Escape to Sonoita

Bill Ballinger, who wrote seven episodes for Hitch, put some imagination into this desert adventure. Hitch had good taste, Bill wrote the cult classic, THE STRANGLER (1964), starring Victor Buono, based on the infamous Boston Strangler.

No question, an essay on human nature at its absolute worst. This is a very good role for young Burt Reynolds, cast as a truck driver, who along with his dad, are stuck in the middle of the California desert.

It's just their luck to run into a couple of kidnappers, and the girl (Venetia Stevenson) they are holding hostage, to seal the deal. These characters are a ruthless bunch, an outlaw version of the OUTCASTS OF POKER FLAT, only set in the desert. They wreck their car and now have their eyes set on Burt's truck.

The ending is pure Hitchcock, and again you have to enjoy a chuckle. No matter what, Burt is the whole show and what makes this story fascinating to watch. Pretty Venetia Stevenson (who passed in 2022), was the daughter of Robert Stevenson, who also directed for Hitch.

One of the best and original dark comedies. From SEASON 5 EPISODE 37 remastered Universal dvd box set. 5 dvds. 15 hrs. Released 2008.

A father and son are driving an oil truck through the desert, near the Mexican border (Burt Reynolds and James Bell) when the truck develops engine trouble. Soon a couple rogues (Murray Hamilton and Harry Dean Stanton) come zooming down this dirt road and nearly hit the disabled truck. Their car has to swerve and they smash up their vehicle...and it's now undrivable. At first, it just seems like an accident and nothing more...until one of the truck drivers looks in the disabled car and sees a woman on the back flood....bound and gagged! Obviously the men in the car are kidnappers...and the gun they pull proves they aren't exactly social workers!! Soon the drivers are able to repair their truck...and the kidnappers take it and leave the others stranded in the middle of no where. What's next? See the show and find out for yourself.

This is a really good episode of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" because it features some fine actors and some great writing. A wonderful twist and folks getting their just desserts makes this one to see! Very satisfying to watch from start to finish.

"Escape to Sonoita" features an exceptional cast of up and coming actors, such as Burt Reynolds, Murray Hamilton, and Harry Dean Stanton. James Bell and Reynolds play a father and son pair of truck drivers who make a stop in the middle of the Arizona desert to allow their overheating vehicle time to cool off. Before long, a badly damaged car rumbles into view, carrying two thirsty men (Hamilton and Stanton) who soon reveal themselves to be kidnappers of a young woman (Venetia Stevenson) tied up in the back seat. The villains decide to transport their ransom money by stealing the tanker and heading South for the Mexican border, leaving the three innocents to broil under the harsh desert sun. The final twist provides a most fitting sting in the tail for the hapless kidnappers. 24 year old Burt Reynolds was in his third year on television, while 34 year old Harry Dean Stanton began in 1954, and 37 year old Murray Hamilton from 1951.

I suspect a lot of the praise from this episode comes from the cast: Burt Reynolds, Harry Dean Stanton and Murray Hamilton (and James Bell of an earlier generation; and Venetia Stevenson, a looker who married an Everly brother). Truth is, Reynolds was only ever good when he played it cool and ironic, and Stanton isn't as his best either. So Hamilton has to carry it. Not sure that's enough.

The plot is nice and dark (kidnappers!), but it feels like we're just waiting around for the twist. And I didn't find the twist all that great.

Hitchcock's intro and outro are about him as a weatherman with a pretty weather girl. I must say, he freehands a pretty good circle.

I did enjoy this. It was one of my favorite episodes from when I was a kid. When the radiator was overheating, before the bad guys came, wasn't there an obvious solution, in hindsight. Burt Reynolds was quite young in this one, already playing a type. The plot is fun and very Hitchcockian. We have suspense and irony. There are some weaknesses if we think too much about it. If you ever saw the silent movie "Greed" there is an element of that here where money trumps everything, including the risking of lives in the desert. The cast is quite good all the way through. It's always fun to see a couple of dopes hoisted on their own petards.