Our eighth episode of the series returns to the three segment format. The first "Act Break" has James Coco as a struggling play writer who literally blames his problems on everyone else. He manages to find a magic stone neck less that grants its beholder one wish, and he transports back in time to meet William Shakespeare. Of course things backfire, but, its pretty unspectacular, Coco sports some awful hair extensions, and I'm starting to think this series has a thing for magic necklaces and stones. The second "The Burning Man" has Piper Laurie and her young nephew going for a day at the lake in 1936 Kansas. They pick up and old man who warns of evils and that he's being followed by such. They dump him off after so long thinking he's insane, but, is he really telling the truth?. Pretty confusing episode I didn't really get it much it just ends with no real conclusion. Roberts Blossom does a good acting job though. The final "Dealer's Choice" has a bunch of friends around to play a card game one night. They later discover that one of them is the devil, and that there playing a game of life for there mortal souls. It has a nice cast which includes Morgan Freeman, Dan Hedaya, Barney Martin, Garrett Morris, and M. Emmett Walsh, with Wes Craven also returning to direct. But, its primarily played very lighthearted and the final isn't much to go on about. All in all a decent episode with at least two OK segments.
The Twilight Zone (TV Series)
Act Break/The Burning Man/Dealer's Choice (1985)
User Reviews
Review this title6 Reviews
Go back in time to write literature/ the devil returns as a young boy/ and a game of red hot poker with the devil!
blanbrn16 November 2007
Episode eight of "The Twilight Zone" of the 1985-86 season was overall okay, yet the segments had a devilish and depressed economic theme I will give my take on each segment.
First segment was "Act Break" that stared virtually unknowns James Coco and Bob Dishy as in this twisted tale of a struggling playwright who can't even put food on the table or pay his rent all of a sudden has an unexpected twist happen to him. Upon trying to write a play and finish it when his sidekick literally kicks the bucket he disappears back into the old ancient days of William Shakespeare! Now the struggles are over he gets to write for William the Great! Overall okay yet a mediocre episode.
Second segment "The Burning Man" is a story of reincarnation that sends a strange tale. During the 30's in a summer heat wave a woman and her nephew encounter a strange man who tells of the past, future, and fire. The episode ends strange when he returns in the form of a little boy. Overall weak entry from Bradbury.
Last segment "Dealer's Choice" has star power but falls short due to it's weak story. Directed by Wes Craven("A Nightmare on Elm Street") has a sit down of four New Jersey friends who participate in a poker game in the recession filled mid 80's. Only they have a stand-in player who turns out to be most unusual the old horn man himself(the devil). The segment features good acting from future superstar and Oscar winner Morgan Freeman and as always a direct and bold performance from veteran Emmet Walsh. The friendly game is cunning and it turns out okay, yet the episode lacked a lot of excitement or suspense. Really a letdown episode.
This episode was okay, yet it falls short due to weak stories and plots the series had much better to offer than this.
First segment was "Act Break" that stared virtually unknowns James Coco and Bob Dishy as in this twisted tale of a struggling playwright who can't even put food on the table or pay his rent all of a sudden has an unexpected twist happen to him. Upon trying to write a play and finish it when his sidekick literally kicks the bucket he disappears back into the old ancient days of William Shakespeare! Now the struggles are over he gets to write for William the Great! Overall okay yet a mediocre episode.
Second segment "The Burning Man" is a story of reincarnation that sends a strange tale. During the 30's in a summer heat wave a woman and her nephew encounter a strange man who tells of the past, future, and fire. The episode ends strange when he returns in the form of a little boy. Overall weak entry from Bradbury.
Last segment "Dealer's Choice" has star power but falls short due to it's weak story. Directed by Wes Craven("A Nightmare on Elm Street") has a sit down of four New Jersey friends who participate in a poker game in the recession filled mid 80's. Only they have a stand-in player who turns out to be most unusual the old horn man himself(the devil). The segment features good acting from future superstar and Oscar winner Morgan Freeman and as always a direct and bold performance from veteran Emmet Walsh. The friendly game is cunning and it turns out okay, yet the episode lacked a lot of excitement or suspense. Really a letdown episode.
This episode was okay, yet it falls short due to weak stories and plots the series had much better to offer than this.
tolerably mediocre
nebmac25 April 2016
Warning: Spoilers
"Act Break": Obviously played for laughs (just look at Harry's death scene). I thought it was pretty amusing, but maybe that's because I've met people in real life who are not too far removed from Maury and Harry. I also liked the music when Shakespeare shows up.
"The Burning Man": All atmosphere, no plot. Crazy old man is crazy, deserted country road is deserted, and creepy little kid is creepy. At least you can amuse yourself by thinking up hilariously inappropriate things that the kid might have whispered in Aunt Neva's ear at the end (new Internet meme, anyone?).
"Dealer's Choice": As great as it was to see so many talented actors together, this segment feels like director Wes Craven couldn't decide whether he was making a comedy or a thriller. Too bad, because it could have been a Twilight Zone masterpiece. Dan Hedaya is particularly good as the working-class New Jersey incarnation of the Devil.
"The Burning Man": All atmosphere, no plot. Crazy old man is crazy, deserted country road is deserted, and creepy little kid is creepy. At least you can amuse yourself by thinking up hilariously inappropriate things that the kid might have whispered in Aunt Neva's ear at the end (new Internet meme, anyone?).
"Dealer's Choice": As great as it was to see so many talented actors together, this segment feels like director Wes Craven couldn't decide whether he was making a comedy or a thriller. Too bad, because it could have been a Twilight Zone masterpiece. Dan Hedaya is particularly good as the working-class New Jersey incarnation of the Devil.
Writer's Blockhead/Human Cicadas/Low Card Wins
Hitchcoc29 January 2017
These three are interesting but not that great. The first has to do with a bad script writer who never can come up with an idea. He blames everyone else for his lack of success. Finally, he gets his wish and he pays a dear price for it. This is silly and disjointed. James Coco is emotional and that's about it. "The Burning Man" involves a lady and a little boy, travelling down a hot road. An old coot flags them down and hops in the car. He has a lot to say, indicating that he may not be what he appears. Finally, "Dealer's Choice" involves a poker game where the Devil shows up (his name is Nick, which is also the name of the character he played on "Cheers"). The four players other than Nick are asked to play poker for their souls. What happens is funny but not all that interesting. There are several great character actors in this one, which makes it reasonable.
Mixed Bag
chrstphrtully10 February 2017
Warning: Spoilers
This group of segments is, to put it mildly, a mixed bag.
ACT BREAK (3 of 10)
When a classic television show is rebooted, the risk of repeating the prior show is an obvious one. Indeed, in the 1980s reboot of "The Twilight Zone" did some specific remakes of episodes from the original series (e.g., "Shadow Play," "Dead Woman's Shoes," and "Night of the Meek"); and then, there were episodes that, while not exact remakes, were close reworkings. Unfortunately, "Act Break" is one of the less successful examples of such a reworking, essentially being a truncated version of the very funny hour-long episode from the original series, "The Bard."
Playwriting partners Maury Winkler (James Coco) and Harry (Bob Dishy) are suffering through a creative drought, with the proverbial landlord demanding the rent. While pressing to get their latest work off the ground, Harry suffers a heart attack; Maury can save him using an amulet Harry just happens to keeps on him (though, apparently, Harry has exhausted his ability to use the magic), but Maury has other thoughts on his mind....
One of the joys of the episode this segment reworks ("The Bard") is the fact that the lead character was a horrible writer, but had not clue of that fact; in "Act Break," Maury knows he's a terrible writer, and this fact seriously dulls the comic potential of the piece, and Haskell Barkin's script doesn't really do anything to fill that void. The story is paper-thin to begin with, and though old-pros like Coco and Dishy do all they can, the material simply isn't there.
THE BURNING MAN (6 of 10)
To be sure, much of Ray Bradbury's work seems to be readily suited to "The Twilight Zone" canon. While much of the dialogue might read as overly purple when played on screen, the themes and imagination behind them were every bit the equal of regular "Twilight Zone" writers Charles Beaumont and Richard Matheson; indeed, the fact that Bradbury's adaptations of his classics "Here There Be Tygers" and "A Sound of Thunder" were never produced for the original series can only be seen as a loss to American television culture. What makes "The Burning Man" peculiar is that it is a singularly watchable episode that sets up a strong atmosphere, believable relationships, and then bails out with a hackneyed and (frankly) unnecessarily depressing ending, completely devoid of meaning or imagination.
A middle aged woman (Piper Laurie) and her nephew (Andre Gower) are taking a Sunday drive along a dusty, Midwestern road on a summer's day, when they pick up an older, somewhat wild-eyed man (Roberts Blossom). As the drive progresses, the new passenger begins to spout more and more sinister and apocalyptic chatter which, unsurprisingly, puts his fellow travelers more and more ill-at-ease.
J.D. Feigelson's adaptation of Bradbury's story does a nice job of creating a nice, familial dynamic between Laurie and Gower, and the actors serve it well. Blossom is a fine character actor who made a career out of playing individuals who were, to put it mildly, a little bit off-center, and he's allowed here to go off full throttle (reminiscent of John Carradine at his delirious best). While it can be fun to watch, the real problem is that the ending telegraphs itself about 5-7 minutes before the end, and there's no real lesson to be learned from the ending -- is there any reason why Laurie and Gower need to receive the fate they're given? Which brings me back to my original point -- why doesn't this story work? I guess because it sets up a conceit within the parameters of the series to which the ending does violence. Perhaps I'm a but of a purist, but when in the Twilight Zone....
DEALER'S CHOICE (6 of 10)
"Dealer's Choice" is an episode that doesn't truly belong in "The Twilight Zone" either, given its horror roots and lack of any ending message or dramatic irony. Nonetheless, for some reason, it overcomes this thanks to a superb ensemble cast and a nice feel for card games and the loyalty the players feel to each other.
Regular card playing buddies Tony (Morgan Freeman), Marty (Barney Martin), Pete (M. Emmett Walsh) and Jake (Garrett Morris) welcome a new player to their game, Nick (Dan Hedaya). As the game progresses, the other players come to the conclusion that Nick may be Satan himself, and begin to wonder what or who he came for.
The story here is about a inch-deep, and the non-hellish characters seem to come to the conclusion that Nick is the Devil remarkably fast, without even a flippant suggestion before settling on their belief that he is the Prince of Darkness. So why does this work at all? In a word, the ensemble work of Freeman, Morris, Walsh and Martin, all friends who may not know much, but they do know they will stand by their friend even to the gates of Hell (albeit much more literally than they could ever have imagined) -- they may not have very much else in common, but they'll be damned before they'll let their buddy check out without a fight. Hedaya is a big help here too -- an actor who oozes (intentional) insincerity and sleaze from every pore, he sets himself up perfectly as someone who will cheat on his own deal, and then, when called on it, will take it with good grace and somehow seem believable.
Superficial -- yes. A little stupid -- yes. Watchable -- hell, yes.
ACT BREAK (3 of 10)
When a classic television show is rebooted, the risk of repeating the prior show is an obvious one. Indeed, in the 1980s reboot of "The Twilight Zone" did some specific remakes of episodes from the original series (e.g., "Shadow Play," "Dead Woman's Shoes," and "Night of the Meek"); and then, there were episodes that, while not exact remakes, were close reworkings. Unfortunately, "Act Break" is one of the less successful examples of such a reworking, essentially being a truncated version of the very funny hour-long episode from the original series, "The Bard."
Playwriting partners Maury Winkler (James Coco) and Harry (Bob Dishy) are suffering through a creative drought, with the proverbial landlord demanding the rent. While pressing to get their latest work off the ground, Harry suffers a heart attack; Maury can save him using an amulet Harry just happens to keeps on him (though, apparently, Harry has exhausted his ability to use the magic), but Maury has other thoughts on his mind....
One of the joys of the episode this segment reworks ("The Bard") is the fact that the lead character was a horrible writer, but had not clue of that fact; in "Act Break," Maury knows he's a terrible writer, and this fact seriously dulls the comic potential of the piece, and Haskell Barkin's script doesn't really do anything to fill that void. The story is paper-thin to begin with, and though old-pros like Coco and Dishy do all they can, the material simply isn't there.
THE BURNING MAN (6 of 10)
To be sure, much of Ray Bradbury's work seems to be readily suited to "The Twilight Zone" canon. While much of the dialogue might read as overly purple when played on screen, the themes and imagination behind them were every bit the equal of regular "Twilight Zone" writers Charles Beaumont and Richard Matheson; indeed, the fact that Bradbury's adaptations of his classics "Here There Be Tygers" and "A Sound of Thunder" were never produced for the original series can only be seen as a loss to American television culture. What makes "The Burning Man" peculiar is that it is a singularly watchable episode that sets up a strong atmosphere, believable relationships, and then bails out with a hackneyed and (frankly) unnecessarily depressing ending, completely devoid of meaning or imagination.
A middle aged woman (Piper Laurie) and her nephew (Andre Gower) are taking a Sunday drive along a dusty, Midwestern road on a summer's day, when they pick up an older, somewhat wild-eyed man (Roberts Blossom). As the drive progresses, the new passenger begins to spout more and more sinister and apocalyptic chatter which, unsurprisingly, puts his fellow travelers more and more ill-at-ease.
J.D. Feigelson's adaptation of Bradbury's story does a nice job of creating a nice, familial dynamic between Laurie and Gower, and the actors serve it well. Blossom is a fine character actor who made a career out of playing individuals who were, to put it mildly, a little bit off-center, and he's allowed here to go off full throttle (reminiscent of John Carradine at his delirious best). While it can be fun to watch, the real problem is that the ending telegraphs itself about 5-7 minutes before the end, and there's no real lesson to be learned from the ending -- is there any reason why Laurie and Gower need to receive the fate they're given? Which brings me back to my original point -- why doesn't this story work? I guess because it sets up a conceit within the parameters of the series to which the ending does violence. Perhaps I'm a but of a purist, but when in the Twilight Zone....
DEALER'S CHOICE (6 of 10)
"Dealer's Choice" is an episode that doesn't truly belong in "The Twilight Zone" either, given its horror roots and lack of any ending message or dramatic irony. Nonetheless, for some reason, it overcomes this thanks to a superb ensemble cast and a nice feel for card games and the loyalty the players feel to each other.
Regular card playing buddies Tony (Morgan Freeman), Marty (Barney Martin), Pete (M. Emmett Walsh) and Jake (Garrett Morris) welcome a new player to their game, Nick (Dan Hedaya). As the game progresses, the other players come to the conclusion that Nick may be Satan himself, and begin to wonder what or who he came for.
The story here is about a inch-deep, and the non-hellish characters seem to come to the conclusion that Nick is the Devil remarkably fast, without even a flippant suggestion before settling on their belief that he is the Prince of Darkness. So why does this work at all? In a word, the ensemble work of Freeman, Morris, Walsh and Martin, all friends who may not know much, but they do know they will stand by their friend even to the gates of Hell (albeit much more literally than they could ever have imagined) -- they may not have very much else in common, but they'll be damned before they'll let their buddy check out without a fight. Hedaya is a big help here too -- an actor who oozes (intentional) insincerity and sleaze from every pore, he sets himself up perfectly as someone who will cheat on his own deal, and then, when called on it, will take it with good grace and somehow seem believable.
Superficial -- yes. A little stupid -- yes. Watchable -- hell, yes.
Struggling scriptwriters and complete boredom/star studded poker game
Leofwine_draca3 April 2015
ACT BREAK is the first segment of episode 8 of series 1 of THE NEW TWILIGHT ZONE and it's real bore and a chore to sit through like most of these episodes. The jokey, homemade-looking story sees a scriptwriter struggling to make ends meet; when his partner dies he finds new inspiration in the past.
It's the dumbest story ever, and the twist is just ridiculous; it's the kind of thing I would have thrown in the bin had the script landed on my desk and I can't help but wonder why anybody would bother producing it in the first place. Needless to say that the unknown cast members are barely effective and there's nothing here that could favourably be called TWILIGHT ZONE style: no atmosphere, no suspense, nothing.
The last segment is a huge improvement. DEALER'S CHOICE tells an entire story based around a game of poker. The star-studded cast includes such luminaries as M. Emmet Walsh, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Hedaya (COMMANDO). It involves a group of men who discover they're playing a game with Satan himself with life or death stakes. It's not a perfect story but it's a huge improvement on the usual quality level of this series.
It's the dumbest story ever, and the twist is just ridiculous; it's the kind of thing I would have thrown in the bin had the script landed on my desk and I can't help but wonder why anybody would bother producing it in the first place. Needless to say that the unknown cast members are barely effective and there's nothing here that could favourably be called TWILIGHT ZONE style: no atmosphere, no suspense, nothing.
The last segment is a huge improvement. DEALER'S CHOICE tells an entire story based around a game of poker. The star-studded cast includes such luminaries as M. Emmet Walsh, Morgan Freeman, and Dan Hedaya (COMMANDO). It involves a group of men who discover they're playing a game with Satan himself with life or death stakes. It's not a perfect story but it's a huge improvement on the usual quality level of this series.
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