User Reviews

When the show begins, you learn that a married couple have only been together a few months and it turns out the husband is the woman's second...her first apparently died. Now things soon get interesting when she learns she has a winning Irish Sweepstakes ticket...and it was purchased by her late husband! But the pair look high and low and find no evidence of this winning ticket. Ultimately, the wife realizes there is only one place the ticket could be...in the clothing in which her husband was buried!! She realizes however that she could have the body exhumed and she could still cash in this ticket. Oddly, however, her new husband is against this and says exhuming the body is ghoulish and disgusting. Well, when he isn't home, she goes ahead and has the body exhumed. Now comes the big twist...and it's a doozy!

The "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" program, like most anthology programs, was highly uneven. There were definitely quite a few duds and after following several, "Post Mortem" is a welcome relief...well written, funny and the sort of thing that made this show worth seeing.

Like all the regular 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' directors, Arthur Hiller's episodes were inconsistent. Neither of his previous three episodes wowed me, though all three were watchable enough ("Disappearing Trick" faring best and "Flight to the East" being the weakest). It is difficult to resist such a foreboding title, the subject did sound interesting and Steve Forrest (here in one of his darkest roles) was always worth watching. Season 3 did contain some great episodes, a favourite being "Lamb to the Slaughter".

"Post Mortem" is one of the great episodes, with pretty much everything working brilliantly. It's also Hiller's first great 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes and one of his best overall. It's not quite "Lamb to the Slaughter", but it is for me the best episode since that and much needed after a brief up and down period with the episodes in between the two. "Post Mortem" may not be one of my favourites of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents', but it is an excellent representation of how the series was when on form.

Didn't quite buy how too trusting Judy was, but that is being nit-picky.

Forrest is excellent in his role, have seldom seen him this sinister while not doing it in an overt way. Joanna Moore is alluring and the two have strong chemistry together that has tension and quirkiness. Hitchcock's bookending is amusing, fitting with the story's tone more than ideally, while Hiller's direction is some of his most accomplished.

Moreover, the production values are slick and atmospheric, neither overblown or cheap. Did like that the music was quirkier than what is usually heard with 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents', but it fitted very well as the way the story is adapted is also quirky. The dialogue is entertaining and thought provoking, while not being too reliant on too much talk.

Had no issues really with the story. It was always compelling and never felt too predictable, loved too its tautness and quirkiness while not forgetting the suspense too. The original short story is more suspenseful but the episode, while having more of the quirkier, offbeat feel, is not devoid of that. The ending is clever and didn't feel obvious, anti-climactic or far fetched, while too many episodes have been up to this point.

In conclusion, excellent. If anybody was wondering as to whether Hiller had a good 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episode in him, this will get rid of any doubts. 9/10.

This is a nicely structured classic short story. It reminds me of the ones I would find in a short story collection purchased from a book club in Junior Hight. It involves a rather fragile marriage between a recently widowed woman (quite attractive) and her rather serious husband. She lives in a nice house, though it has its shortcomings. She wants a heated bathroom, but he keeps bringing up the future and the investments he has made. He wants her to look at the big picture. They are living partly on the money from an insurance policy her first husband had. When the former, a rather irresponsible man with a gambling addiction, wins the Irish Sweepstakes and a 133,000 dollars, post mortem, the couple begins to search for his ticket. Of course, it was buried with him in his favorite blue suit. What I liked about this episode is that the wife is much more practical in many ways and goes about getting the ticket back in a safe, legal way. However, the husband has his own agenda, and that's where the fun starts. The neat thing is that there are several twists and turns along the way, and there is a really satisfying conclusion.

By the way, at one point I predicted that the husband would light a cigar with the winning ticket by accident. He talked about telling off his boss and using a ten dollar bill to light a cigar. I'm glad I was wrong.

Arthur Hiller directed quite a few episodes for Hitch, and at the time was also directing GUNSMOKE. Of course, he will always be remembered for LOVE STORY. Hiller had the magic touch with actors, and this is a prime example.

Joanna Moore and Steve Forrest play Judy and Steve, a young couple with a problem. Considering the macabre material, this had to be a favorite of Alfred Hitchcock hands down.

It's all about a winning lottery ticket, the legendary Irish Sweepstakes, which back in the day was the forerunner of SUPER Lotto. It seems Judy's husband died rather suddenly and the winning ticket was accidentally buried with him! That's a long, long shot, but you have to give the writers credit for a dark Hitch scenario. True, there have been stories of everyday people being buried with expensive watches, jewelry and the like --but is this couple really gonna' dig the poor guy up?

Possibly... although Steve (well played by Steve Forrest), is not in favor, thinking its rather gruesome... OR is there something else that may bury him? I agree with the last reviewer, this is perhaps one of the darkest roles for Forrest, who usually played good guys in his career, but he makes the most out of this part.

What happens next? That's the fun of it, a very clever story that will hold your attention.

The trivia notes are correct, and may be the biggest joke of all. Back in the 50s, taxes were high, especially on lottery winnings, so the money Judy and Steve would receive, and a hefty part of it, would go to the IRS. But why get into details?

From Season 3, remastered Universal dvd box set. Released 2007.