"Alfred Hitchcock Presents" Momentum (1956)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Robert Stevens

Writers:

Francis M. Cockrell (teleplay)
Cornell Woolrich (story)

TV Series:

"Alfred Hitchcock Presents" (1955)

Original Air Date:

24 June 1956 (Season 1, Episode 39)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

After his boss tells him the firm is close to bankruptcy, Dick Paine agrees to work for half pay. Dick...

Plot Keywords:

Alfred Hitchcock | Famous Opening Theme | Murder | Looking At Camera | Performer Name In Title

Cast

Alfred Hitchcock	...	Himself - Host
Skip Homeier	...	Richard Paine
Joanne Woodward	...	Beth Paine
Ken Christy	...	A.T. Burroughs
Henry Hunter	...	Finance Company Agent
Holly Bane	...	Cab Driver (as Mike Ragan)
William Newell	...	Charlie (as Billy Newell)
Frank Kreig	...	Martin the Janitor (as Frank Krieg)
Harry Tyler	...	Apartment Hunter
Jack Tesler	...	Newspaper Man
Dorothy Crehan	...	Woman
Don Dillaway	...	Policeman
Patricia Knox	...	Woman at Bus Stop
John Lehman	...	Man at Bus Stop (as John Lehmann)
Joe Gilbert	...	Radio Announcer (as Joseph Gilbert)

Runtime:

USA:30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Filming Locations:

Republic Studios - 4024 Radford Avenue, North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Shamley Productions

Quotes:

Alfred Hitchcock: It seems to me that television is exactly like a gun. Your enjoyment of it is determined by which end of it you're on.

The Wife Can Handle It

Though the ending proves nicely ironical, the episode itself remains curiously flat. Young husband Skip Homeier wants to join the urban rat-race since he and long-suffering wife Joanne Woodward are perilously in debt. But he has no luck finding employment. Desperate, he goes to collect money still owed him from an old employer. Unfortunately, events plunge into a downslide from that point on-- hence, the title "Momentum".

Homeier made his mark playing ruthless young punks, and is well-cast since he can generate the appearance of a bomb about to go off . And looking like the little Dutch boy, Woodward plays her part of the drab housewife with an appropriate lack of color. So why does the entry lack excitement or suspense once the plot thickens. I expect it's because director Robert Stevens never gets the material to gel in an involving way. We remain spectators to the drama rather than participants. I can't help noticing the segment was made in 1955, but wasn't aired until mid-'56 and as the last episode of that season. To me, that suggests the producers too were disappointed with the results. All in all-- of interest to fans of early Woodward