The Wall (25 Feb. 1989)

A washed-up, military test pilot volunteers to go through an energy portal to search for others who went through but haven't returned. When he discovers a Garden of Eden on the other side, ... See full summary »

Director:

Atom Egoyan

Writers:

Rod Serling (creator), J. Michael Straczynski

Stars:

John Beck, Patricia Collins, George R. Robertson

Cast

Episode cast overview:
John Beck	...	Maj. Alex McAndrews
Patricia Collins	...	Brenn
George R. Robertson	...	Gen. Greg Slater
Eugene Clark	...	Capt. Henry Kincaid
Robert Collins	...	2nd Lt. Emilio Perez
Sharon Corder	...	Technician
Jack Blum	...	Advisor
Steve Atkinson	...	Military Assistant
Robin Ward	...	Narrator (voice)

Storyline

A washed-up, military test pilot volunteers to go through an energy portal to search for others who went through but haven't returned. When he discovers a Garden of Eden on the other side, will he be able to locate the others? Can he find a way back? Even if he does, would he?

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Plot Keywords:

portal | game | quitting a job | playing | secret | 

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Genres:

Sci-Fi | Fantasy | Mystery | Thriller | Horror

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Details

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 February 1989 (UK)

Company Credits

Production Co:

CBS Broadcast International, Atlantis Films, London Film Productions

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

User Reviews

The Wall

Okay episode of The Twilight Zone stars John Beck as Major Alex McAndrews, a decorated fighter pilot who is asked by General Greg Slater (George R Robertson; Commissioner Henry J Hurst in the Police Academy movies, always flustered at GW Bailey's Captain Harris) to enter a discovered portal by the military to locate missing military personnel who had went before him never to return. Through Beck, we see that McAndrews has been a good soldier his whole career, but is overcome with a sense of sadness and regret for what the military actually took away from him—what does this man do once he is retired, put out to pasture and no longer needed in the role he has filled an entire career? On the other side of the portal could be the answer as he finds the likes of Captain Henry Kincaid (Eugene Clark) and 2nd Lieutenant Emilio Perez (Robert Collins) perfectly content, living new lives with an agrarian farming community who offer solitude and all the comforts, without the hate, anger, and violence that comes from the earth they all know. This episode's story feels quickly rushed as a great deal of time is spent describing how Slater's bunch discovered and maintain the portal, not as much given to the "Eden" Kincaid blissfully enjoys. Beck, to his credit, is a sympathetic figure as the major who has followed orders and been an obedient soldier, showing us the disappointments and melancholy derived from missing out on life by submitting himself wholly to the military, this Eden, this heaven, perhaps a godsend he desperate needs. The conclusion, when McAndrews discovers that the portal (he couldn't find during the day, Kincaid knowing this, but concealing the secret because he worried that once the military knew of a place that could be taken through force if necessary would ruin the beauty, peace, and tranquility this new world provides), presents the major with a quandary: does he go back through the portal and tell his superiors what he found, or does he keep the secret and stay with Village Leader Brenn (Patricia Collins) and her family, starting a brand new life, one free of loneliness? Directed by Atom Egoyan (Exotica).