tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post8908227481244302457..comments2024-03-20T15:28:13.030-05:00Comments on The Twilight Zone Vortex: "The Mind and the Matter"JPhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14808904189056290207noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-80137938830882507762019-03-01T05:06:36.578-06:002019-03-01T05:06:36.578-06:00I used to find myself in Archibald Beechcroft'...I used to find myself in Archibald Beechcroft's shoes and did for 15 years at my old job in Hampton Bays NY (Canoe Place Shell) I could NEVER get my car in because of all the Latino landscapers with their trucks and trailers. And even if I did get the car in, they were all over the place, in your face, and merely loitering. I would always see Beechcroft at 7:00 on the subway,nearly pulverized, and invariably infuriated. I knew how he felt, and although he paid the price for that book's effectiveness, I still wished for my own copy of "The Mind And the Matter" so I could make those inconsiderate landscapers and their dinosaur trucks disappear!naruto65https://www.blogger.com/profile/12170480906969053086noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-87386940454685414652017-10-02T17:55:09.634-05:002017-10-02T17:55:09.634-05:00Thanks for reading, Keith, and we appreciate your ...Thanks for reading, Keith, and we appreciate your divergent opinion on this episode but ultimately we're not going to bend on this one. This is a bad episode. If viewers enjoy the episode, that's fantastic! It's still a bad episode, with obvious creative and production problems. Is it a bad episode of a great series? Of course. Do viewers enjoy poor episode? Seems so. When the show is great, we say so. When it's just average, we say so. When it's bad, we don't shy away from stating its problems due to a love of the series as a whole. Does objective honestly sometimes come off as harsh? Sure. We simply try our best to eschew the sentimentality for the series carried by so many of its viewers in order to take an honest look at each episode. Is every episode going to measure up to the artistry of "Walking Distance" or "Nick of Time" or "The Howling Man" or "A Game of Pool"? Of course not. It's Sturgeon's Law. We assign grades accordingly. This is one of the episodes which struck us as an utter failure in both intent and execution. This is not a general comment on Shelley Berman, nor on Rod Serling or director Buzz Kulick. These guys did great work in their careers. "The Mind and the Matter" isn't among that great work. <br /><br />This is in no way intended as an attempt to dissuade those who enjoy the episode from enjoying it. I greatly enjoy "The Bard," for example, but I'll tell you, when it comes time to grade that episode it isn't going to get an A or a B or probably even a C just because I find it funny in places. It's important to remember that the grade we assign each episode reflects our objective critical evaluation and not a personal enjoyment meter. This project we've undertaken would hardly be worthwhile were we simply to grade every episode an A or B because some viewers enjoy watching it. It's the wonderful and yet divisive nature of discussing a beloved television show. JPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14808904189056290207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-55446100856464467142017-10-02T01:15:23.500-05:002017-10-02T01:15:23.500-05:00Couldn't disagree more. The variations on his ...Couldn't disagree more. The variations on his working day as he adjusted the world around him always had me thinking about all the other possibilities he could have effected.<br /><br />Berman was suitably snug, exasperated and humbled...a great performance.<br /><br />An "F"? Well,not an "A",but at least a "B." "Uncle Simon" is an "F", most of the fifth season is a "D"...all the maudlin and sentimental episodes (e.g. Carol Burnett) are an "F"<br /><br />What are my "A"s? Deathshead Revisited, To Serve Man, On Thursday We Leave For Home, 16 Millimeter Shrine, A Game of Pool.<br /><br />This is a great site with interesting points, but you're being a little harsh. Keith Ghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03285401296924682036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-73682391859973180582017-09-04T06:40:53.178-05:002017-09-04T06:40:53.178-05:00That is a fast-paced schedule. I will say that of ...That is a fast-paced schedule. I will say that of the 100 or so reviews we have written so far this is probably one of the harshest. I guess my problem with this one was in comparison with the normal standard of the show, it falls a bit short, mostly due to its thin plot and the weird Berman masks. I will admit that an F may be a bit harsh. There is definitely some great direction and photography happening in this episode that may go overlooked and Berman's performance is by no means terrible. This one just didn't grab me though. I will say that the production value and creative quality of the show under your father was by far the best the show would ever offer. Although seasons four and five produced some fantastic episodes, after your father left the show was never the same. Thank you for the comment and thanks so much for taking the time to check out the site!Brian Duranthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02724290376009803159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-15046391101798005592017-09-02T09:14:45.947-05:002017-09-02T09:14:45.947-05:00I agree that the use of a device in this script, i...I agree that the use of a device in this script, i.e. the witchcraft book, goes contrary to a core principle of TZ: things just happen. Those things are often, if not always, consistent with the personality of the person they're happening to, which makes explanation even more unnecessary. It's one of the delicious things about TZ. Occasionally, for instance in "A Penny For Your Thoughts," there is a seeming "cause," but it falls far short of an "explanation." <br />Your review is thoughtful and informed. I would just say in deciding whether this or that episode is "disappointing" or fails to live up to the best the show had to offer, keep in mind: the people who made TZ made wholly 39 wholly original shows a year, two a week for $35,000 each. That's a breakneck pace and very low budget even by early-sixties standards. So be gentle. Every other half-hour on TV at the time was formulaic, using the same sets and the same actors in every episode. The logistics of getting TZ on film make it a miracle that so many wonderful shows were produced...at all.<br />Full disclosure: I was there. Buck Houghton was my father. Not being defensive on his behalf, just providing some (perhaps unneeded) context. JimBobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06243598532867625750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-46537582066468140192017-09-02T09:10:21.856-05:002017-09-02T09:10:21.856-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.JimBobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06243598532867625750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-73143233351581585382016-03-26T13:03:23.696-05:002016-03-26T13:03:23.696-05:00I couldn't agree more, John. I may have been a...I couldn't agree more, John. I may have been a little too harsh with this one but it feels thrown together very quickly. It was written specifically for Berman which may be why it doesn't work as Serving was concentrating on only one character and not on plot and dialogue. Berman does an adequate job but he simply isn't given much to work with. I feel the same way about episodes like "Hocus Pocus and Frisby," which made scarce use of the immensely talented Andy Devine, or "Mr. Bevis" with Orson Bean. We will review Montgomery Pittman's "The Grave" in a few weeks, an awkward, dissapointing episode that featured an amazing cast whose talents go relatively unnoticed.Brian Duranthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02724290376009803159noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-35143865109994564452016-03-26T06:26:03.652-05:002016-03-26T06:26:03.652-05:00What a dreadful waste of the talents of the gifted...What a dreadful waste of the talents of the gifted and original Shelley Berman.<br /><br />Sadly, oftentimes, when the TZ got hold of a major first class talent as uest star, especially if the player was known for comedy (Carol Burnett, Buster Keaton, Wally Cox, Orson Bean, Richard Hayden) the results were often sub-par or mediocre at best.<br /><br />Mr. Berman deserved better than this, but then so did the others.john kenrickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00710666533854296630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1318310043864039191.post-49040040263264591832014-10-29T16:56:40.116-05:002014-10-29T16:56:40.116-05:00Wow! An F? Maybe a D+ or a C- but an F? I don'...Wow! An F? Maybe a D+ or a C- but an F? I don't think I'd give ANY episode of TZ an F. All I recall vividly about this one is the awful masks, but then I think that if I were watching it on first airing, on a black and white TV with spotty reception and late in the evening, those things would have passed by so fast that I would not have noticed them. In any case, thanks for the entertaining writeup, as always!Jack Seabrookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02216640325305820140noreply@blogger.com