Customer Reviews

Patterns [VHS]

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Be very careful. Even though it says Van heflin on some of the ads here, you are likely to get the TV version with Kiley. The TV version is good but , if you want the movie, do some investigation. I recommend doing a google search or checking ebay, and then personally ask the seller what the running time is. If the answer is 59minutes, it's the TV show. If the answer is 83minutes, it's the movie.

This was one of the stories that Rod Serling won an Emmy for and I really liked it. The version contained on this dvd is the filmed version and not the live television version. The live TV version may not even exist, who knows? The audio and video on this dvd from Roan Group (RYKO Dist.) is really good. It's the best that I've seen this film look. If you're a fan of Rod Serling or you like stories that are realistic and honest, then you'll like this one. Don't miss it!!

A pure, understated masterpiece from the magic pen of Rod Serling. This story of brutal corporate politics feels every bit as relevant today. Though the DVD transfer itself is not of the highest quality, excellence in every aspect of the film more than compensates. A spare, compact, intense drama, with pitch-perfect playing.

One of Rod Serlings best teleplays. It seems at bit ironic today if you just have some simple updates (1999), this film seems timeless in its themes and possibily more strategic now more than ever.

Ed Begly shines as the executive on his way out. We witness his destruction slowly as the film goes on. Begly,s bushy eyebrows seem to add to his situation as an aging corporate type.

Both Kiley( TV version) and Heflin(film version) are equal to the task. Its lamentable that teleplays of this caliber were actually on LIVE television ..long before Gilligan ever got lost on that island!!

Serling at his best

CP.

There was originally a mix-up, because customer service confuses the film version with Van Heflin with a Richard Kiley TV version. Although both are great in their own way, the film is far superior. It took me a while to straighten it out, but they finally got the order correct and shipped me the FILM.

The dialogue is classic Serling -- sort of a beatnik poetry of the 50s, disguised as corporate-speak. It's one of the most involving films I've ever seen. And it's so well written, it bears repeated watching.

It takes shipping 2 or 3 times to get the order right, but when you finally get the FILM version, it's worth the hassle.

First saw 'Patterns' on one of the movie channels. I didn't know that Searling was involved at the time, though it came as no surprise. Others have given the storyline, so I'll not go there. But the Roan dvd needs to be discussed. All the extras are a waste of time. The 1960'd psychidelic presentation has little in common with the seriousness and social statement of 'Patterns." The quality of the film is a little better than fair (I'm spoiled by the stunning transfers of other films, so I'm being a bit hard on this transfer)but with that being said, if this is all that is available, buy it if you're a Searling fan or want this film on dvd format. I would compare this to '12 Angry Men' in its intensity and insight into human nature the the human condition. It goes over the edge (actingwise) at times, but that's a minor mention. 'Patterns' is one of the great classics of America's film heritage. If you like 'Twilight Zone' you will be happy with this purchase.

PATTERNS was Rod Serling's breakthrough in television, earning him a much deserved Emmy and industry recognition. This 1956 teleplay, directed by Fielder Cook, was so popular it was the first ever television show to be broadcast a second time.

PATTERNS is an uncompromising morality tale about the Machiavellian world of Big Business. Fred Staples (played by Van Heflin) is the new guy suddenly transferred from somewhere in Ohio to the company's New York headquarters. Staples soon discovers that the company head, Walter Ramsey (Everett Sloane), is intending to use him as a replacement for the kind-hearted-but-aging vice-president, William Briggs (Ed Begley). Ramsey places no value on the virtues of friendship or loyalty. The only things mattering to him is the company's production and profit. Staples sees things differently. Briggs had befriended him and he refuses to surrender his values to his ambition and go along with the cutthroat tactics of his boss. Unknown to Staples is that his wife, Nancy (Beatrice Straight), is not above compromising. Nancy Staples enjoys the prosperity and status of being the wife of a rising executive and is willing to work with the ruthless Ramsey to keep them.

The power to PATTERNS is Ramsey's fierce determination to edge out Briggs with Staples. It doesn't matter how obvious Staples makes it known he despises Ramsey and his worldview, even to the point of Staples giving him a warning and a threat that if he ever was to give in and take over from Briggs that his sole determination would be to thereafter edge him out, taking it all. Ramsey commends Staples hatred, for him such threats and desires confirm why he needs Staples for the company. Ramsey is a disciple for competitiveness unbound and will foster its spread and development even if he is to be one of its victims. Here we see what he truly depises in Briggs is the love he has for friends and family. Briggs' loyalty and duty to the memory of Ramsey's father and founder of this company stands for everything Ramsey finds maudlin and weak. For Ramsey, corrupting Staples is the same as corrupting his late father's cherished business ethics and firing Briggs is a symbol of replacing his father's world with his own.

This Roan Group edition features an interesting and informative introduction from New York Post film critic Lou Lumenick.

Filmed in 1955 and released in 1956, Rod Serling's "Patterns" is perhaps the best film of its kind. Van Heflin stars as Fred Staples, the unsuspecting newly hired executive of a large New York City corporation, lured to it by a generous salary offer with excellent possibilities for advancement at the top. Ed Begley,Sr. plays the aging and long suffering Vice President who must endure Ed Ramsey, brilliantly portrayed by Everett Sloane, the ruthless and despotic CEO of the multi branch corporation. A new version of "Patterns" should be filmed and released to fit and describe Corporate America's ruthlessness.

This is a great film which should be seen by everyone, especially white collar workers.

I first heard of the story "Patterns" during a PBS documentary on the life and work of Rod Serling. The premise sounded quite interesting, so when I heard there was a film version of "Patterns" available on DVD, I just had to have it.

The Roan Group did an excellent job in putting together this DVD version of "Patterns." While the picture quality isn't perfect, it in no way distracts from the high quality of the acting, especially the roles played by Van Heflin, Ed Begley Sr. and Everett Sloane.

Unlike some films set in the corporate world, the characters in "Patterns" are not one-dimensional suits looking only to climb the corporate world. They're real people who are interesting to watch as they each live their lives and conduct their business. Even the secretaries are interesting.

Everett Sloane as Mr. Ramsey is by far, the best ruthless boss character I have ever seen in a movie, even more so than Lionel Barrymore as Mr. Potter in "It's A Wonderful Life." What makes Everett Sloane so convincing is that many people have likley had a work boss almost exactly like him. Someone who can't simply be described as greedy, but rather as hard-nosed and strict as a task master.

The ending of "Patterns" is fascinating, because it begs the question, if you were in the shoes of the Van Heflin character, what would you do?

The only reason I'm giving this DVD four stars instead of five, is that the Roan Group has added a few things in their extras which have practically nothing to do with the actual movie. Other than that, this DVD is excellent. Lou Lumenick and Lloyd Kaufman's commentaries about "Patterns" are first rate.

SEE THIS FILM IF YOU HAVEN'T!!! I promise, you won't be disappointed.

...Thus utters the President of a company in a showdown with the film's protagonist. This sums up this film the same way "Greed is Good" sums up Wall Street 30 years later.

This movie is very good at portending the future of American business 25 years before the age of the billionaire-boys-who-won't-grow-up and right-sizing began in the early 80's. Fred Staples (Van Heflin) is the 30-something industrial relations expert at a small plant in Ohio that has been bought by Walter Ramsey's (Everett Sloane's) company. He is courted by Ramsey for an executive position at the parent company's headquarters in New York. He arrives full of small town values and good ideas, and really likes his new boss, VP William Briggs (Ed Begley).

However, soon he realizes what is really happening. He hasn't been hired to help Briggs, he's been hired to replace him. There is no love lost between Briggs and Ramsey. Briggs, at 62, sees Ramsey as only in the President's chair because his dad started the company. Briggs also sees Ramsey as discounting the human element, thinking it a small thing to shut down a plant for six months while it retools although it comprises half the payroll of the village in which it sits. Ramsey says in the long run the village will be better off because the retooled plant will employ twice as many people as before. Briggs sees growth as something coming from the productivity and loyalty of the employees. Ramsey sees the need for acquisitions as a tool for growth in a world of ruthless competition.

Fred is put in the middle of all of this. Hand-picked by Ramsey, he sees reports that he and Briggs worked on together having total credit given to himself. Briggs' secretary of seven years is taken from Briggs and given to Fred. Basically, Ramsey is choking Briggs out with a death of a thousand cuts and small humiliations. In these days it still wasn't fashionable to fire employees with 30 years of tenure, so Ramsey hopes to get Briggs to resign. Fred protests all of this - to some degree - but even he admits to his wife he doesn't protest too much because he wants this job. It's not about the money, but the challenge. Ramsey realizes this and exploits this knowledge to ultimately corrupt Fred, all the while having Fred believe that he has won his round with the devil.

Actually, both Ramsey and Briggs have valid points in how to best run the business. Ramsey may be portraying the ruthless side of the business in this film, but in today's world he would be considered a humanitarian. He wouldn't be retooling a plant to double its size. He'd be shipping the jobs overseas, and he wouldn't give a second thought to outright firing someone he thought was too old for the job regardless of years of service. Written by Rod Serling, this film is scary in how accurate it is in depicting today's business world. The performances are wonderful. Ed Begley, so often playing the heavy, is poignant as the aging VP trying to hold on to a place in the world where he still feels he has value while trying to raise a teenage son. Beatrice Straight has a small but important role as Fred's wife who tries to get him to be honest with himself about his own motivations. Highly recommended.