Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
- Episode aired Oct 11, 1963
- TV-PG
- 25m
IMDb RATING
9.0/10
5.5K
YOUR RATING
A man, newly recovered from a nervous breakdown, becomes convinced that a monster only he sees is damaging the plane he's flying in.A man, newly recovered from a nervous breakdown, becomes convinced that a monster only he sees is damaging the plane he's flying in.A man, newly recovered from a nervous breakdown, becomes convinced that a monster only he sees is damaging the plane he's flying in.
Ed Kemmer
- Flight Engineer
- (as Edward Kemmer)
Leon Alton
- Passenger
- (uncredited)
David Armstrong
- Passenger
- (uncredited)
Nick Cravat
- Gremlin
- (uncredited)
Rod Serling
- Narrator
- (uncredited)
- …
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWriter Richard Matheson said he was mostly pleased with Twilight Zone's version of his short story - except for the gremlin. He'd conceived it as a dark, creepy and nearly-invisible humanoid figure. "But this thing," he complained, "looked more like a panda bear."
- GoofsRain can be seen trickling straight down Bob's window, indicating that the "plane" is not moving. In flight the rain would be blown straight back. At the speed these old planes flew, you would only see tiny trickles of water, even in very heavy rainstorms.
- Quotes
Bob Wilson: There's a man out there.
- ConnectionsFeatured in American Masters: Rod Serling: Submitted for Your Approval (1995)
Featured review
Brilliant claustrophobic tale of paranoia!
I can't say I'm a big fan of The Twilight Zone; I used to watch it now and again as a kid but, to be honest, I've forgotten most of what I've seen. I've just seen this episode, however, and have just had a stark reminder of how good these twenty five minute episodes of terror can be! Nightmare at 20,000 feet is one of the most famous episodes of The Twilight Zone, partly because of the excellent Simpsons' parody of it. We follow an aeroplane passenger who has recently been the victim of a nervous breakdown. Upon peering out of the window, he spots a gremlin trying to take the plane apart - only problem is, it disappears whenever anyone else looks out; and nobody is willing to take his word for it! The reason why this little tale is so good is because of the way it draws us into the lead character's plight; this really is an impossible situation, and watching him get out of it is lots of fun, and often very funny! Almost the entire episode is set inside of an aeroplane, which gives the tale a very claustrophobic feel, which in turn helps it to be more frightening. This episode stars future Captain Kirk, William Shatner - who does a fine job as the paranoid lead, and an interesting little bit of trivia, is that it's directed by Lethal Weapon director Richard Donner. I cant say how this episode stands up to the best of the rest of The Twilight Zone - but in it's own right; it's damn good, and miles better than most of the rubbish they put on TV these days. Highly recommended viewing!
helpful•6815
- The_Void
- Mar 4, 2006
Details
- Runtime25 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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