"The Twilight Zone" Her Pilgrim Soul/I of Newton (1985)

Directors:

Wes Craven
Kenneth Gilbert

Writers:

Alan Brennert (segments)
Joe Haldeman (segment)

TV Series:

"The Twilight Zone" (1985)

Original Air Date:

13 December 1985 (Season 1, Episode 12)

Genre:

Sci-Fi | Fantasy | Mystery | Thriller | Horror

Plot:

In "Her Pilgrim Soul," two scientists must discover why the spirit of a woman is reliving a previous life within their holographic computer. "I of Newton" showcases a mathematician in a battle of wits with the Devil for his soul.

Plot Keywords:

Devil | Professor | Equation | Spirit | Scientist

Cast

Kristoffer Tabori	...	Kevin Drayton (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Anne Twomey	...	Nola Granville (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Gary Cole	...	Daniel Gaddis (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Wendy Girard	...	Carol Drayton (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Betsy Licon	...	Nola, Age 5 (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul") (as Betsy Jane Licon)
Danica McKellar	...	Nola (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Katherine Wallach	...	Susan (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Richard McGonagle	...	Lester (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Nelson Welch	...	Ruskin (segment "Her Pilgrim Soul")
Sherman Hemsley	...	Sam (segment "I of Newton")
Ron Glass	...	The Devil (segment "I of Newton")
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Charles Aidman	...	Narrator (voice)

Trivia:

Gary Cole had previously made in appearance in the Twilight Zone: Rod Serling's Lost Classics (1994) (TV) feature "The Theater. as James

Quotes:

The Devil: Here's the back story, Sam. You don't mind if I call you Sam, do you? I mean, I think we're really connecting here in a positive way. And I'd like to cut through all that "victim-demon" negative imaging, you know what I mean?
The Devil: [takes off his mirrored sunglasses, revealing mirrored eyes] Okay, here's the deal. All that mathematical lingo you were spouting? It's beautiful, man, it's like poetry. Brought tears to my eyes. Just happened to have the right phonetic structure to be a good old-fashioned demonic invocation. Especially with that neat little curse woven into it.
[...]

See It Once and Replay It Forever

I had seen Her Pilgrim Soul only once and, indeed, I didn't even know it was available on DVD until recently when I stumbled onto it in a sale bin. I loved it the first time and have been more than a little haunted by it ever since. I worried that my memory might be a bit too kind but that is not the case. I am very pleased to report that, even though film technology has moved ahead and some of the effects might be more impressively done now, this episode stands up very, very well indeed. Yeats has held up pretty well too so even that line resonates beautifully. No spoilers from me but let's just say that love doesn't really die. Buy it or rent it but go and get it! It really is wonderful and well deserves the numerous 10s it received.