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The original fused science fiction, horror, drama, urban myths and humour, now Jordan Peele is the narrator and the imagery is not shot in black and white, writes Phumlani S Langa.
The original show was a cult classic television production that fused science fiction, horror, drama, urban myths and bits of humour. It had a long run and some of you may have caught the many re-runs. It was like Outer Limits, but way ahead of that.
A host introduced the viewer to a person experiencing weird things that could only occur in The Twilight Zone. That idea remains the same, but now Jordan Peele is the narrator and the imagery is not shot in black and white.
In one of the episodes, a man finds a tape player on a plane. The audio tells the story of what’s happening on the flight as it is happening, which strikes the man as odd. He uses the tape to determine who some people on the plane are. To his dismay, the voice then says that the plane will disappear without a trace at 11.15pm, which leaves him with a short time to combat this fate.
In another episode, a woman is on a road trip with her son through some racially charged countryside. She records their trip on an old school camcorder which she eventually realises has magical powers. If she hits rewind on the camera, her life rewinds. The story cleverly works in the plight of African Americans and police brutality. The mother and son are plagued by a racist cop who finds them no matter how many times she hits rewind and regardless of the lengths she goes to to escape. A bit like a horror-inspired Groundhog Day.
Each episode seems to get better than the last; it is like a suave rebuttal to the popular Black Mirror. The Twilight Zone doesn’t rely on tying the story into technology; it draws on any urban myth, making stronger narratives. You’ll be hooked from the first episode, The Comedian, featuring a struggling comic who makes a deal with a stage legend, who gives him the secret to getting laughs. He pays a terrible price for his fame but the execution makes the weird plot seem easy to fathom.
Available on Showmax.
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