There Was an Old Woman

Really liked to loved all but one of Robert Stevenson's previous 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes. That exception being one of Season 1's lesser outings "Don't Come Back Alive". Particularly good was one of my favourites of Season 1 "And So Died Riabouschinka". The premise for "There Was an Old Woman" was good and it was interesting seeing early year Charles Bronson in a role that was not the type he would take on later.

"There Was an Old Woman" to me is a great episode with a lot that is truly excellent and with nothing really inherently wrong. Season 1 was a relatively solid season with a few disappointments along the way, and one of its best is "There Was an Old Woman". As far as Stevenson's 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' entries go, this compares very favourably and one of those that one should see to see whether Stevenson deserved being one of the most used directors on the series (to me he did).

Production values are solid, especially the atmospheric photography. The sets are on the sparse side, but not enough to ruin the episode. As always, the main theme is haunting and certainly fits this tale very well. The episode is suitably ominous audibly. Hitchcock's bookending is typically droll, didn't find that all of them worked in the series but most did work very well and "There Was an Old Woman's" did work very well indeed. The ironic final line is memorable.

Stevenson directs adeptly, he doesn't rush things or lets it slack and he has a good feel for atmosphere. The script is taut and intelligent, with the entertainingly macabre humour standing out. While the story may not have the chill factor of for example "Breakdown", it never felt dull to me or over-stuffed, is very suspenseful and didn't come over as predictable or confusing.

Bronson does scorn, annoyance and nastiness very well indeed and Norma Crane avoids overdoing the whininess. The two work very well together and the characters are suitably jerkish without going overboard. Best of all is the delicious Estelle Winwood, who both amuses and unsettles.

Overall, great. 9/10.

Dishonest Frank (Charles Bronson) and Lorna Bramwell (Norma Crane) visit the home of wealthy, eccentric Monica Laughton, with the intention of robbing her.

Tough guy Bronson gets deservedly annoyed by an eccentric lady, wonderfully played by Miss Winwood. This is an amusing foray into macabre humour with the imaginary guests and funeral.

I enjoy watching this episode on DVD. Estelle Winwood is excellent in her believable portrayal of an eccentric and portentous old lady. Charles Bronson plays a boorish golddigger while his wife, played by Norma Crane, is a young, blonde whiner with little understanding of what is actually taking place. The only issue that concerns her is her hunger. The final scenes are somewhat ambiguous when one has to decide whether or not the Winwood character is deliberately trying to poison her houseguests. While making the muffins she is looking for rat poison as she "dialogues" with her cat as to those pesky rodents. Then she asks, "Now where did I put that rat poison?" However it does not seem obvious if she intentionally intended to inform her guests that the muffins were poisonous or not. In one scene Winwood "scolds" Bronson in a manner that many today could not relate to. "You have made me very angry. You are indeed a man without honor". I thought to myself, "That's tellin' 'em".

I am sure that everyone will agree with the fact that this story brings nothing special to the series. If you remove the twist ending, there is nearly nothing left. Just an agreeable time waster and that's all. The lead characters is a couple of greedy crooks, robbers seeking to take advantage of an old lady. There are many old ladies in this series, I don't know if you had noticed. This is not an unforgettable story, I repeat, but it remains quite enjoyable. Not boring tale for a rather predictable plot. But there are many of them in this series. Compared to the other episodes, Iwill place this one in the medium scale of quality and interest.

Estelle Winwood is Monica Laughton a rich old woman living out by herself. One day while over hearing the milkman talk of her, Frank played by Charles Bronson schemes with his girlfriend Lorna to get in the old woman's good graces enough at least to rob her blind at the right moment. The problem is however she's got a couple of screws loss, as she's built her house full of imaginary family members living with her, even the food is imaginary. Eventually, the two begin to starve and Bronson losses patients, prompting the old woman to change her mind on letting the couple stay in her house, but, they won't be leaving so easy either. A classic among the series and rather disturbing once you think about it, I'm starting to like these episodes where rich old women hold there ground against greedy siblings or invaders, usually doing themselves in by there own stupidity as is the case here. The episode keeps you guessing weather there's any money at all or if its imaginary to. We learn however there is, and in the shows usual ironic affair its in the most obvious of locations.