Twilight Zone: The Howling Man

It was sort of horror and sometimes science fiction, but The Twilight Zone was really a genre unto itself. Still, it is somewhat strange to think how few of the old school horror movie stars turned up in guest-starring roles (of course, Karloff had his own competing shows at the time, Thriller and The Veil). However, not only did the great John Carradine take a detour through the “dimension of sight, sound, and mind,” his episode also happens to be one of the most gothic of the series. Yet, it remains a perennial fan and critic favorite. Celebrating its 60^th anniversary this year, “The Howling Man” (S2E5) airs this Monday morning on Syfy.

Charles Beaumont, the third great Zone writer after Rod Serling and Richard Matheson, adapted “Howling Man” from his own short story—and he has been ripped off several times since (most notably by I Trapped the Devil). During the aftermath of WWI, David Ellington commenced a walking tour of southern Europe in search of meaning. Caught in a freak deluge, he tries to take refuge in an austere abbey, but the rustic brothers try to turn him away. It is only when he collapses from weakness that they relent. However, when he comes to, he confronts Brother Jerome, demanding to know why they imprisoned the bearded man wailing in a dungeon cell. Of course, the monk tries to convince him that is not a man, but rather someone much more sinister.

Tightly helmed by veteran TV director Douglas Heyes, “The Howling Man” has lost none of its power in sixty years. It is scary, but it is even more disturbing on a philosophical and metaphysical level. It is easy for viewers to place themselves in Ellington’s position and imagine the resulting guilt and torment. Technically, it is also a great TV production, featuring sets worthy of the old Universal monster movies and cinematographer George T. Clemens’ surprisingly dramatic angles and framing.

Hollywood Indie: Footprints

There is a reason religious cults recruit in Hollywood. There are plenty of lost souls to be found roaming the sidewalks. One mysterious woman is definitely one of them and yes, she is offered a free “stress test” by a you-know-what. Wisely, she will seek answers somewhere else in Steven Peros’ Footprints (trailer here), a gently fantastical valentine to Hollywood that opens this Friday in New York.

A woman wakes up on the concrete hand and footprints behind Grauman’s Chinese Theater. She has no idea who she is or how she got there. Half-suspecting she is trapped in a dream, she passively falls into the flow of life on Hollywood Boulevard anyway, at least until she can think of something better to do. All the jitney tour guides take her under their wings, but Victor makes an unusual impression on her. A dashing old cat, he was surely quite the ladies man in his day. She feels safe around him, but to her alarm, the old gent apparently vanishes midway through the day.

Obviously, there is something supernatural afoot, but Peros keeps the tone more wistful than ominous. He uses the Hollywood setting quite shrewdly, giving viewers a feel for the neighborhood around the landmark theater. He also gets a big assist from the jauntily swinging score by Christopher Caliendo, which often evokes the spirit of the classic West Coast Cool Jazz, particularly when adding flute and vibraphone to the instrumentation.

The problem with Footprints is its fable-like story requires considerable selling to be effective, but with two notable exceptions, the cast simply is not up to it. However, H.M. Wynant (whose many credits include The Howling Man, the coolest Twilight Zone episode ever) brings genuine big-screen charisma and presence to the film as Victor. Likewise, Pippa Scott (another TV veteran also known for small but pivotal supporting turns in The Searchers and Auntie Mame) exudes charm and warmth as Genevieve, a former B-movie queen whose lost jungle girl programmer is set for a revival run at the Egyptian.

Footprints expresses its affection for old school Hollywood in ways that are really quite endearing. Peros also fine tunes the film’s evolving emotional vibe rather deftly. Unfortunately, his efforts are often undermined by the folks on screen, which is a darned shame. At least it all sounds great when Footprints opens this Friday (4/15) in New York at the Quad Cinema.