Of course this topic will sound very familiar with many audiences. Two sisters live together and the youngest is attracted by a young man, the gardener. Her elder sister - who curiously looks like her mother !!! - is very reluctant to this, as you can guess. She doesn't want to lose her sister and remain alone. The playing is maybe a bit overplaying from time to time. But the overall scheme is not badly done though dejà vu for many ones.
2 Reviews
Outdated even for 1950s television.
planktonrules12 September 2021
When "Suspense" began production in 1949, it was near the beginning of American television. Because of that, I look past many of the show's shortcomings....at least at first. However, by the time "House of Masks" came out in 1952, the show looked ancient compared to many other shows, such as "Playhouse 90" and other anthology programs. The heavy use of the organ (especially to over-punctuate moods) seemed heavy-handed now and the acting was pretty much over-the-top....and for 1952 it really seemed outdated.
In "House of Masks", Anna (Geraldine Fitzgerald) is a woman whose sanity and judgment are questionable. Her sister is worried that she's hired a gardener (William Redfield) who seems to be taking advantage of her financially AND there are suspicions that he's murdered two women already and Anna might be #3. What's next?
The acting is THE problem here. Fitzgerald and Redfield act like they are acting. In other words, neither seemed like people but are acting like they are on stage...projecting instead of behaving like people. While the show often was stagey, here it's much worse and the show seems so creaky and outdated.
In "House of Masks", Anna (Geraldine Fitzgerald) is a woman whose sanity and judgment are questionable. Her sister is worried that she's hired a gardener (William Redfield) who seems to be taking advantage of her financially AND there are suspicions that he's murdered two women already and Anna might be #3. What's next?
The acting is THE problem here. Fitzgerald and Redfield act like they are acting. In other words, neither seemed like people but are acting like they are on stage...projecting instead of behaving like people. While the show often was stagey, here it's much worse and the show seems so creaky and outdated.
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