User Reviews

Without giving any spoilers-- those will come below, and you can turn away before you read them-- I'll just say that I was surprised at how dark an entry this was. Dark with a Capital D. There are multiple bad people afoot, and not many (if any) who are completely sympathetic. Even when you find out that this or that character isn't a full-fledged villain, you can't help but note decisions and actions that make the person at least partially culpable. Beach life isn't all fun and games.

Another reviewer had it right in pointing out that the Karen character was inconsistently written. She's terrified one night, then goes surfing the next day, then -- incredibly-- declines her concerned husband's repeated pleas that she not stay home alone again the next night. It was one of multiple instances when I threw up my hands and said out loud, "what the heck?"

Still and all, the last 20 minutes are quite tense and the last 5-10 are downright creepy. To give away more I'll need to reveal spoilers.

**************** SPOILERS *****************

I titled my review "Fun and Games" because this episode's ending reminded me of the incredibly disturbing 1997 movie and 2007 remake, "Funny Games." That movie has two, not three, clean-cut young adult psychopaths, but its sense of sadistic menace comes through in the Hitchcock Hour's conclusion as well. I wasn't expecting multi-person-- ahem-- "assault," to use a cleaned-up term, as well as murder to be implied so strongly in an early 1960s TV program. That turn of events took me by surprise, even though we the audience could see what was coming a few minutes before the main character did.

But while the surfers are the baddest guys, family friend Simon (O'Herlihy) is no angel, either. He comes over knowing that the husband is away, apparently with the intent to have his way with Karen. He prefaces his actions with a soliloquy on the murderous darkness inside every human being, and then gets physical. That he comes back later to apologize-- at least, that's his story-- and helps to catch one of the psychos, doesn't excuse what he'd earlier come to do. And the grief-stricken Sanchez, whose girlfriend has been killed: he refuses to take any responsibility for what happened to his girlfriend, even though he put the homeowner-- the aptly named "Karen," at least by 2022 pop culture standards-- in a terribly uncomfortable position and even though he might have avoided all of the tragedy had he just asked Karen to call the police.

Instead he turns all of his wrath against her, refusing to see how menacing he must have seemed and declining to look for whoever actually assaulted and killed his girlfriend. He breaks into Karen's house and seems intent on doing something very bad. That he, like Simon, winds up saving Karen after the psychotic surfers have revealed themselves as the previous night's murderers doesn't overshadow the misguided revenge that he'd earlier intended.

All in all, a very bleak portrayal of men and not an especially redeeming a portrayal of the lone woman, either. But creepy and a bit haunting if you think back on what might have been.

A good deal of misdirection occurs in this story regarding the players and their relationship with the central character Karen Wilson (Inger Stevens). Karen herself is portrayed inconsistently, frantically calling her husband Stan (Simon Scott) away from a business meeting, joining a trio of beach buddies for a surfing outing the next day, and then declining to join her husband on a return to his business deal knowing that she'll have to spend another night alone at home, all after an evening in which the cops came calling about an assault outside her home the prior evening. Add creepy next door neighbor Simon Carter (Dan O'Herlihy) into the mix and you have to question Mrs. Wilson's judgment even before the conclusion of the episode. Things are stood on their head when the revenge driven Manuel Sanchez (Christopher Dark) learns what really happened to his girlfriend by overhearing the beach bums coldly remark how they're going to take advantage of the situation to make Mrs. Wilson their next victim. Credit Sanchez for making the save with an assist from Carter, who tackles ring leader Rick (Chris Robinson) attempting to escape on the beach.

Aside from the unpredictable nature of this story, I enjoyed seeing a handful of character actors in the story who made their mark in other projects that enhanced their careers. Greg Morris (Dr. Foster) gained prominence as a member of the 'Mission Impossible' team of the late Sixties, while Richard Jaeckel, one of the baddies in the story, played a host of sleazy characters in TV and movies of the era. For this viewer, seeing Peter Brown as one of the beach hoods seemed out of character, since I got used to seeing him as a law and order type playing Deputy Johnny McKay on the Western series 'Lawman' of the late Fifties/early Sixties.

(Spoiler Alert) One a cold foggy evening Karen Wilson,Inger Stevens, is startled to find this both scary looking and acting guy bang at her door demanding to use her telephone. The guy Manny Sanchez, Christopher Dark, claims that he's out of gas and has to call the nearest gas station for help. Of course you wouldn't expect Karen all alone by herself with her husband Stan, Simon Scott, away on business to let this scuzzy looking guy in her house in the dead of night which she doesn't. Especially after he tried to force, and had her slam the door on him, himself in.

As it later turns out Sanchez's was in fact on the up and up despite his unnerving appearance and actions when it turns out that his girlfriend who was in his car was brutally assaulted and left for dead by an unknown assailant while he was on his way to the gas station! Karen now feeling guilty in what happened to Sanchez's girlfriend goes to see how she's doing at the hospital. Told by her attending physician Dr.Forster, Greg Morris, that it doesn't look good for her it's then that Sanchez , who was in the waiting room, verbally attacks Karen telling her that they'll be hell to pay on her part if his girlfriend doesn't pulls out of her coma. Sure enough within minutes it's announced on the hospital PA system that Sanchez's girlfriend died of her wounds.

With Karen now both guilt ridden over his girlfriend's death and terrified in what the by now crazed Sanchez will do to her up pops the zany and a bit off the wall next door neighbor Simon Carter, Dan O'Herlihy, who has a habit of crashing into the Wilson house and helping himself to the fridge and liquor cabinet! It then dawns on Karen that it may well have been Simon who murdered Sanchez's girlfriend since he's more then capable, especially when he's drunk, of doing it! Karen is then saved by a trio of fun loving tan and fit California beach boys Ricky Ed & Tom, Chris Robinson Peter Brown & Ricard Jaeckel, as a drunk and barley able to stand on his feet Simon made a play for her and was just about to force himself on Karen's and her and her husband's groceries. Simon already crashed into the place looking for a quick snack and only ended up with an apple to satisfy his hunger.

***SPOILERS**** The ending is a bit complicated and even Karen had trouble figuring it, boy was she naive, out until it was almost too late for her. But we all got to see who really did Sanchez's girlfriend in and for what: Kicks just plain kicks! And it was Sanchez who showed up unexpectedly at the Wilson house, gun in hand, who instead of blasting Karen whom he planned to, in her being responsible for his girlfriend's death, ended up saving her life instead. That's by his preventing the person who murdered his girlfriend form doing the very same thing to Karen Wilson!

This is definitely a weird, muddled episode.

From the start, people do stupid things, with the only intention to further a ridiculous plot line.

Stevens is fine in the lead, but beyond that, there is some really bad acting in this thing.

The "surfer dudes/beach bums" are simply nothing more than cartoonish. As is the next door (?) writer/neighbor. WHAT'S with him?

The plot. All she had to do was call the police, end of story. Ok, she hears the scream the initial evening. Got it. But what's with the speeding car she hears the next morning? Or was it another scream? The sequence of events is dicey, at best.

And once again, a sloppy conclusion for one of the hour-longs. So, the three "dudes" (her friends) turn out to be rapists? The writer/neighbor creepily hits on her, although he is presented as being possibly gay? She keeps returning to that lonely beach house, over and over? As is suggested at one point, just go to a friend's house. Duh.

The original "Presents" series is iconic. But this "Hour" series is consistently poor - in both plot and performances.