The Trouble with Templeton

I'm bemused that so many reviewers seem to have missed the point of this stellar and poignant excursion into The Twilight Zone.

Brian Aherne plays Booth Templeton, an aging stage icon who dwells in the past, still longing for his late wife, Laura, who died at 25. The first day of rehearsal for a new play brutally catalyzes a trip backwards during which Booth is reunited with not only with Laura but beloved friends as well, all deceased.

While I'm not going to spoil the episode for those who somehow haven't yet seen it, suffice it to say that its point is ultimately NOT "the past isn't all that it's cracked up to be," or some such. The actual resolution, which is far more subtle and ingenious, is what fuels Booth with the resolve to move on with his life and leaves us, the viewers, glowing like a torch. See it for yourself and behold the glory of 1960s television at its finest.

In what is one of the best episodes of the Twilight Zone that I've seen so far, Brian Aherne stars as Booth Templeton, an aging Broadway play actor unhappy with what his life has become. One day, after witnessing his trophy wife flagrantly galavanting with an attractive lodger half Templeton's age, he beings lamenting about his lost past, and soon finds himself transported back to it.

Anytime I see time travel stories in movies or TV shows, one of the most interesting things to me is how the actual time travel is presented. In this case, it's not presented at all, Templeton literally walks out to the door to go to work, we go to commercial, and when we come back he's dropped off more than 30 years in the past, but this episode still has more layers of meaning than any other episode of the show I've seen so far.

Templeton is understandably shocked to find himself transported into his past, and succumbs to the obvious desire to get alone with his wife who, at the time we had met Templeton at the beginning of the episode, had been dead for many years but remained very much alive in his memories. In one of the show's most interesting scenes, he and his lost wife get into an argument, leading him to tell her he doesn't like what she has become.

What we in the audience know, and Templeton eventually figures out, is that it's not her that has become anything, it is him who has been changed by the decades that have passed since the last time they saw each other. It's an interesting analysis of how people change over the years, both from who they were when they were younger and, unfortunately often, from the person they have chosen as their life partner. We wonder how happy Templeton and this woman would be had she lived.

Watch for Sydney Pollack in an early role as an obnoxious director, of all things, and for Adhere's revelation early in the show of the fact that he has no idea how to tie a necktie. Past and present become confused at the end of the episode, but it's still one that makes you think even more than most other...

I really enjoyed The Trouble With Templeton: it's a little more quirky and unpredictable than some of the earlier episodes in this season, plus it's got some really wild '20s dancing courtesy of Pippa Scott, who plays Laura, first wife of renowned Broadway star Booth Templeton (Brian Aherne).

The episode starts with Booth, now advancing in years and in a loveless second marriage, recalling how he was only truly happy with Laura, who died when she was just twenty-five. Arriving late for the first rehearsal of a new play, and angering the director, Booth leaves the theatre to inexplicably find himself back in 1927.

Calling in at the speakeasy he frequented when he was younger, Booth is reunited with Laura and his old pal Barney Fluegel (Charles Carlson), but their unfriendly behaviour makes him leave. Booth returns to the theatre, and upon entering, finds himself back in the present day. When he reads the papers that he had snatched out of Laura's hands, he discovers that it is a script, and realises that she and Barney were acting mean in order to stop him from yearning for the past and make him live in the moment.

With great performances from all, a neat plot, and that crazy swinging dance by Laura (with Barney joining in as well), The Trouble With Templeton is a welcome return to form for The Twilight Zone.

A wonderful episode that doesn't seem to get the credit it deserves. Brian Aherne does a special job with his role here, and carries the day, but that isn't all there is to this one. The writing was first rate, and I believe this writer (E. Jack Neuman) was a rookie to the Twilight Zone. The twist was not predictable, and was carried out very well by the supporting cast. Also fun was seeing Sydney Pollack when his hair was still dark. Its tempting to say this is not a run-of-the-mill Twilight Zone episode, but actually, none of them were, so I guess my point is that this one stands out for reasons one might not expect, and since I don't want to write any spoilers here, I'll leave it for you to watch and see for yourselves. For me, I'll happily watch this one again, even knowing what the ending is.

"The Trouble with Templeton" certainly isn't the most overwhelming or spectacular TZ-outing, but it's arguably one of the most intelligent and subtle episodes of the entire franchise. The short tale features a very typical and almost routine premise: an ageing stage actor is nostalgic and sentimental about the earliest years of his career, back when he was successful, respected and - most of all - married to the love of his life, Laura. But his Laura died very young and now, decades later, Booth Templeton is married to a much younger girl (of which he doesn't care if she cheats or not) and heavily struggling with the next generation of directors' new styles. And then, quite archetypal for the Twilight Zone, Booth goes through a door and gets catapulted back to his glory year 1927. But when he finds his beloved Laura and his former best friend Barney, they're not as perfect as Booth remembers them. Up until here, "The Trouble with Templeton" feels very derivative and commonplace, but then comes one beautifully mysterious sequence. When Booth leaves the noisy bar, the place literally fades out and the expression on Laura's face is utmost somber. These mere five seconds are some of the most significant and powerful of the entire series thus far, and they give a whole different swing to the story. The second of nine episodes directed by Buzz Kulik ("Villa Rides", "Bad Ronald") and benefiting from solid performances from Brian Aherne and sixties' beauty Pippa Scott. There's also a very well-cast role for Sydney Pollack as over-ambitious young director.