Slightly different approach here, as I've never reviewed an anthology before, but since this was Joe Dante's next major work, I included it.
"You're traveling through another dimension"... Rod Serling's classic science fiction show talked to the viewer. Serling used the trappings of sci-fi to explore common themes. The film version basically took several stories that the series did and gave them a glossy update.
We begin with two strangers traveling along a lonely highway at night. Passing the time with a few rounds of Name that Tune, the two settle on talking about the Twilight Zone, especially which episodes scared them the most. The passenger (Dan Aykroyd) then wants the driver (Albert Brooks) to know if he wants to see something really scary...
"Time Out" (Landis) shows Bill Connor (Vic Morrow) in a bar with his friends. Bill is angry, but it's not his fault. No, it's the fault of the minorities that he was passed over for a promotion at work, that the economy stinks, his car isn't a new model. Yup, all the fault of every non WASP person on the planet. He voices these theories too, although considering the bar is populated with almost every minority he's ranting against, he might want to exercise some volume. Staggering out, ranting all the way, he suddenly finds himself in France, circa World War II. Trying to explain things to a friendly pair of gentlemen in black uniforms only gets him shot and chased.
Falling from a building, he lands in the rural South, where a group of white hooded gentlemen wish to measure his neck. Escaping them, he stumbles into 1960's Vietnam where some GI's seem to think his first name is Charlie...
"Kick the Can" (Spielberg) has Mr. Bloom (Scatman Crothers) arriving at the Sunnyvale Retirement Home. Bloom is firmly of the opinion that it's not how old you are, but how old you feel. That night, he offers the residents a chance to play a game of kick the can. The only dissident is Mr. Conroy (Bill Quinn), who points out they are all pretty old and a game like that could throw out their hips, plus playing at such a late hour guarantees if said injuries occur, who would help them?
The rest of the group ignores him and play. As they play, a strange change overcome them. The senior citizens are growing younger...
"It's a Good Life" (Dante) begins with Helen Foley (Kathleen Quinlan) driving across country to begin her new teaching job. Getting lost, she stops in the small dinner and asks the owner Walter Paisley (Dick Miller) for directions. A small boy (Jeremy Licht) is blamed for the TV going on the fritz. Chased out of the diner, his bike is run over by Helen's car.
Apologizing, Helen offers to take the boy, Anthony, home. He accepts, and soon the pair are in front of a bright blue suburban house. Anthony lives there with his family, consisting of Father (William Schallert), Mother (Patricia Barry), sisters Ethel (Nancy Cartwright), Sara (Cherie Currie), and Uncle Walt (Kevin McCarthy). The family seems nice, but almost manic. Anthony then announces it's time for dinner. They will be eating the usual: Candied apples, potato chips, and hamburgers smothered in peanut butter. Anthony digs in with gusto, but the rest of the family seems resigned, except for Sara, who unseen by Helen lacks a mouth.
Anthony seems to control more than the family's diet, as Uncle Walt is forced to perform magic tricks. First pulling out a rabbit from a hat, Helen seems impressed, although Walt seems confused during the trick like he honestly didn't know what was going to come out. When Anthony demands an encore, a hideous rabbit like things is pulled out and terrorizes the family. That's when Anthony finds the note in Helen's dropped purse, pleading for help and calling him a monster. Declaring Ethel the guilty party, Anthony magics her into the television where she meets a hungry dragon.
Helen is starting to understand what she is up against, but how does one handle an omnipotent child?
"Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" (Miller) has traveler John Valentine (John Lithgow) facing his greatest fear, namely flying. Trying to calm down, Valentine looks out the window and see something on the wing. At first trying to convince himself that it's a trick of the lightning or his nerves, the thing (Larry Ceder) notices him as it rips out wires.
Valentine tries to convince the crew and other passengers, but every time he tries the gremlin disappears. When Valentine is alone in looking, the gremlin makes sure to continue its' work...
Focusing on Dante's segment, he really does a wonder with the material, bringing an almost Loony Toons vibe to the story. Anthony is truly menacing. He's got all the powers of a god yet the emotions of a child and it there anything crueler than a child?
The rest are uneven. Miller is top notch, with Lithgow out hamming Shatner's take on the story. Spielberg is acceptable, with the magic and whimsy almost being overwhelming. Landis's segment is the most problematic. Thanks to an on set mishap, Vic Morrow, as well as child actors Myca Dinh Le and Renee Shin-Yi were all killed. Still hard to watch, and Landis has been a director I've had issue with ever since.
The stories, Landis aside, are all top notch and due justice to Serling's vision.
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