel Geddes (Miss Ellie in Dallas) and a very young William Shatner (of Star Trek fame).
In addition to the actors and actresses many of the directors also became household names. Robert Altman, who subsequently directed the film MASH, directs two episodes. Don Taylor, director of Escape from the Planet of The Apes, directs five episodes, and Arthur Hiller, director of the seven-times Oscar nominated ‘Love Story’ directs four episodes.
The word genius is far too often overused, however to use that description when talking about Sir Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980) is not an exaggeration.
Hitchcock himself directed three of the episodes, ‘The Perfect Crime’, ‘Lamb to the Slaughter’, and ‘Dip In The Pool’. It is interesting to note that ‘Dip in the Pool’ was written by Roald Dahl – I suspect the whole series was a huge influence on Roald Dahl when he created ‘Tales of The Unexpected’ for British television almost twenty five years later, there are many similarities, (In fact ‘Dip In The Pool’ was re-recorded entirely, for Dahl’s ‘Tales of The Unexpected’).
Like any collection of stories there are hits and misses, however in my opinion the hits outweigh any misses by a huge margin.
There’s no denying that the style and delivery of these stories is dated, but they are still hugely entertaining. The recorded quality of the films is exceptional, extremely crisp back and white and very clear sound.
I’m not sure if this collection will appeal to those who like their television suspense darker (I’m thinking of the audience for ‘The Bridge’, ‘Wallander’, ‘The Killing’ etc.), but think it will be cherished by students of television and cinema, and viewers who enjoy Midsommer Murders, Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, someone looking for a 30 minute ‘fix’ of suspense and mystery.
This product is highly recommended to those who will relish a slice of unadulterated nostalgia, and remember to have fun spotting all the young actors and actresses destined for Hollywood greatness.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £29.99
Available to buy from Amazon here.
