The premise of this episode--obnoxious person gets a special, custom-built comeuppance--had been done time and again on The Twilight Zone, so as the series began to wind down I can imagine Mr. Serling thinking, "Well, it worked before, let's try it again." John McGiver is fun in a one-note way, as were his wife, the psychiatrist and the guy with the squeaky shoes. The dialog has some nice flourishes, set decoration is first-rate, and the episode was handsomely shot and moves briskly, but it's for completists only. My overall impression is a feeling that Mr. Serling was awakened one night by a neighbor's loud party and thought, "I'll get even with those jerks--in the Twilight Zone."
19 Reviews
The Twilight Zone - Sounds and Silences
Scarecrow-8819 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Phew, "Sounds and Silences" was not an episode I'd want to watch during marathons all the time. John McGiver certainly doesn't bother with subtlety as his character, Roswell G Flemington, is full tilt boogie demonstrative in his everyday evocation of the sound and fury of war (even if he wasn't quite the soldier he so loudly and dutifully relives to his beleaguered and tormented employees (he operates a model ship company you'd think was a cruiser on the open sea heading for battle)), certainly decorating his office and home and sounding off battle noise/activity from records he dedicatedly plays ad nauseam.
Well, this episode spends a hell of a lot of time with McGiver just going to war with a fed-up wife played by Penny Singleton, their words exchanged with such rage, vitriol, and heated furor that it is just plain draining and exhausting. I think McGiver's character is so obnoxious, thunderous (a word coined throughout this episode and an apt description of McGiver's temperament and voice), and demanding that the episode, I believe, suffers for it. This guy is such a piece of work. His visit to a doctor, he considers a quack--who gives him *sound* advice that he should perhaps see a shrink when Roswell starts to hear sounds at a heightened degree (dripping water sounds like bullets in a ricocheting off metal, shoes across the floor or a ticking clock are loud enough to tremor the nerves and shake the eardrums)--running him down as unworthy of his position, only to accept his recommendation after a night of epic noise during a hard night.
The psychiatrist convincing Roswell that it is all mind over matter and that he can mentally shoo away the sharp influx of deafening noise that befalls him is a significant development that secures a twist Serling's monologue calls "poetic justice". While I think pretty much anyone watching this should expect a character like Roswell to suffer for just being a incorrigible blowhard barking continuously at everyone he comes in contact with (even when he brags on someone, like the shrink), having to endure him for an entire episode is quite a tasking experience. McGiver is a volcano spewing forth with rarely any let up not a performance that makes my Twilight Zone hierarchy which has such a rich history of talent putting up a wealth of good work during the wonderful series' tenure.
All that said, the film has some funny moments at the expense of Roswell, particularly his employees talking among themselves about him when he isn't around, poking gleeful fun at his annoyingly growl-and-push assertiveness, expecting them to operate a business with all the noise surrounding the workplace due to him. The episode loud and clear considers the lead character a thorn embedded in the ass of all he met, so spending twenty five minutes with him is not exactly easy.
Fascinating trivia tidbit from Zicree's Twilight Zone Companion: this episode was literally shelved and vaulted due to a plagiarism case due to Serling writing it too close to a script from another author not used.
Well, this episode spends a hell of a lot of time with McGiver just going to war with a fed-up wife played by Penny Singleton, their words exchanged with such rage, vitriol, and heated furor that it is just plain draining and exhausting. I think McGiver's character is so obnoxious, thunderous (a word coined throughout this episode and an apt description of McGiver's temperament and voice), and demanding that the episode, I believe, suffers for it. This guy is such a piece of work. His visit to a doctor, he considers a quack--who gives him *sound* advice that he should perhaps see a shrink when Roswell starts to hear sounds at a heightened degree (dripping water sounds like bullets in a ricocheting off metal, shoes across the floor or a ticking clock are loud enough to tremor the nerves and shake the eardrums)--running him down as unworthy of his position, only to accept his recommendation after a night of epic noise during a hard night.
The psychiatrist convincing Roswell that it is all mind over matter and that he can mentally shoo away the sharp influx of deafening noise that befalls him is a significant development that secures a twist Serling's monologue calls "poetic justice". While I think pretty much anyone watching this should expect a character like Roswell to suffer for just being a incorrigible blowhard barking continuously at everyone he comes in contact with (even when he brags on someone, like the shrink), having to endure him for an entire episode is quite a tasking experience. McGiver is a volcano spewing forth with rarely any let up not a performance that makes my Twilight Zone hierarchy which has such a rich history of talent putting up a wealth of good work during the wonderful series' tenure.
All that said, the film has some funny moments at the expense of Roswell, particularly his employees talking among themselves about him when he isn't around, poking gleeful fun at his annoyingly growl-and-push assertiveness, expecting them to operate a business with all the noise surrounding the workplace due to him. The episode loud and clear considers the lead character a thorn embedded in the ass of all he met, so spending twenty five minutes with him is not exactly easy.
Fascinating trivia tidbit from Zicree's Twilight Zone Companion: this episode was literally shelved and vaulted due to a plagiarism case due to Serling writing it too close to a script from another author not used.
"Idle hands make for an unproductive poop-deck!"
classicsoncall1 September 2010
Warning: Spoilers
I don't recall ever seeing John McGiver in a boorish role before, but Rod Serling's script here makes his character out to be a complete jerk. As the president of the Model Ship Company bearing his name, Roswell G. Flemington holds fast the company motto - 'Full Speed Ahead for Fun and Profits'. To say that he's a royal pain to all of his staff would be an understatement, although I was taken aback when one of his employees fantasized about a Kamikaze pilot taking him out during the War. That might have been taking things a bit far.
In typical Twilight Zone fashion, this episode takes it's main character and pivots him from one extreme to the other. With an exaggeratedly keen sense of hearing, old Roswell finds irritation in even the simplest sounds. With the help of a shrink, he discovers that mind over matter may provide the cure, but it's at that point that things really come unglued. I have to admit, I got a kick out of that first faucet drip ricochet. But I had to wonder though, just how loud would that silent record have to be to shake the bookcase and sway the fixtures on the walls of his office?
For a 1960's period piece, it was cool to see once again a dial telephone and a non-digital record player, but I know that soon enough, younger viewers won't even be able to recognize those things. Cool also to see Penny Singleton in a role a couple of decades removed from her 'Blondie' days. And how about one of the old Bowery Boys himself showing up - Billy Benedict as Roswell's man Conklin. What I couldn't figure out was what happened to Benedict's snow white hair as he got older - aging in reverse?
Well even if this isn't one of your more noteworthy TZ episodes, you can still have some fun with it. Roswell's a great character study in how NOT to behave as a husband and business executive, and if that's your only takeaway, it would be a valuable lesson - in a manner of speaking.
In typical Twilight Zone fashion, this episode takes it's main character and pivots him from one extreme to the other. With an exaggeratedly keen sense of hearing, old Roswell finds irritation in even the simplest sounds. With the help of a shrink, he discovers that mind over matter may provide the cure, but it's at that point that things really come unglued. I have to admit, I got a kick out of that first faucet drip ricochet. But I had to wonder though, just how loud would that silent record have to be to shake the bookcase and sway the fixtures on the walls of his office?
For a 1960's period piece, it was cool to see once again a dial telephone and a non-digital record player, but I know that soon enough, younger viewers won't even be able to recognize those things. Cool also to see Penny Singleton in a role a couple of decades removed from her 'Blondie' days. And how about one of the old Bowery Boys himself showing up - Billy Benedict as Roswell's man Conklin. What I couldn't figure out was what happened to Benedict's snow white hair as he got older - aging in reverse?
Well even if this isn't one of your more noteworthy TZ episodes, you can still have some fun with it. Roswell's a great character study in how NOT to behave as a husband and business executive, and if that's your only takeaway, it would be a valuable lesson - in a manner of speaking.
Roswell G. Flemington
AaronCapenBanner8 November 2014
John McGiver stars as Roswell G. Flemington, owner of a model ship company and lover of everything nautical, who also loves everything loud, and will play records of battles and booming cannons without regard to others. This drives his wife to leave him, and he seeks psychiatric help(his mother hated all kind of noise it seems, driving him to the other extreme) and decides to tune out all things he doesn't want to hear, but this backfires in unexpected ways... Unpopular episode that I nonetheless enjoy because McGiver is perfectly cast as the bombastic man, and in fact there is much uproarious humor to be found with his extreme behavior and destructive actions. Not much point exactly, but entertaining and under-appreciated.
An acquired taste it seems...
An acquired taste it seems...
It's as if They Couldn't Think of Anything
Hitchcoc18 December 2008
This is a very forgettable episode starring John McGiver. He runs a model ship making business. He is a Navy veteran and has carried his experiences to his business. He alienates his workers and his wife with his loud, loud being. He rings bells and plays his stereo loudly (battle sounds and planes taking off). People despise him. He is cruel and insensitive. One day, everything seems to get a hundred times louder than normal. A faucet drip sounds like Niagara Falls. Squeaky shoes are incredibly abrasive. He sees doctors and things he has a solution. But sometimes we don't really want what we wish for. It's just a pretty poorly done episode. It's as if Serling was saying, "Let's see. What if a loud man had to deal with real loudness? What then?
John McGiver yells and yells...
planktonrules10 September 2007
John McGiver (who looks for all the world like Mr. Weatherby from the Archie comics) plays a loud and bombastic jerk who loves to yell and bother everyone, as he's a self-important guy. Eventually, though, his yelling is punished in a very expected way--no big surprises here, folks.
This is one of the less than wonderful episodes from THE TWILIGHT ZONE television series. Despite some opinions to the contrary, the quality of the episodes of this series varied tremendously--with some classics, some clunkers and a few that are just time-passers. I'd put this one in the category of a time-passer. While it's harmless enough, just watching John McGiver yell and yell and then finally get his comeuppance just isn't enough to justify an entire episode. It's inoffensive but pretty weak all around.
This is one of the less than wonderful episodes from THE TWILIGHT ZONE television series. Despite some opinions to the contrary, the quality of the episodes of this series varied tremendously--with some classics, some clunkers and a few that are just time-passers. I'd put this one in the category of a time-passer. While it's harmless enough, just watching John McGiver yell and yell and then finally get his comeuppance just isn't enough to justify an entire episode. It's inoffensive but pretty weak all around.
Hello Twilight Zone, my old friend...
Coventry10 January 2023
Once again, but not very surprising, I'm in a minority for loving an TZ-episode that receives overall low rating and negative reviews. Can't help it, but I have a weakness for episodes in which the lead character is utterly bonkers, megalomaniacal, and hyperactive... And preferably all three at the same time! Roswell G. Flemington, as grotesquely depicted by John McGiver, is definitely a member of the unique "Twilight Zone" loony bin squad, together with other freaks like Oliver Crangle ("Four O'Clock"), Somerset Frisby ("Hocus Pocus and Frisby"), and McNulty ("A Kind of Stopwatch"). I reckon most viewers can't stand them, but I love 'em!
Mr. Flemington has more than one mental issue, to say the least. He's the founder and manager of a company that fabricates model ships, but he also acts and commands as if he's the captain of a large vessel! He exclusively uses shipping and navigation slang, and he yells to his employees and wife as if they were slaves on either a trading vessel or a battleship at war. If that isn't cuckoo enough, Flemington is also unendurably loud. He doesn't talk but shouts, and he only plays records with noises (like artillery or boat engines) at maximum volume. His - strangely comprehensible - reason for this is apparently because his mommy was chronically ill and forced him to whisper his entire childhood.
This man is delightfully insane, I love it. The "plot" of the tale, and Flemington's further descent into madness is rather mundane and predictable, but I'm nevertheless rewarding this episode with a solid 7/10 even if it were only for the anti-hero's twisted monologues and McGiver's straitjacket-performance.
*Note: the subject line of this user-comments doesn't have a real significance, it's just that the episode's title reminds me of Simon & Garfunkel's hit "Sound of Silence".
Mr. Flemington has more than one mental issue, to say the least. He's the founder and manager of a company that fabricates model ships, but he also acts and commands as if he's the captain of a large vessel! He exclusively uses shipping and navigation slang, and he yells to his employees and wife as if they were slaves on either a trading vessel or a battleship at war. If that isn't cuckoo enough, Flemington is also unendurably loud. He doesn't talk but shouts, and he only plays records with noises (like artillery or boat engines) at maximum volume. His - strangely comprehensible - reason for this is apparently because his mommy was chronically ill and forced him to whisper his entire childhood.
This man is delightfully insane, I love it. The "plot" of the tale, and Flemington's further descent into madness is rather mundane and predictable, but I'm nevertheless rewarding this episode with a solid 7/10 even if it were only for the anti-hero's twisted monologues and McGiver's straitjacket-performance.
*Note: the subject line of this user-comments doesn't have a real significance, it's just that the episode's title reminds me of Simon & Garfunkel's hit "Sound of Silence".
Not a great episode, but one very interesting part
johandav23 March 2018
This episode is far from the best Twilight Zone - certainly in the bottom half of them - but it does have one fascinating scene. It is while Roswell Flemington (John McGiver) is explaining to his wife how he had to act in his mother's house when growing up. He describes the whispering and silence imposed on him, and how he hated it. Now that he is a man and has his own home and business, he can be as loud as he wants to be. A very cool psychological look at what made the character the disagreeable man he became.
Silly and Weak Episode
claudio_carvalho4 November 2023
The owner of a model ship company Rosswell G. Flemington is obsessed by vessels and nautical systems. Further, he is noisy and likes noise. His wife, Mrs. Flemington, cannot support him anymore and leaves him. Out of the blue, something happens with his hearing.
"Sounds and Silences" is a silly and weak episode of "The Twilight Zone". Flemington is a sick man, with a childhood trauma caused by his mother, and after the discussion with his wife, his trauma is triggered. The story is absolutely annoying and one of the worst episodes of "The Twilight Zone". My vote is six.
Title (Brazil): "Sons e Silêncio" ("Sounds and Silences")
"Sounds and Silences" is a silly and weak episode of "The Twilight Zone". Flemington is a sick man, with a childhood trauma caused by his mother, and after the discussion with his wife, his trauma is triggered. The story is absolutely annoying and one of the worst episodes of "The Twilight Zone". My vote is six.
Title (Brazil): "Sons e Silêncio" ("Sounds and Silences")
Weak storyline
Calicodreamin24 June 2021
Unappreciated Comedy That I Enjoyed
babyfir775 February 2015
Warning: Spoilers
When viewers watch the Twilight Zone, they usually look for a great story and drama. This one is a full-blown comedy that Rod Serling wrote. It took me a few viewings to really enjoy this one, and I do!
Watching a person get what they deserve is a common theme in the Twilight Zone world, and Roscoe gets his. Basically the episode's highlights are the sound effects, from roaring battles to water dripping.
The visual treats, like the vigorous shaking of objects due to the booming sound, are wonderfully funny.
Roscoe is ridiculed by his employees and his wife. His priorities are his military recordings and his business, and his wife is not one of them.
I have notated the IMDb ratings for Twilight Zone a couple times and both times Sounds and Silences finished second to the bottom in fan favorites. Oh well. I don't see how someone would like episodes like Black Leather Jackets over this one. But if you have a decent sense of humor, check this episode out!
Watching a person get what they deserve is a common theme in the Twilight Zone world, and Roscoe gets his. Basically the episode's highlights are the sound effects, from roaring battles to water dripping.
The visual treats, like the vigorous shaking of objects due to the booming sound, are wonderfully funny.
Roscoe is ridiculed by his employees and his wife. His priorities are his military recordings and his business, and his wife is not one of them.
I have notated the IMDb ratings for Twilight Zone a couple times and both times Sounds and Silences finished second to the bottom in fan favorites. Oh well. I don't see how someone would like episodes like Black Leather Jackets over this one. But if you have a decent sense of humor, check this episode out!
The Scream That Men Call Silence.
rmax30482317 June 2013
Warning: Spoilers
John McIver is the president of a model boat company who is a nuisance to his wife and employees. Having been raised in a household in which no noise was permitted, he now demands action and noise from his environment. Most of it is nautically tinged, due to his having been at sea, for reasons that remain obscure. That is, if you want noise, you don't necessarily look for a berth aboard a Navy ship; you try to find a job in a boiler factory.
The guy plays records of sea battles and Navy songs and when he speaks, he shouts. His employees throw darts at a board with his uniformed image on it. (He's wearing the two white stripes of a Seaman Apprentice; he looks about forty and his grade is E-2.) Eventually he drives his wife, Penny Singleton, away.
But then one night he's awakened by a dripping faucet in another room. He finds that every sound is amplified. A drop of water from the shower head sounds like a bullet's ricochet. The doc can find nothing wrong with his ears, so he's sent to a psychiatrist, who cures him.
Oh, happy day. Except that after a brief spell of normality, he discovers that he's practically deaf.
This is season five. If the story hadn't been preceded by so many excellent episodes earlier, it would seem better than it does. Serling always dictated his dialog and he must have been running out of steam because he falls back on patterns of speech that were by this time overused. Something along the lines of: "I've had you up to here! I've had you up to there! I've had you up to my neck! In short, I've HAD you!" And there's a good deal of pseudo-elegance. "Shall" replaces "will" -- sometimes, not always.
It's not a bad episode, not dull in any way. It just seems a little tired. As a child, I used to watch Penny Singleton play "Blondie" in a series of B comedies. I thought she was the most beautiful creature that ever walked the earth -- and a big movie star to boot.
The guy plays records of sea battles and Navy songs and when he speaks, he shouts. His employees throw darts at a board with his uniformed image on it. (He's wearing the two white stripes of a Seaman Apprentice; he looks about forty and his grade is E-2.) Eventually he drives his wife, Penny Singleton, away.
But then one night he's awakened by a dripping faucet in another room. He finds that every sound is amplified. A drop of water from the shower head sounds like a bullet's ricochet. The doc can find nothing wrong with his ears, so he's sent to a psychiatrist, who cures him.
Oh, happy day. Except that after a brief spell of normality, he discovers that he's practically deaf.
This is season five. If the story hadn't been preceded by so many excellent episodes earlier, it would seem better than it does. Serling always dictated his dialog and he must have been running out of steam because he falls back on patterns of speech that were by this time overused. Something along the lines of: "I've had you up to here! I've had you up to there! I've had you up to my neck! In short, I've HAD you!" And there's a good deal of pseudo-elegance. "Shall" replaces "will" -- sometimes, not always.
It's not a bad episode, not dull in any way. It just seems a little tired. As a child, I used to watch Penny Singleton play "Blondie" in a series of B comedies. I thought she was the most beautiful creature that ever walked the earth -- and a big movie star to boot.
"Sounds and Silences" may be better left unseen
chuck-reilly25 September 2008
Warning: Spoilers
John McGiver was a well-regarded character actor in his day (e.g. "Midnight Cowboy") and he was a regular fixture on television for many years. Unfortunately, his role in the last season Twilight Zone entry "Sounds and Silences" doesn't give him much to work with. McGiver plays Roswell Flemington, an obnoxious and extremely loud-mouthed ex-Naval officer who needs to drown everyone else out with as much excessive noise as he can muster. The chief sufferer is his wife (Penny Singleton from the old 1940's Blondie movies) who tries her best to live with him until even she can't take it anymore. Roswell decides to see a psychiatrist (Michael Fox) in the hope that the gentleman can identify his problem and somehow straighten him out. Instead, the psychiatrist takes old Roswell down the wrong road and shows him how to tune everyone else out of his life. At first, Roswell thinks this is the perfect cure for his problem. It's just "mind over matter" he convinces himself. Unfortunately, Roswell's "cure" has some serious ramifications. He ends up tuning everyone and everything out permanently and is forced to live in his own self-inflicted vacuum of total silence.
Nothing special about this episode. "Sounds and Silences" involves a simple and standard Twilight Zone theme (i.e. a bad guy getting what he justly deserves) that has been done far better and with much more originality than in this story. Richard Donner, who went on to a distinguished directorial career in Hollywood, handles his job here with perfunctory skill. McGiver gives it his all playing Flemington, but the character is too mean-spirited and one-dimensional for him to inject any life into. It's good to see Penny Singleton, however. Besides playing Blondie in the 1940's, viewers might also remember her as the voice of Jane Jetson.
Nothing special about this episode. "Sounds and Silences" involves a simple and standard Twilight Zone theme (i.e. a bad guy getting what he justly deserves) that has been done far better and with much more originality than in this story. Richard Donner, who went on to a distinguished directorial career in Hollywood, handles his job here with perfunctory skill. McGiver gives it his all playing Flemington, but the character is too mean-spirited and one-dimensional for him to inject any life into. It's good to see Penny Singleton, however. Besides playing Blondie in the 1940's, viewers might also remember her as the voice of Jane Jetson.
Silly, enjoyable..but VERY tired.
lrrap16 August 2019
Warning: Spoilers
John McGiver really cracks me up in this episode--but his performance is totally caricatured and cartoon-y. Penny Singleton (of moviedom's "BLONDIE" fame) is several cuts above the standard harried housewives of TZ's latter seasons, and the arguments between her and her blowhard husband are quite funny, overblown as they are.
Also in the cast is "Billy" Benedict as the office worker with the horn-rimmed glasses, whose Hollywood career goes WAY back, including his tenure as a member of the "Dead End Kids". So there's a lot to enjoy in this show. (Oddly, two of the four office workers do not receive any screen credit, even though they are fairly prominently featured; they have not been identified here on IMDB).
The problem with this show, however, is writer fatigue; it's just another re-tread script that Serling churned out to keep the show going in its final months. So.... John McGiver loves loud noise, alienates everyone around him, goes to a shrink, and ends up not being able to hear anything...just like Mickey Rooney ("Last Night of a Jockey") who hates being short, and ends up being a giant, trashing the miniature prop furniture for the show's big finale.
Director Donner does a very good job keeping things zipping along, but there's only so much he-- or anyone else involved in the production-- can do to overcome such a tired, predictable, ONE-NOTE script. LR
Also in the cast is "Billy" Benedict as the office worker with the horn-rimmed glasses, whose Hollywood career goes WAY back, including his tenure as a member of the "Dead End Kids". So there's a lot to enjoy in this show. (Oddly, two of the four office workers do not receive any screen credit, even though they are fairly prominently featured; they have not been identified here on IMDB).
The problem with this show, however, is writer fatigue; it's just another re-tread script that Serling churned out to keep the show going in its final months. So.... John McGiver loves loud noise, alienates everyone around him, goes to a shrink, and ends up not being able to hear anything...just like Mickey Rooney ("Last Night of a Jockey") who hates being short, and ends up being a giant, trashing the miniature prop furniture for the show's big finale.
Director Donner does a very good job keeping things zipping along, but there's only so much he-- or anyone else involved in the production-- can do to overcome such a tired, predictable, ONE-NOTE script. LR
full of sound and fury signifying nothing
darrenpearce11116 November 2013
This could have been the abyss of the greatest TV show ever (but A Thing About Machines is worse). Simply too painful to watch. Yet another grossly unsympathetic man with a silly name, but this one is bad enough to make Mr Bevis or Julius Moomer look like great icons. A wretchedly silly and boring entry. I've never seen such an unconvincing or downright bad central performance. Every line he struts and frets fails to reach the heights of ham or cod acting. I am aware that John McGiver was an otherwise very accomplished character actor, having seen him in many films. Just as I'm aware that Rod Serling was a great writer, but this utter rubbish is best forgotten.
Don't be like me and go looking for a message in this trash. Please look elsewhere in the Twilight Zone.
Don't be like me and go looking for a message in this trash. Please look elsewhere in the Twilight Zone.
"Sounds and Silences" was quite a funny enough ep of the "Twilight Zone" because of lead John McGiver and also Penny Singleton
tavm3 August 2015
While I've seen plenty of "Twilight Zone" eps as a teen, this was the first time I've seen this particular one. John McGiver plays a bombastic boss at a model ship building. He shouts at his employees and plays his records of actual sounds of ship battles full blast. His wife (Penny Singleton) can no longer stand him and resolves to leave. I'll stop there and just say director Richard Donner really does make fine use of volume and sound in making a funny take on one man's madness, ditto author Rod Serling on the dialogue he covers. Oh, and it's also fascinating seeing a much-older Ms. Singleton doing something outside of her familiar "Blondie" persona. This was one of her few on screen roles after that movie series ended. She had voiced Jane Jetson on the animated series "The Jetsons" for one season a couple of years back. But because that show's popularity grew when that very season was rerun in both syndication and on network Saturday mornings for a couple of decades, she and the rest of the voice cast would return for more seasons during the late '80s, culminating in the feature film version in 1990 which would be Ms. Singleton's last time doing such. Her final live action appearance was in an ep of "Murder She Wrote" in 1986. She'd pass away on November 12, 2003.
McGiver turns the obnoxiousness up to 11.
BA_Harrison18 April 2022
Noisy nautical nut Roswell G. Flemington (John McGiver) joins Horace Ford (Season 4, Episode 15) and McNulty (Episode 4, Season 5) on my short list of Twilight Zone characters so irritating and obnoxious that I doubt I will ever watch their episodes again.
Roswell is the owner of a successful model ship company; he runs a tight ship, so tight that it's a wonder that anyone puts up with his insensitive boorish behaviour. Roswell's wife (Penny Singleton) has finally had enough of him and packs her bags, leaving him to listen to his sea battle sound effects records all by himself.
One night, Roswell is awoken by the ear-splitting sound of water... dripping from a tap. Other normally bearable noises become a deafening cacophony for the man. A visit to a psychiatrist convinces Roswell that his condition can be cured by mind over matter; sure enough, by concentrating, he is able to blot out the sound, but finds himself in a world of silence instead.
Director Richard Donner (The Omen, Superman The Movie, Lethal Weapon) proved to me that he could handle comedy with Scrooged (1988), but back in '64 he still had a lot to learn about making his audience chuckle: this episode of The Twilight Zone is even less likely to generate laughs than his previous awful effort, From Agnes - with Love (Season 5, Episode 20), which is saying something.
1/10.
Roswell is the owner of a successful model ship company; he runs a tight ship, so tight that it's a wonder that anyone puts up with his insensitive boorish behaviour. Roswell's wife (Penny Singleton) has finally had enough of him and packs her bags, leaving him to listen to his sea battle sound effects records all by himself.
One night, Roswell is awoken by the ear-splitting sound of water... dripping from a tap. Other normally bearable noises become a deafening cacophony for the man. A visit to a psychiatrist convinces Roswell that his condition can be cured by mind over matter; sure enough, by concentrating, he is able to blot out the sound, but finds himself in a world of silence instead.
Director Richard Donner (The Omen, Superman The Movie, Lethal Weapon) proved to me that he could handle comedy with Scrooged (1988), but back in '64 he still had a lot to learn about making his audience chuckle: this episode of The Twilight Zone is even less likely to generate laughs than his previous awful effort, From Agnes - with Love (Season 5, Episode 20), which is saying something.
1/10.
Best written episode ever!
UniqueParticle16 July 2019
The best dialogue and sound effects; topping more than most Twilight Zone's before it! A man's hearing basically gets enhanced like Super-man after hearing a war record of original sound effects and the wife can't hear a phone call in the beginning so she decides to break it even though he wouldn't turn it down. Sounds after the fact get autisticly louder without being one and he has to go a psychiatrist to fix it or at least he hopes... I won't spoil that.
This is actually powerful episode and more sad than funny
lbowdls8 April 2024
I seriously don't understand the low rating review scores here! As this is a powerful episode of - as mentioned at the end by Serling - poetic justice. But to me behind it is a sad life, a life that could turn anyone over the edge, no difference to how certain abusive upbringings can cause people to be abusers of some kind or get mental illness. In this story it is both.
Oh and to the reviewer on here who says he doesn't remember John McGyver ever playing anyone pompous and abrasive. What? That was his stock and trade, that how he acted in most roles. So he absolutely suits this role too.
People are harsh on this episode as it's got a message and come up-pence and also unfortunate consequences.
Oh and to the reviewer on here who says he doesn't remember John McGyver ever playing anyone pompous and abrasive. What? That was his stock and trade, that how he acted in most roles. So he absolutely suits this role too.
People are harsh on this episode as it's got a message and come up-pence and also unfortunate consequences.
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