The Alfred Hitchcock Hour (TV Series) Last Seen Wearing Blue Jeans (1963) User Reviews

A few plot holes...but quite enjoyable.

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 11 May 2021]

"Last Seen Wearing Blue Jeans" is a harrowing episode of "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour", though I must admit that it has quite a instances where there are plot problems...serious plot problems.

An English family is driving across America and decide to stop at a cafe in a tiny Arizona town. However, their young daughter goes back to the car to sleep before the parents finish their food....and she gets into the wrong car! The one she's in is being driven by crooks...and she ends up being accidentally driven into Mexico. Once there, she awakens....to witness seeing them kill a man! Through the rest of the episode, she tries to evade the ruthless gang and the parents desperately look for her.

As I mentioned above, several things in the episode don't quite work...such as bursting across the Mexican border into America late in the show. It just doesn't make any sense for several reasons. But the show is riveting and exciting to watch...and I generally was able to ignore a few instances where it didn't seem especially plausible nor well thought out.

Young woman is stranded in Mexico

[CCsito · 8/10 · 22 February 2010]

This is a tale of suspense involving a British tourist who gets separated from her parents when she is near the Mexican border. She ends up riding with a pair of men in their car and witness their murder job in Mexico. She attempts to look for help and find her parents as the two murderers pursue her. She later hitchhikes a ride with an American who is visiting in Mexico who tries to get her back across the border to the US. The young man and British tourist are eventually caught by the murderers as the boy's father and girl's parents continue to search for them. The parents continue the search and come across a place where there was a reported sighting of the missing pair. The hostages are freed after the mother of the young girl finds an article of hers at that location which proves that the owner of that place was lying when he said that he had not seen the missing children.

This was the first TV appearance of Katherine Crawford (daughter of producer/writer Roy Huggins). She had to speak with a British accent since her role had to portray a non-American tourist in Mexico. She later did appearances in many other TV shows like It Takes A Thief.

Strange in a strange land.

[rmax304823 · 6/10 · 20 July 2012]

Katherine Crawford and her parents are traveling through Arizona and stop for tea in a roadside cafe. (They're English.) Sleepy Katherine says she's going back to sleep in the car and wait for Mom and Dad. She gets into the wrong car! The car belongs to a couple of crooks and Katherine wakes up just in time to witness a murder, escape from the car, and find herself adrift in a small town across the Mexican border, pursued by the two murders, unable to speak Spanish, and -- well, I don't know, everything is just WRONG. Even the chili a kind lady gives her is "poco piquante." She meets a nice boy, Randy Boone, and he tries to help her get straight.

Katherine has no business being in the little village of La Cucaracha or whatever it is. If you can't stand the chili, get out of the cocina. Furthermore, how drowsy must you be to go to sleep in the back seat of someone else's car after mistaking it for your own? Any normal person would have to be stoned out of her mind.

On the other hand, Katherine Crawford, a blond teen ager, is cute enough in a thoroughly conventional way, and Michael Wilding and Anna Lee as the parents are accomplished actors. Randy Boone may be a splendid country singer. As an actor, he comes across as simple minded. He knows that they are being chased by two murderers as he drives Katherine to border, but he insists on pulling off the road to "think about it" and maybe have a little lunch. Not very bright.

Hitchcock was notoriously "mean", as the British put it, meaning he was tight with his pennies. The series as a whole always had a parched look. The rooms seemed barely furnished, the set dressing perfunctory. This episode is a bit more expansive. The Mexican village looks like a Hollywood version of a Mexican village, but it at least covers some territory and is colorful. Maybe it was a standing set, left over from some other production. I applaud it for getting us out of the usual middle-class kitchens.

Suspenseful even if Flawed

[dougdoepke · 21 May 2016]

Guess I won't be going to the Arizona-Mexico border anytime soon. In Hitch's world, it's populated by car strippers, corrupt cops, and a nightmare Mexican town where the sun never shines. No wonder pretty blonde teen Loren is freaking out, as she tries to get back to her parents in Arizona after mistakenly taking a wrong car to Mexico. But everything she tries seems to backfire, while she's being chased by every low-life along the border because she's witnessed a murder. Poor Loren, she's a real damsel in distress, but where will her white knight come from.

There's good suspense in the premise, even though it and many story developments are not very plausible. But that's okay since we're wrapped up in vulnerable Loren's predicament. I expect actor Wilding did a rather minor role (Loren's dad) as a favor to fellow Englishman Hitchcock. It's also good to see that fine actress Anna Lee picking up a payday, along with the sinister James Anderson whose diner is not exactly a Denny's. All in all, it's a suspenseful hour, helped along by Crawford's compelling turn (catch the palpable feeling she projects as she parts with Pete, {Boone}). Just don't give plot developments too much thought.

"Well, you don't look like Miss America, or Miss England either."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 30 September 2022]

This is one of the few Alfred Hitchcock episodes to have a happy ending. Well, happy for the principals anyway, not so much for the creeps running their shady operation in Slawson, Arizona and across the border in Las Cucharas, Mexico. What were they involved with anyway? It sounded to me like a counterfeiting operation, but it was never explicitly stated, something about 'plates' when the three hoods got together in the garage where the gross Grosse (Jesse Jacobs) and Gato (Jose De Vega) did away with Big Al (Kreg Martin), who was reneging on their deal.

I don't want to be too critical, but how does one manage to climb into the wrong car to take a nap? Loren Saunders' belongings were in the back seat of her parents' car, so she should have missed them right away. But going with the premise, she winds up in a Mexican village where the local authority is in cahoots with the sheriff in Slawson, at which point it appeared that she was doomed. But with more than a share of lucky breaks, she finds a ride with a clean-cut teen heading back to Arizona and his family ranch.

Although the episode ended up favorably enough, I did have to scratch my head when David Saunders (Michael Wilding) turned hero and slugged cafe owner Cates (James Anderson). That was just totally out of character compared to his earlier demeanor. We never find out what happened to the bad guys, and Hitch didn't elaborate in his closing epilog, so that remained a question mark. I loved the look on Pete Tanner's (Randy Boone) face when Loren pecked him a 'thank you and good-bye' kiss on his cheek, leaving him to wonder how he'd make it for a whole year waiting to see her again back home in London.

****

[edwagreen · 10/10 · 14 May 2016]

When you're very tired: Make sure you get into the right rental car that your parents are driving in. This terrible mistake leads a 17 year old British girl into coming across with a bunch of car thieves and while in the back seat, she witnesses a murder.

The thieves with the girl flee to Mexico and the film tried to bring out the corruption of the Arizona authorities in keeping the family in the dark regarding her whereabouts as they were apparently in cahoots with the gang.

Naturally, all ends well, but her parents, played by Michael Wilding and Anna Lee, became quite suspicious of the law in that town. Naturally, our fair maiden finds happiness with the guy who rescued her and got her out of Mexico, only for both of them to be trapped back in Arizona by the gang and town sheriff.

So Hard to Swallow

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 13 May 2023]

First of all, the whole set-up is a bit much. These Britishers are running around not knowing what's going on. The girl falls into the wrong car and ends up with a bunch of murderers in Mexico, being chases by them, on and on. Then she happens to meet a young American boy who has been camping. Eventually they wind up back with the bad guys. Several incompetent idiots. Oh well. The girls is cute. The young guy is cute. They make a connection. There is one thing I thought was hard to take. When the young girl is running around the small Mexican town, each person she runs into looks like a caricature out of a bugs bunny cartoon. Big teeth. Sombrero. Macho talk.

STOP, HAVE SOME TEA AND DISAPPEAR!

[tcchelsey · 10/10 · 19 May 2023]

This episode has gotten lots of criticism, but it's not all that bad. For one thing, applause for two veterans, Michael Wilding and Anna Lee cast as the worried British parents of a teen (well played by Katherine Crawford) who disappears on a stopover in Arizona.

Loren is so tired, due to their cross country trip, she happens to get into the wrong station wagon and falls asleep. Sure, it's a bit contrived, but it could happen. We were all cranky, sleep deprived kids at one time or another. The story takes off from there; Loren discovers she's in a car with a couple of killers. Now that's original and Wilding and Lee frantically track down their only daughter.

Some very good supporting actors here, and well directed by Alan Crosland, Jr., who took after his famous father. More over, if you know the terrain, you'll recognized the sprawling Universal City back lot, used for years for westerns, later to become famous City Walk. The interiors were filmed down the street at Revue Studios (now CBS) in Studio City.

To note, Anna Lee, prior to this episode appeared in two film classics, THE MAN WHO SHOT LIBERTY VALANCE and WHATEVER JAPPENED TO BABY JANE (as the next door neighbor). Michael Wilding lands a solid knock out punch in the end. Don't miss it. SEASON 1 1963 remastered Universal dvd box set.

plot hole

[bufordpicklefeather · 4/10 · 25 September 2022]

I love Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Alfred Hitchcock Hour but I can't stand plot holes. Maybe I missed something, but right after Grosse kills Al, Gato calls Cates to tell him what happened and Cates says "First bury the body and then get that girl". How did Cates know Loren was there? He would have had no way of knowing that she got in the wrong car and witnessed Gato, Grosse and Al. I went back again to see if I missed a scene but I still couldn't find anywhere where Cates became aware that Loren would be anywhere but with her parents in their car. Did I miss something? Please, anybody let me know if I did.

fairly large scale but problems hamper it

[HEFILM · 5/10 · 25 September 2013]

The scope of the story is pretty large and the Mexican village is pretty detailed and filled with some extras and realistic Spanish language. It's got some mood from Psycho DP John Russel too, the best shot being a shadowy close up of the girl in the car when she first realizes her dangerous situation.

The whole story involves a conspiracy which is interesting and credible--a preview of the modern cross-border crime series THE BRIDGE and other real-life stories.

Wilding and Lee are too old to be her parents and neither of them overcome the perfunctory nature of their roles. Also director Crosland does a fairly poor job with the key moments of plot twist and a couple of pretty poorly staged fight scenes--the first of which features a really poor stunt double.

The young leads come off best but they do have to act pretty stupid at one key moment to keep the story going.

Outgoing Hitchcock bit even includes a bit of slop as an off stage director can be heard saying "Action" and you see Hitch quickly get into character, all this mistakenly on screen--for a few frames.

It's fast paced but another weak entry from producer Joan Harrison which is routine of 50's/60's TV on all levels, including story, than anything else.

Youn Idiots! do I have to do all the figuring here!

[kapelusznik18 · 4/10 · 22 March 2014]

***SPOILERS*** It's when British tourists David & Roberta Saunders, Michael Wilding & Anna Lee, together with their 17 year old daughter Loren, Katherine Crawford, dropped into this out of the way café in Arizona that their cross-country vacation turned into a nightmare. It was Loren going to sleep in the wrong car that set off a series of events that ended up blowing a car theft operation in town run by café owner Vince Cate, James Anderson. When Loren finally awoke she witnessed a murder committed by Vince, during a dispute over money, that had her targeted by Vince and his gang for murder to keep her mouth shut from reporting the crime to the police!

With Loren on the run south of the border in Mexico she runs into all American boy Pete Tanner, Randy Boone, who's out camping who then offers her a ride in his banged up jeep home. Pete also gives Loren lesson in talking American not British English to pretend, to the border guards, that she's in fact his sister to keep them from arresting her as, now this is a joke, being illegal alien trying to sneak into the USA! Things get even more ridicules as the story goes on with Loren & Pete captured by Vince's gang and held hostage in his café not realizing that the gig is up and the local police state troopers and even FBI are on their way to arrest them.

***SPOILERS*** The final scene has to be seem to be believed as David Saunders has it out with Vince and his gang that includes the out of shape and grossly overweight Grosse & grease monkey Gato , Jesse Jacobs & Jose De Vega, with the café's coffee urn blowing in its top and doing all the damage.