Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983)

Four horror and science fiction segments, directed by four famous directors, each of them being a new version of a classic story from Rod Serling's landmark television series.

Directors:

Joe Dante, John Landis

Writers:

John Landis, George Clayton Johnson (screenplay by)

Stars:

Dan Aykroyd, Albert Brooks, Vic Morrow

1 win & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dan Aykroyd	...	Passenger / Ambulance Driver (prologue / segment "Time Out")
Albert Brooks	...	Car Driver (prologue)
Vic Morrow	...	Bill Connor (segment "Time Out")
Doug McGrath	...	Larry (segment "Time Out")
Charles Hallahan	...	Ray (segment "Time Out")
Rainer Peets	...	German Officer (segment "Time Out") (as Remus Peets)
Kai Wulff	...	German Officer (segment "Time Out")
Sue Dugan	...	Waitress No. 1 (segment "Time Out")
Debby Porter	...	Waitress No. 2 (segment "Time Out")
Steven Williams	...	Bar Patron (segment "Time Out")
Annette Claudier	...	French Monther (segment "Time Out")
Joseph Hieu	...	Vietnamese (segment "Time Out")
Al Leong	...	Vietnamese (segment "Time Out")
Stephen Bishop	...	Charming G.I. (segment "Time Out")
Thomas Byrd	...	G.I. (segment "Time Out")

Storyline

Prologue: a driver has a big surprise with his passenger. Segment 1 ("Time Out"): a bigot man hates Jews, Black and Asian people. One day he will live in the World War II, hunted down by KKK and attacked in Vietnam War and feel the effects of his hatred. Segment 2 ("Kick the Can"): In a nursing home, the elder inhabitants learn that their minds can keep them young. Segment 3 ("It's a Good Life"): a traveler hits a boy in a bicycle with her car and takes the boy home. Soon she learns that the powerful boy brought her home indeed. Segment 4 ("Nightmare at 20,000 feet"): a writer is scary to fly and soon he sees a monstrous creature destroying the airplane engines during a stormy night.

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Plot Keywords:

profanity | star died before release | star died during filming | city | airplane passenger | 

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Taglines:

You're travelling through another dimension. A dimension, not only of sight and sound, but of mind. A journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination. Next stop, the Twilight Zone!

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French German Vietnamese

Release Date:

24 June 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kick the Can

Filming Locations:

Halfway House Cafe - 15564 Sierra Highway, Santa Clarita, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,614,000, 26 June 1983, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$29,500,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Amblin Entertainment, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Landis survived the controversy and the legal troubles brought on by the Twilight Zone accident. He continued to lead a very successful career in Hollywood after this; still being one of the most successful comedy directors in the industry; directing the box office hits "Trading Places", "Three Amigos" and "Coming to America" after "The Twilight Zone." But he admits in interviews he is still haunted by the accident, and says a day has not gone by in his life when he does not think about it.

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Goofs

In Segment #3 "It's A Good Life", shadows of the crew can be seen moving on the ground next to the large tree as the camera pans following Helen Foley's car as it arrives at Anthony's house.

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Quotes

German Officer: [in German to Bill Connor] Are you English? What are you doing here?
German Officer: You are an American? Why are you here?
German Officer: What are you doing here? What are you doing here!

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Alternate Versions

CBS edited 8 minutes from this film for its 1986 network television premiere.

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Connections

Referenced in Entourage: Stunted (2010)

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Soundtracks

Bonanza Theme
Music by Jay Livingston
Performed by Albert Brooks

User Reviews

Very good

An affectionate homage to the old TV series. Three old episodes were updated and a new one was written. It's also narrated by Burgess Meredith who starred in quite a few of the original TV series episodes.

It starts off with a quick little prologue with Albert Brooks and Dan Aykroyd. It's quick, funny and provides a nice little jolt.

The first segment was newly written for the movie. It involves a bitter and racist man (Vic Morrow) getting a taste of his own medicine. This episode is clouded by the three deaths it caused--Morrow was decapitated by a helicopter blade and two Vitenamese children were crushed. John Landis (who directed this) was found not guilty in the deaths. As it stands this isn't very good. It's simplistic and heavy-handed--like a bad Zone episode.

The second one is directed by Steven Spielberg. It involves an old man (Scatman Crothers) gently bringing to life the old people at a retirement home. I'll be the first to admit that this is way too syrupy--but I have a fondness for it. The acting is good, it has a great music score and, I admit, it leaves me a little misty-eyed.

The third is directed by Joe Dante. It's a remake about a little boy who can make all of his wishes come true. It's well-directed with some truly incredible special effects and a good performance by Kathleen Quinlan. But it's seriously damaged by a silly happy ending (the original didn't have that). Billy Mumy (the star of the original) has a bit part and Dante regular Dick Miller shows up as Walter Paisley.

The fourth is the best. It's directed by George Miller and is a remake of the William Shatner episode where he spots a gremlin tearing apart the plane he's flying on. The gremlin in the original looked pretty ridiculous--like a teddy bear. Here John Lithgow plays the passenger and the gremlin is more than a little scary-looking. This segment moves and has a few great jolts. Also Carol Serling (Rod Serling's wife I believe) has a bit part.

All in all an enjoyable film. I liked it when I saw it in a theatre in 1983 and it still holds up today. I give it an 8.