Ernest Findlater is constantly nagged at by his wife so he fantasizes about Lalage, an exotic lover from the South Seas.Ernest Findlater is constantly nagged at by his wife so he fantasizes about Lalage, an exotic lover from the South Seas.Ernest Findlater is constantly nagged at by his wife so he fantasizes about Lalage, an exotic lover from the South Seas.
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Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe story for this episode was written by A.A. Milne, the creator of Winnie the Pooh.
- GoofsDespite being set in The UK, the telephone in the club rings in the US way (one long ring instead of 2 short ones).
- Quotes
Self - Host: [afterword]
Psychiatrist in Introduction: [Hitchcock is snoring on the psychiatrist's couch. The psychiatrist looks exasperated. He leans in to look closely at Hitchcock, then turns to the camera with a shushing gesture] Shhh...
- SoundtracksFuneral March of a Marionette
Written by Charles Gounod
Featured review
Not a dream of an episode
"The Three Dreams of Mr Findlater" is the third and last episode directed by Jules Bricken. The first being "Alibi Me", which was pretty good if not exceptional. The other being "Conversation over a Corpse", which was great and one of the few great episodes of the first half of Season 2. The main reason as to why it was seen was for 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' regular John Williams, always worth watching and good and more in all but one of his previous outings (the exception being "Whodunnit").
Didn't find myself particularly impressed by "The Three Dreams of Mr Findlater", and it is easily the weakest of Bricken's three 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes. Can't fault Williams, but the story never really came to life or properly engaged. As far as Season 2 goes, it is not quite one of the weakest episodes but to me it is somewhere around low middle. Average or less ratings and reviews have never been given with pleasure watching and reviewing the 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes, when disappointed by something it has always intended to be as thoughtful and honest as possible.
By all means there are good things. The best aspect is the performance of Williams, who excels in the type of role he played extremely well throughout his career and his role here plays to his strengths. The acting in general is well above average as is the chemistry between the actors.
Furthermore, Hitchcock's bookending nearly always delights in the series, and it continues to be amusingly ironic. There is some nice photography throughout, though not jaw dropping. The main theme for the series is suitably macabre and the audio doesn't jar or overbear. The premise was very interesting and promising and the episode did start off very well and intriguing.
However, "The Three Dreams of Mr Findlater" could have been a good deal better than it turned out. Just wish that that promise was maintained rather than run out of steam like the episode sadly did. The story drags in the second half from the plotting becoming thinner instead of intricate, and it lacks surprises and suspense (which was expected considering the premise). The ending is not much of one and is very predictable and extremely forgettable. Any revelations are far from big and coincidences are none.
While the script has thought provoking moments early on it generally lacks spark and could have been a lot tighter later on. Bricken's direction is very uninspired, an adjective that wasn't applicable to either of his two entries.
Concluding, another watchable but unmemorable episode. 5/10.
Didn't find myself particularly impressed by "The Three Dreams of Mr Findlater", and it is easily the weakest of Bricken's three 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes. Can't fault Williams, but the story never really came to life or properly engaged. As far as Season 2 goes, it is not quite one of the weakest episodes but to me it is somewhere around low middle. Average or less ratings and reviews have never been given with pleasure watching and reviewing the 'Alfred Hitchcock Presents' episodes, when disappointed by something it has always intended to be as thoughtful and honest as possible.
By all means there are good things. The best aspect is the performance of Williams, who excels in the type of role he played extremely well throughout his career and his role here plays to his strengths. The acting in general is well above average as is the chemistry between the actors.
Furthermore, Hitchcock's bookending nearly always delights in the series, and it continues to be amusingly ironic. There is some nice photography throughout, though not jaw dropping. The main theme for the series is suitably macabre and the audio doesn't jar or overbear. The premise was very interesting and promising and the episode did start off very well and intriguing.
However, "The Three Dreams of Mr Findlater" could have been a good deal better than it turned out. Just wish that that promise was maintained rather than run out of steam like the episode sadly did. The story drags in the second half from the plotting becoming thinner instead of intricate, and it lacks surprises and suspense (which was expected considering the premise). The ending is not much of one and is very predictable and extremely forgettable. Any revelations are far from big and coincidences are none.
While the script has thought provoking moments early on it generally lacks spark and could have been a lot tighter later on. Bricken's direction is very uninspired, an adjective that wasn't applicable to either of his two entries.
Concluding, another watchable but unmemorable episode. 5/10.
helpful•83
- TheLittleSongbird
- Jul 13, 2022
Details
- Runtime30 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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