NIGHT GALLERY (1969)
Article #1221 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 7-18-2004
Posting Date: 12-15-2004
Directed by Boris Sagal, Steven Spielberg, Barry Shear
Featuring Joan Crawford, Ossie Davis, Richard Kiley

Rod Serling puts on display three paintings, each with a tale of horror behind it.

It’s easy to see why this TV-movie pilot produced a series; it’s an excellent movie, well directed, written and acted throughout, and the three stories are all quite effective. The actual paintings play pivotal roles in both the first and third stories; in the second story, the painting does appear, but it is not crucial to the proceedings. The first story is probably the weakest of the bunch; the final twist seems a little forced to me, and I really got tired of hearing the name of the Ossie Davis character repeated ad nauseum. Both the second and third are truly wonderful, and both have final twists that are truly satisfying. The middle one was directed by Steven Spielberg, and you can see various touches that demonstrate exactly why he would later become such a renowned director. All three of the stories were written by Rod Serling.