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penpusherWe have to remember some things about "The Twilight Zone." It was, first and foremost, intended as commentary of the day. Rod Serling, for all his brilliance, did not know nor could predict where we would be in the year 2020 (if he could have, he certainly would have turned it into one of his episodes!) So part of the reason why at least some of these stories are no longer seen in regular rerun rotation on television is that the message they send is not a tale worth telling. Such is the case of "The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine."
***SPOILERS ABOUT THIS EPISODE MAY BE REVEALED***
Ida Lupino is a name we will encounter multiple times as we progress through this anthology series. Here, in her first venture into the Zone, she is the star of the show, a movie star, Barbara Jean Trenton, romantic lead in a series of films from the 1930s. She spends her time in her tony Beverly Hills mansion sitting in a screening room all day, reliving her past glory by watching her old films and thinking about her handsome leading men.
Her housekeeper Sally (Alice Frost - a founding member of the Orson Welles project, The Mercury Theatre) is concerned, as her mistress barely ever comes out of that room, and Sally brings her snacks and a pot of coffee to keep up her strength. Ms. Trenton's agent Danny Weiss (another future Best Supporting Actor Oscar winner, Martin Balsam) is worried too, but has something to offer: a part in a new picture. Yes, it's at her old studio, where the guy calling the shots, who was always at odds with her, was still running things, but it's a job.
They keep the appointment, and while Barbara Jean envisions a return to her glamorous lead roles, she is told the part is a small one, where she plays a mother. Incensed, she storms out of the studio chief's office and back to the safety of her estate.
Danny has one more idea to shake Barbara Jean out of her reverie: a visit from one of her co-stars. Jerome Cowan (who we see every holiday season as the DA assigned to prove that Kris Kringle isn't Santa Claus in the 1947 version of "Miracle on 34th Street") is her most favored, and he was in town on business.
Ida Lupino at her Wall of Fame, trying to recognize the old man she sees as her celluloid lover
When Jerry drops by to visit, Ms. Trenton can't hide her disappointment and dismay. Her leading man is... OLD! AND! He runs a string of supermarkets outside of Chicago! Barbara Jean Trenton was fooled again, and ordered both men to leave.
She hastens to her screening room to see the REAL Jerry, the leading man who is still young, fit and handsome. As the film unspools Ms. Trenton mutters, "I wish I could be up there with you," as the camera dissolves.
What seems like the next morning comes and Sally knocks on the screening room door with her customary coffee and snacks. When she enters and doesn't see Barbara Jean in her chair by the projector (which was still running), and notes she wasn't reclining on the sofa, Sally is puzzled. Then she looks at the screen and lets loose a scream.
Danny arrives and Sally explains she searched the entire house and Ms. Trenton was gone. He sits, dims the lights and turns the projector back on. There, on the screen, a mix of characters from Barbara Jean's various films are all together in the foyer just outside the screening room. They all have arrived for a dinner party. Ms. Trenton comes down the staircase and invites her guests out to the pool, as Danny watches, then calls out to her.
She turns, steps into a close up, blows a kiss and tosses her long handkerchief towards the frame before retiring with her young Jerry to the back of the mansion as the film runs out. Danny is stunned, but as he exits, he sees it - Barbara Jean's handkerchief, on the floor, right where she tossed it. "To wishes, Barbie," Danny says wryly.
There is so much wrong with this. First, to characterize an actress as so vain as to not understand the passage of time seems especially ludicrous and unfair, even by 1959 standards. Second, Ms. Lupino still looks young and vibrant here, so it's difficult to understand why she was trapped in her memories, or why she would flatly refuse a part because she would play a mother. And if she was simply self-absorbed, why should she or would she get her wish, after treating everyone so thoughtlessly? It is a completely unsatisfactory ending. But Ms. Lupino will be redeemed, later in "The Twilight Zone."
I give "The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine" a 4 out of 10.
***SPOILERS ABOUT THIS EPISODE MAY BE REVEALED***
Ida Lupino is a name we will encounter multiple times as we progress through this anthology series. Here, in her first venture into the Zone, she is the star of the show, a movie star, Barbara Jean Trenton, romantic lead in a series of films from the 1930s. She spends her time in her tony Beverly Hills mansion sitting in a screening room all day, reliving her past glory by watching her old films and thinking about her handsome leading men.
Her housekeeper Sally (Alice Frost - a founding member of the Orson Welles project, The Mercury Theatre) is concerned, as her mistress barely ever comes out of that room, and Sally brings her snacks and a pot of coffee to keep up her strength. Ms. Trenton's agent Danny Weiss (another future Best Supporting Actor Oscar winner, Martin Balsam) is worried too, but has something to offer: a part in a new picture. Yes, it's at her old studio, where the guy calling the shots, who was always at odds with her, was still running things, but it's a job.
They keep the appointment, and while Barbara Jean envisions a return to her glamorous lead roles, she is told the part is a small one, where she plays a mother. Incensed, she storms out of the studio chief's office and back to the safety of her estate.
Danny has one more idea to shake Barbara Jean out of her reverie: a visit from one of her co-stars. Jerome Cowan (who we see every holiday season as the DA assigned to prove that Kris Kringle isn't Santa Claus in the 1947 version of "Miracle on 34th Street") is her most favored, and he was in town on business.
Ida Lupino at her Wall of Fame, trying to recognize the old man she sees as her celluloid lover
When Jerry drops by to visit, Ms. Trenton can't hide her disappointment and dismay. Her leading man is... OLD! AND! He runs a string of supermarkets outside of Chicago! Barbara Jean Trenton was fooled again, and ordered both men to leave.
She hastens to her screening room to see the REAL Jerry, the leading man who is still young, fit and handsome. As the film unspools Ms. Trenton mutters, "I wish I could be up there with you," as the camera dissolves.
What seems like the next morning comes and Sally knocks on the screening room door with her customary coffee and snacks. When she enters and doesn't see Barbara Jean in her chair by the projector (which was still running), and notes she wasn't reclining on the sofa, Sally is puzzled. Then she looks at the screen and lets loose a scream.
Danny arrives and Sally explains she searched the entire house and Ms. Trenton was gone. He sits, dims the lights and turns the projector back on. There, on the screen, a mix of characters from Barbara Jean's various films are all together in the foyer just outside the screening room. They all have arrived for a dinner party. Ms. Trenton comes down the staircase and invites her guests out to the pool, as Danny watches, then calls out to her.
She turns, steps into a close up, blows a kiss and tosses her long handkerchief towards the frame before retiring with her young Jerry to the back of the mansion as the film runs out. Danny is stunned, but as he exits, he sees it - Barbara Jean's handkerchief, on the floor, right where she tossed it. "To wishes, Barbie," Danny says wryly.
There is so much wrong with this. First, to characterize an actress as so vain as to not understand the passage of time seems especially ludicrous and unfair, even by 1959 standards. Second, Ms. Lupino still looks young and vibrant here, so it's difficult to understand why she was trapped in her memories, or why she would flatly refuse a part because she would play a mother. And if she was simply self-absorbed, why should she or would she get her wish, after treating everyone so thoughtlessly? It is a completely unsatisfactory ending. But Ms. Lupino will be redeemed, later in "The Twilight Zone."
I give "The Sixteen-Millimeter Shrine" a 4 out of 10.