Judgment Night

In 1942, in the middle of WWII, a man finds himself on a ship with no memory of who he is or how he got there. However, he is sure that there is danger coming towards them...

Another excellent episode. This is the kind of thing I had been expecting when I first started with 'The Twilight Zone': an eerie, moody tale that unfolds with a twist that catches the viewer in surprise. Well acted by Nehemiah Persoff, to the point that even when overacting it still comes around as fun instead of amateurish.

If 'Time Enough at Last', another great episode, was an adaptation of the Tantalus myth, 'Judgment Night' skillfully adapts yet another Greek myth; the myth of Sisyphus.

Sisyphus was punished for his acts by the Gods, by being forced to roll a giant rock up a mountain; only for, when reaching the top, the rock to fall back to the base, forcing him to repeat the task for all eternity.

This eternal cycle of repetition as punishment is more used than the Tantalus one, and I liked the way this episode further enhances the metaphor with the 'hunter becomes hunted' trope it also employs. A great, surprisingly intelligent little plot.

Seeing this episode made me remember a recent film, another Sisyphus-based, hunter/hunted duality, twisted mystery/horror that is one of my favorites. If you enjoyed this, check out 2009's 'Triangle' as well.

I've lately watched three vintage 1940's Hollywood movies directed by this "Twilight Zone" episode's director John Brahm and very good they all were, each of them were tense, atmospheric thrillers which made him a good fit for this tense, doom and gloom mini-drama.

Set in 1942, a German officer turns up on a British boat which has become detached from its convoy on the cold, dark, foggy sea. He sits down and begins to engage with the boat's crew and passengers but has trouble recollecting who he is and how he got there. He also has a sense of impending dread which gradually dawns on him as the journey progresses but is confused further when amongst his personal effects he discovers a German Navy captain's cap bearing his name inside which only adds to his disquiet.

Finally he realises too late that the ship is fated to be torpedoed by an enemy U-Boat and is shocked into full remembrance only at the climactic moment when he looks across at the submarine to see the "Fire!" command given by its commander, without any kind of humane warning given to the target boat to stop or abandon ship. Only then do we learn his own decisive part in the tragedy and the resultant impact on him from that moment on.

I really enjoyed the direction of this episode. You can see the dripping condensation on deck from the night mist, there's a chilling moment as the German officer tries to rouse the boat's passengers only for him to confront them below deck grouped like a still photograph,, facing him like a silent, accusatory jury and then the seeming doppelgänger conclusion are all telling touches inserted by a capable helmsman as Brahm.

Future Avenger John Steed Patrick MacNee is noticeable in the cast of one of the more darkly entertaining entries in this constantly imaginative series.

Decent episode, great acting and a poignant final reveal. The storyline itself was well development and held an even level of suspense throughout.

This is an archetypal plot. The idea that those who commit horrible acts are punished by being made to live through them for eternity. This has the often used Twilight Zone character who finds himself in a place he can't explain. He knows he has a connection, but he can't figure it out. He is treated with kindness and is, himself, in many ways, kind. But as a commander for the Third Reich he is everything evil. I can think of at least two other episodes (there may be more) where a character finds himself switching locations, the hunter becomes the hunted. This episode is rather bleak and slow moving. The Nazi self is assured and pompous. However, he is made to see what he has done over and over, and the question of God delivered by James Franciscus is what it's all about. Serling placed numerous characters in their own personal hell. This is another. It is well acted and intense, but it doesn't have quite the spark that some others did.

No, I don't always need action. But for me, this one's taking scenes are so boring. Even the final "reveal" scene.

The action scene is very well done for this era TV, as is all the acting.

Nehemiah Persoff does a great job throughout, with several different emotions. And his literal jaw drop when he realizes who the captain of the other ship is, is extremely effective.