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Director Paul Stanley's, THE GUESTS, is an involving,
dream-like Sci-Fi fable.
Geoffrey Horne is a young drifter who finds an old man dying in the
road. When he goes to an isolated mansion to get help, he ends up being
caught in an alien trap, with other people who have been trapped there
for decades.
Gloria Grahame ("In a Lonely Place") is impressive as a silent
movie star who never made the jump to talkies. Under Stanley's confident
direction, she gives entertainingly ego bloated readings to lines like,
"The legitimate stage is the only temple for a legitimate actress."
Writer Donald S. Sanford's script has some good dialogue. When Grahame
asks Horne about the old man he encountered on the road, she inquires,
"Was he VERY old?" Horne replies, "Yes, he was the oldest
man I ever saw."
Early on we see a huge alien brain, or something, turn into a Victorian
mansion. The FX here, courtesy of Project Unlimited, Inc., are decent.
The episode's alien is a big blobby affair, that pulsates and quivers.
Not surprisingly, no one takes responsibility for it's creation.
Director of Photography, Kenneth Peach, makes good use of the mansion's
various hallways and corridors, courtesy of Set Decorator, Chester Bayhi.
A shot of the alien, against a background of whirling clouds and sky,
is quite striking.
The music is frequently pounding/pulsating, sounding like distant heavy
machinery. Dominic Frontiere, as usual, is the composer.
This episode has a great deal in common with the episode, "Do Not
Open Till Doomsday," including a blobby alien, isolated mansion,
and people held captive by aliens for many years. I guess in Sci-Fi
land, lightning does strike twice!
THE GUESTS will be fairly watchable for most Sci-Fi fans. Those who
don't dig silly alien monsters should steer clear. BACK
TO: EPISODE
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