Back for Christmas

You know, sometimes it just doesn't pay to murder your wife. We've got this guy who puts up with his wife controlling virtually every aspect of his life. He sees his youth slipping away as she fusses and controls everything. Actually, if one were to step back, she's not all that overbearing. He never tries to simply say, "Enough!" already. We are always suspicious when some guy starts digging in the basement. She does respect his need to build a wine cellar. Of course, he checks his notebook from time to time to see what her dimensions are. She is not a shrew nor does she really smother him. She has a streak of real kindness, so it's hard to be very sympathetic toward him. Well, I won't give the ending away, but suffice it to say that it is her kindness that ultimately comes back to bite him. I think this could have really been improved with a few modifications in her character.

"Back for Christmas" is the fourth episode of the series to be directed by the "master of suspense" himself. Expectations were high, seeing as Hiitchcock is one of my all time favourite directors and because of his previous episodes "Revenge", "Breakdown" and "The Case of Mr Pelham" are among the best episodes of Season 1, "Breakdown" in fact being one of my favourite episodes of the whole series. Great to see John Williams in another one of his ten appearances on the series.

Despite not being one of my favourite 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' outings and despite it not being in the same ballpark as "The Case of Mr Pelham" and especially "Breakdown", "Back for Christmas" to me is still one of the better episodes of Season 1. Which was pretty mixed on the whole, with some fine episodes but also with a few lacklustre ones. While not a unique episode, "Back for Christmas" is well executed in almost every way and is very good.

Will agree that there is a little too much talk, which does bog down the momentum at points in the middle.

Also felt that it was a little lacking in the suspense and chills factors that made "The Case of Mr Pelham" and especially "Breakdown" so memorable.

It is though a well made episode, with better production values than the previous couple of episodes. The photography particularly has a good deal of atmosphere and style, as does the eerie lighting. The use of sound is ominous and the main theme (Gounod's "Funeral March of a Marionette") is memorably haunting. Hitchcock directs pretty impeccably and his bookending continues to entertain.

Script isn't perfect, but it provokes thought and doesn't take itself too seriously, while also not treating it as too much of a joke. The story on the most part absorbs and has some nice tension. The ending is entertaining and didn't come over as too predictable. Really liked the character complexity, the characterisation of the wife is interesting and the over-bearing-ness is not overdone. Williams is excellent in a different type of role to usual, very different from his role in 'Dial M for Murder'.

Overall, very good if not amazing. 8/10.

A beloved "family episode", directed by Hitch himself, and featuring one of his good friends, John Williams. He was a natural, either playing a dogged police inspector or a distinguished chap who had something up his sleeve.

Williams plays your atypical bored husband who wants to get rid of his equally boring wife. So what to do? He also just happens to be working in the basement, get it? The mechanics here are fascinating.

Oh yes, there's the knock at the door, at precisely the wrong time. Hitch's favorite gag. Irene Tedrow makes for a terrific thorn in our star's side.

We also get to see some classic shots of sunny southern California in the 50s, Williams moving to a plush hotel in Hollywood -- his past seemingly following him. As Hitchcock may have intended, you kind of feel sorry for the old guy, at least for a few seconds. You be the judge.

SEASON 1 remastered Universal dvd box set (with 4 dvds) released 2005. Running time; 16 hrs. A terrific gift for mystery buffs.

Some of the slight humor works, but otherwise, this episode demolishes belief. It is hard to believe how terribly tedious the first 14 minutes are. Everything is telegraphed early. Then there are meaningless characters saying meaningless things. Then truly one of the most bizarre scenes I have ever seen. A couple come back to visit, open the front door of the house, discuss whether anyone is home and whether they should shout, bang on doors or what. They decide to just leave and try again in a few hours. That was it. That happened. It was completely meaningless, yet, it was stretched out for ... no idea why.

I won't even bother pointing out that the wife wasn't all that bad, because the "experts" will claim that is the point ... that in Hitchcock anyone (the husband) can be evil for no reason at all (just too timid to tell his wife to shut up and stop trying to control him). Big yawn.

And then, when he gets to the USA, there are goofy shots of NYC followed by goofy shots of LA. What happened? Was everyone sick that week? Was there a multi-day blackout in LA so they had to just whip something up at the last minute? The story is not even original. It had been done on another series. Very curious, and not in any good way.

John Williams is one of the actors who was a frequent guest on "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" as well as in Hitchcock's movies. Here in "Back for Christmas", Williams plays a seemingly dull middle-aged Englishman who is about to go on holiday to America with his wife. But he has other plans and begins digging in the basement. As for the wife, she's totally clueless and doesn't seem to notice that the hole is about her size! It's not at all surprising what comes next! But what about after he does the vile deed?

This episode is very good...especially when the twist arrives at the end. But apparently the episode wasn't unique and was based on an earlier radio program....which I assume is no longer available. Well worth seeing.