Feasibility Study (11 Jul. 1997)

Joshua Haywood is a single parent who has his hands full with his daughter Sarah who wants to elope with her motorcycle driving boyfriend. They wake up one morning to that there is no ... See full summary »

Director:

Ken Girotti

Writer:

Joseph Stefano

Stars:

David McCallum, Laura Harris, Malcolm Stewart

Cast

Episode cast overview:
David McCallum	...	Joshua Hayward
Laura Harris	...	Sarah Hayward
Malcolm Stewart	...	Daniel Tenzer
Don MacKay	...	Pat Dooley
Peter Hanlon
Chilton Crane	...	Elaine Tenzer
Peter Bryant	...	Mike
Jesse Moss	...	Sean Tenzer
Zachary Ansley	...	Adrielo
Tobias Mehler	...	Nicky Reeves
French Tickner	...	Father Puglia
Christina Jastrzembska	...	Sonja
Eric Schneider	...	Triune

Storyline

Joshua Haywood is a single parent who has his hands full with his daughter Sarah who wants to elope with her motorcycle driving boyfriend. They wake up one morning to that there is no electricity, water or telephone service. When Joshua tries to leave their suburban neighborhood, he finds their way is blocked by an electrical field of some kind. Sarah has plans to run off but she meets an alien creature who is dying and she too is infected. Joshua eventually learns the truth: their entire neighborhood has been carried off to a distant planet to see if humans would be suitable as slave labor. For Joshua, there is only one course of action available to the survivors.

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Genres:

Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Details

Release Date:

11 July 1997 (USA)

Company Credits

Did You Know?

Connections

Remake of The Outer Limits: A Feasibility Study (1964)

User Reviews

Great episode

"Feasibility Study" is a remake of an episode of the original OL series. That one, correctly titled "A Feasibility Study", was first shown in 1964, and, like all the other episodes, was in B&W. For the older viewer, like myself, this had advantages and disadvantages. First of all, I was used to the lack of color, as almost all TV was done in B&W back then. As any devotee of film noir will tell you, the lack of color seemed to make the sense of drama greater. If you saw the 1964 version and liked it, you will be pleased to know that the remake is strikingly similar. The use of color really doesn't improve the story. The only area where it might have would have been the scenes on the alien planet, but instead of making the aliens anything like sympathetic, the remake makes them hideous. The only sympathetic figures are the humans who have been infected by their touch, and are dying. For those who haven't seen the original, briefly put, a sampling of suburban Earth is 'teleported' to the alien planet for purposes of studying the humans as potential slaves for their civilization. If all goes well, the entire planet Earth will suffer the same fate. The Earthlings are faced with the challenge of how to resist the kidnappers. The main character in the new version is played by David McCallum, who seems to be the darling of OL viewers. Every episode of the series (original and new) he was in has gotten a terrific rating. The original "Study", without McCallum, got a much lower viewer rating--while, as I said, being basically the same story. Another thing that was striking was the personal conflicts of the characters in both versions which were resolved through the greater fear they face. The final scene in both versions is heartbreaking, but life-affirming.