Customer Reviews

Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Season Five

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Fans of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" will be over-the-moon to know that the long-awaited release of its fifth season will be available on January 3, 2012.

During its 1959-1960 season, many quality episodes came out of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," along with a star-studded cast: Dick Van Dyke, Laurence Harvey, Macdonald Carey, Robert Vaughn, Burt Reynolds, and Barbara Baxley, to name a few.

Another interesting tidbit: Alfred Hitchcock not only opens and closes with a synopsis of each show, but in season five he also wears the director's hat and directs the first and second episodes, "Arthur" and "The Crystal Trench".

Some of the show's highlights for me: "Man From the South", "Appointment at Eleven", "Dead Weight", "Road Hog", "An Occurrence at Owl Creek", "Graduation Class", "Hitch Hike", "Party Line" and "Hooked". To name a few of the well written stories in this package. Everyone has their own favorites, likes and dislikes, of the many episodes throughout the seven year run. And beyond.

And in these thirty-eight dark half hour episodes, mystery and suspense fans can rejoice as Alfred Hitchcock Presents: season five, one of the finest out of its seven season run, proves once again that the best direction and performance in classic TV entertainment is right here--at its very best. The writing, too, never seemed to change in its seven year run. Always the best story telling in TV history, much like The Twilight Zone. Suspense and mystery was always the name of the game for Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Now here is to The Alfred Hitchcock Hour, which hopefully is released following these DVD box sets, and in its entirety, no less.

And let's hope the release of the subsequent AHP or AHH seasons do not idle in the Universal hands for another two years.

Episode 1: "Arthur"

Episode 2: "The Crystal Trench"

Episode 3: "Appointment at Eleven"

Episode 4: "Coyote Moon"

Episode 5: "No Pain"

Episode 6: "Anniversary Gift"

Episode 7: "Dry Run"

Episode 8: "The Blessington Method"

Episode 9: "Dead Weight"

Episode 10: "Special Delivery"

Episode 11: "Road Hog"

Episode 12: "Specialty of the House"

Episode 13: "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge"

Episode 14: "Graduating Class"

Episode 15: "Man From the South"

Episode 16: "The Ikon of Elijah"

Episode 17: "The Cure"

Episode 18: "Backward, Turn Backward"

Episode 19: "Not the Running Type"

Episode 20: "The Day of the Bullet"

Episode 21: "Hitch Hike"

Episode 22: "Across the Threshold"

Episode 23: "Craig's Will"

Episode 24: "Madame Mystery"

Episode 25: "The Little Man Who Was There"

Episode 26: "Mother, May I Go Out to Swim?"

Episode 27: "The Cuckoo Clock"

Episode 28: "Forty Detectives Later"

Episode 29: "The Hero"

Episode 30: "Insomnia"

Episode 31: "I Can Take Care of Myself"

Episode 32: "One Grave Too Many"

Episode 33: "Party Line"

Episode 34: "Cell 227"

Episode 35: "The Schartz-Metterklume Method"

Episode 36: "Letter of Credit"

Episode 37: "Escape to Sonoita"

Episode 38: "Hooked"

T.B. Grant

10-12-11

Season five takes flight immediately with a deliciously acerbic and dark-humored tale starring Lawrence Harvey, scream queen Hazel Court and Patrick Macnee that's a sumptuous treat from beginning to end, and with direction by Hitch, how can it possibly get any better? The 'abdominal snowman' (as he refers to himself) returns to the director's chair for the second episode that takes place on the Swiss Alps, reminiscent of his earlier British and first few American films, a saddening love story that takes place over the course of 40 years.

From here, each and every episode is captivating, rewarding and worth several viewings - even though you may know the outcome, the way the stories are acted, directed and paced insures continuous entertainment and enjoyment, and how many TV shows can you say that about? The picture and audio are absolutely splendid, leaving little room for improvement - no blu-ray version necessary, IMO. The actors involved are among the best of the times (or any other before or since) - even those character actors you don't necessarily know by name but whose faces are familiar from your past as they were constantly utilized due to their consummate professionalism - and include Dick Van Dyke, Laurence Harvey, Suzanne Pleshette, Macdonald Carey, Robert Vaughn, James Coburn, Burt Reynolds, Edgar Buchannan, Walter Matthau, Brian Keith, Patrick Macnee (in several episodes that pre-date his nine year tenure on 'The Avengers'), Peter Lorre, Steve McQueen, William Shatner, Robert Morley, Harry Morgan, Jackie Coogan, Joseph Cotten, Raymond Massey, Dick York, etc. The list goes on and on and is delightful to see these charming folks weave in and out of each episode. They bring something unique and special to the table to those of us who can "remember when".

All prejudices aside, it seems to me that each season gets stronger and better than its predecessor and, like most other reviewers here, I hope we don't have to wait two years to get our sweaty little palms on the remainder of one of television's high points and template for the best drama that can come out of this medium. Long live Hitchcock, the master of mystery and suspense, peppered with some comically caustic black humor and sarcastic social commentary.

For us fans of Mr. Hitchcock, we get to start off 2012 with a great classic release, that is season 5 of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Season 5 has one of my favorite episodes of the entire series. The episode is called "MAN FROM THE SOUTH". It is about a man (Steve McQueen) who bets his finger that his cigarette lighter will lite 10 consecutive times. That is all I'm gonna tell you cuz I would be spoiling the story if you haven't seen it yet. The episode also stars Peter Lorre. When you get this set, watch "MAN FROM THE SOUTH" first before any other episode. You'll be glad you did! It is very NERVE WRACKING! WHEW! I have this episode on a video tape, but now I am looking forward to having it on DVD, along with all the others.

Enjoy, Hitchcock fans!

I cant believe it....Finally the long awaited 5th season...if this is anything like the previous 4 season it will be fantastic...I cant believe it has been about 2 years since the release of season 4 and this season....please speed up the release process...these are great half hour gems....

What a great item. I have waited a long time to get this. I will watch it again and again.

"Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Season Five" contains 38 episodes from the 1959-1960 season, including two -- "Arthur" and "The Crystal Trench" -- directed by Hitchcock himself.

The shows are presented in the concise, half-hour format. Hitchcock introduces and closes each program with humorous comments about the story at hand. Some stars in Season Five episodes are Dick Van Dyke, Laurence Harvey, Robert Vaughn, William Shatner, Hermione Gingold, Joseph Cotten, Walter Matthau, Dick York, Raymond Massey, Mary Astor, and Suzanne Pleshette. The Hitchcock shows were known for their twist or ironic endings and included mysteries, humorous tales, suspense yarns, ghost stories, and the occasional horror tale.

There are a number of standout episodes in Season Five. In Roald Dahl's "Man From the South," a fellow (Steve McQueen) agrees to an unusual wager that could result in the loss of more than cash. In "Specialty of the House," a gourmand (Robert Morley) eagerly desires to become a life member of an ultra-exclusive gourmet club and to see inside the usually off-limits kitchen. "Special Delivery" is a creepy tale about a young boy who orders mushrooms through the mail and raises them as his parents begin to suspect their presence in the house is causing odd changes in their son. "Escape to Sonoita" is an ironic take on human nature as two truck drivers (Burt Reynolds, James Bell) in the Arizona desert encounter kidnappers who steal their truck and leave them to die.

Hitchcock's introductions and post-epsode commentary are always witty and original. Hitchcock was busy making feature films ("North By Northwest," "Psycho") while his show was on the air, so he didn't have time to direct every episode. His contract allowed him to direct only those he had a particular fondness for. Other directors were hired for the balance of each season's episodes.

Back in the days there were 30+ episodes in a season and each episode was about three minutes longer than they are now. It's a treat to see major stars early in their careers and the always clever stories never fail to entertain. You might never look at a roast chicken the same way after Laurence Harvey explains his approach to farming.

The fifth season is definitely worth the wait. I am looking forward to the sixth season. What an entertaining series!

Season five is one of the most entertaining of the series' run. The occasional emphasis on the macabre is simply delicious.If you enjoyed the ironic fate of Robert Morley in "Theater Of Blood",being forced to eat his pet poodles baked in a pie,you'll enjoy the just desserts he receives in the episode,"Specialty of the House" as he finally discovers what ingredient makes the specialty of the house so unique and why a lifetime membership in this dining club is a short-term privilege.Another standout episode is "The Cure". Even though you see the ending coming, The storyline hinging on a woman being sent down a South American river after attacking her husband with a knife,to be cured by a head shrinker is nontheless,compelling.Hopefully,the rest of the series' seasons along with the Hitchcock Hour will all summarily be released.

I highly recommend these dvds. There are others that have done a great job of describing the stories, the actors so I'll refer you to the other 5 star reviews.