A Man Greatly Beloved

I liked this episode, you can see the twist coming a mile away, but a great story on the effects perception can have on a person's life. You do have to get past the somewhat annoying narrator, but that will be pretty easy unless you are one of those crabby old people (looking at myself, lol).

Overall I liked it more than the other reviewers. If you don't want it spoiled, stop reading now.

SPOILER: Mr. Anderson notably never denies the allegations as to his true identity. And I like the way the reverend handled the revelation about Mr. Anderson's true identity.

A major criticism I have with modern society is the destruction of an individual's reputation and often profession over the one comment or one action they took that is out of lock step with the vocal minority of trolls. Respectful disagreement with others seems to have been greatly diminished. Of course, in the case of this story, murder is much more than a disagreement, but we are never given the full circumstances of that event. And, in the actions of Mr. Anderson, he proves that he does have a lot of good in him.

This is perhaps the my least favorite episode to date. The main character (who narrates straight into the camera) is annoying in the way little girls so often were back in the day. She missing a front tooth or two (how cute!) and has ridiculous curls and won't shut up. If this isn't bad enough, we get a second bad character, a nervous old lady neighbor.

The main story is about how the girl befriends an older male neighbor who is new to town. Given this series, I expected dark things to cut through the super cutesy girl. I was disappointed as the ending is a dud.

A Hitch showcase for two stars; Sir Cedric Hardwicke, an old friend, and Evelyn Rudie, an up and coming child actress.

Hardwicke is perfect as a new, though reclusive neighbor (Mr. Anderson) in a small New England town who catches the eye of the daughter of the local reverend, Hildegarde (Rudie). Playful yes, a bit annoying, that too, slowly getting on the old gentleman's nerves, who wants to be left alone. Thank you, and Get Lost.

The inevitable Hitch question as this riddle unfolds; Does it all come down to secrets? Murder, perhaps? You wouldn't think of anything else, right? Of course, kids jump to all kind of conclusions, however Hildegarde may be onto something, and at the same time attempting to win him over. Watching the two stars work together is marvelous, and how could you fault Sir Cedric Hardwick, who appeared in ROPE for Hitch. Fondly remembered to all us kids as Dr. Frankenstein.

Nominated for an Emmy award at the age of nine, Rudie appeared in many films and tv shows, even turning up in a BOWERY BOYS comedy. Her career peaked a few years after this episode, but for the wrong reasons, when she briefly disappeared from her parents and flew to Washington, D. C. to visit first lady Mamie Eisenhower. By the early 60s, she gave up acting, returning to school and college.

Hugh Marlowe plays her father, and to spice things up, dramatic actress Edith Barrett (known for classics like JANE EYRE), plays a spiritualist.

Written by Sarrett Tobias, one of the few female writers on tv at the time, and well received.

The fun part is guessing, and even if you've seen this episode, worth a return visit for the acting. SEASON 2 EPISODE 33 remastered CBS dvd box set. All seven seasons are now on dvd in a single box set. Released 2022.

My main reasons for watching "A Man Greatly Beloved" were me watching all the episodes of 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' and for Cedric Hardwicke (so unforgettable as Frollo in 1939's 'The Hunchback of Notre Dame'). James Neilson's previous 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' outings were mostly good and more, though none of his episodes are season or series high points, though he is not one of my favourites of the series' recurring directors. Did like the idea for the episode.

Just wish that the execution was better and lived up to this idea. As far as Season 2 goes, "A Man Greatly Beloved" is not one of the best ("One More Mile to Go", "Conversation over a Corpse", "The Manacled") but also not one of the worst ("Wet Saturday", "Nightmare in 4D", "Mr Blanchard's Secret"). After being so impressed by the previous 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episode "The Hands of Mr Ottermole", another one of the season's best, it was disappointing to see an episode with the potential it had be one of the season's lesser outings.

By all means, "A Man Greatly Beloved" has things that are good. The best thing about it is Hardwicke, who is excellent. Without him actually, the episode would have been close to a series low point. Hitchcock's bookending is deliciously ironic as usual.

There is some nice atmospheric filming and lighting and the theme music is as inspired and haunting as ever.

"A Man Greatly Beloved" has a lot of things that let it down. For me Evelyn Rudie was hard to take due to her badly overdoing her character's precociousness, to the point where the character becomes irritating. With so much of her as well that alone brought down the episode quite significantly. The narration is overused and has a really annoying tendency to over explain and tell too much rather than showing, this would have benefitted without any narrating.

Plot wise, there is nothing noteworthy. The story is very slight and over-stretched to the point where the episodes drags badly at points. What there is is predictable, especially the can be seen from miles off ending, is suspense-free. The dialogue is too talky and the flow is not always natural.

Concluding, very mixed feelings here. One of Neilson's weaker episodes. 5/10.

This episode is told from the point of view of a precocious little girl. While she has parents, she has embarked on her own career as a chronic buttinski, messing with people's lives and carrying on her own fantasies. She decides that a fairly rich older man, new to the town and living alone will be her project. She basically blackmails him into hosting a garden part (although rain sends it inside). It is thought that this man is a retired judge, who has a reputation for handing out cruel, though appropriate, justice. It is her feeling that he is unhappy and she needs to change his life for him. I know in the eyes of most, she is cute, but after a while she becomes pretty insufferable. It's certainly a worthwhile episode and it has a bit of a twist.