CONTAINS SPOILERS Brian Clemens's "Thriller" series is exceptionally good but sadly very unlikely to receive repeat showings or video coverage today. As a series of quite distinct stories and characters it does not have the identity of many "cult" TV shows, and its running time of around 65 minutes makes it awkward to schedule. This is a real pity as it has so much to offer. This particular story is one of the most frightening and disturbing of them all. Two young women rent a room in a dark, very mysterious house. Chrissie (Donna Mills) is rightly disconcerted by the ambience but her friend Gillian (Judy Carne) is oblivious. Chrissie becomes so frantic that she leaves for a while to clear her mind. On her return she cannot find her friend, whom she later discovers to have been murdered. She finds that all the house's residents are in fact dead, but have some ghostly existence. Responsibility lies with the otherwise never-seen man at the top of the stairs. The murders have a satanic, possibly sexual, motivation. Chrissie meets him and is lucky to escape with her life, although as the story concludes it is clear that she has fallen under the man's spell. The plot turns are largely predictable but are brought off brilliantly by Clemens's story and expert characterisation. Most of the acting superbly captures a sinister mood. The only slight flaws are some occasionally questionable acting and cheap production. Most impressive is the way that the story disturbs without having to rely on graphic violence. Throughout the series Clemens was a master at this. Unfortunately this reluctance to show violence would probably switch many modern viewers off. However for those with a subtler mind, it is highly recommended.
Review of Someone at the Top of the Stairs
