Body in the Barn

The great Lillian Gish, one of the legends of the silent screen, was a superlative actress throughout her life. This fantastic episode of ALFRED HITCHCOCK HOUR from 1963 showcases Miss Lillian as good as anything she ever did in the sound film era. Miss Gish stars as a cranky, nosy old gal in ill health who has long feuded with her neighbor and blames her for the death of an elderly man who plummeted off a cliff thanks to a fence the neighbor put up. Lillian's niece Maggie McNamara lives with her in her large farmhouse and Maggie tries to make peace with the neighbors, particularly with the woman's mild mannered hen-pecked husband Peter Lind Hays. Gossip-loving Lil takes in all of Peter's private confidences to Maggie, that his wife once attempted to murder him and he fears she will try again should he ever leave her. And when Peter shows up missing and the days turn into weeks and months and the woman refuses to give any information about his whereabouts, Lillian is convinced after spying on the woman with binoculars that something fishy is going on at her barn.

This fantastic mystery/suspense has echoes of REAR WINDOW - and HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE, although the latter film hadn't even been made yet - and Miss Gish is simply superb in this film, cast against type as a not always very likable woman. The whole cast is good but this is Lillian's show. "Body in the Barn" is one of THE ALFRED HITCHOCK HOUR's finest hours.

First of all, the performance by Lillian Gish is excellent. She made the transition from D. W. Griffith to the modern screen beautifully. As others have said, however, the believability of the plot and the justice system's treatment of people is pretty ridiculous. To make such assumptions about the body in the barn with such flimsy, possibly planted evidence would lead to someone's execution is a monumental stretch. We know how rare executions are. Then off goes that wimpy jerk, returning after his wife has died for his supposed murder, getting sympathy from everyone. And then, how did they prove he was responsible for the old gal's death, also getting him executed? It's all about revenge, of course. An eye for an eye. We are left with the note where someone is in for quite the surprise.

Like everybody else, I loved Lillian Gish's performance as the annoying busybody who sets off a crazy chain of fatal consequences in a bucolic bit of the American countryside. The two-wrongs-make-a-right plot is bitterly ironic, as befits the bitterly ironic lady played by Miss Lillian.

The problem, as one reviewer sourly notes, is that the plot turns on a ridiculously mistaken identification of, yes, the body in the barn. I know this was before the days of DNA analysis, but a glance at dental records would have easily confirmed that the corpse couldn't be the hen-pecked husband. There's some hand-waving about "quicklime," but that would have had no effect on those pesky little teeth. What can you say? Sometimes you really do have to suspend disbelief.

Meanwhile, the body count piles up pretty high for such a cozy drama, which in a way is also appropriate to bring out the nastiness underlying the pastoral surroundings. Lillian Gish easily dominates the proceedings, though the other actors also turn in fine performances. And thanks to one reviewer for reminding me of who Maggie McNamara resembled. Audrey Hepburn! Just couldn't quite put my finger on the resemblance as I watched the episode. Sorry to hear from other reviewers that she committed suicide.

Hitch as the scarecrow was also a funny bit. I wonder how he would have contributed to The Wizard of Oz.

There is a lot to this story...even more so than most other one hour installments of the series. And, as a result, it feels more like a movie than a TV show.

When the story begins, Bessie (Lillian Gish) is upset because her husband died....and it might have been due to a new fence installed by her very grouchy neighbor. Through most of the rest of the episode, Bessie and this lady fight and later, Bessie becomes friends with the nasty woman's mild mannered husband. However, when he disappears, Bessie is convinced her neighbor killed her husband and she works hard to prove it. What's next? Well, a whole heck of a lot...that's for sure!!

This is a good episode but there is so much more to the plot because it's quite the complicated show. Now this is NOT a complaint...just an observation. In fact, I give this one an 8...it's well made and it was a treat to see Lillian guest starring in this series.

In spite of what one reviewer states, this is a superb Hitchcock Hour episode. Seeing it reminds me of how poor television writing is today. This is superior story telling with all of the actors giving excellent performances. Patricia Cutts is a stand-out as the domineering wife Samantha but it is Lillian Gish's brilliant performance that is most memorable. This episode is a master class of what great television could be. There isn't an single episode of either Alfred Hitchcock Presents or The Alfred Hitchcock Hour that disappoints me. Yes, some are better than others but all are outstanding compared to any of the scripted junk on tv today.