![]() For example, Maloney seems like a ticking time bomb from the moment her husband announces his plans, and there’s a nice bit towards the end when the police come tangibly close to deducing the murder weapon, literally discussing its merits. In fairness, while the bulk of the episode is carried by a combination of Geddes and the rather interesting method of execution, Hitchcock still manages to wrangle a decent amount of suspense out of his set-up. It’s hard not to understand why Mary lashed out like she did, and to hope that she might get away with it. “You know as well as I do that our friend here used to fool around quite a bit,” one tells the other. One of the investigating officers inquires if the police chief could have been killed by a woman. You know he’s a horrible human being when his co-workers openly discuss his flaws over his still-warm dead body. It seems quite possible the only reason he thinks she should keep the child is because he just can’t be bothered. He promises there will be money to take care of her – but not too much, you understand. He announces that he is cheating on her, and intends to leave her, while she’s pregnant. It helps that her husband is a complete douche, to the point where the audience seems quite on-side with her eventual response to his behaviour. “I couldn’t let you go without getting you something to eat.” It’s very hard not to pity her. “I’ll get your supper, darling,” she says. Eventually she opts to continue as usual, perhaps because she doesn’t know exactly how to respond to his declaration of intent. When her husband demands a divorce, with the news that he is seeing another woman, Maloney just stands there and soaks it in for a moment. Geddes plays Maloney as a woman who seems to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown. She does an absolutely wonderful job here as the devoted housewife who finally has enough of her deadbeat husband, making us feel completely sympathetic towards her even as she manages to skilfully evade justice. Hitchcock enthusiasts will note that, like many of the leads in the episodes he directed, she also worked with the director. She would be familiar to an entire (later) generation for he role in the soap opera Dallas. ![]() Hitchcock’s lead here is Barbara Bel Geddes. Indeed, Hitchcock doesn’t have much to do except film Dahl’s script, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t a wonderfully enjoyable little tale. So ingenious, in fact, that another character in another episode ( Cheap is Cheap) would actually acknowledge it as a very clever method of dispatching somebody, were you so inclined. It is the story of how Mary Maloney attempts to get away with the murder of her husband, with a rather ingenious twist to it. Lamb to the Slaughter is a relatively light tale. ![]() Dahl contributed the much-loved Man From The South, featuring Peter Lorre and Steve McQueen, but he also offered this wonderful little murder tale about an especially inventive killing. Robert Altman, Sydney Pollack and William Friedkin were among the other directors to work on the series, and author Roald Dahl contributed some episodes as well. That said, there was just much talent behind the camera. Obviously the director himself was the host and directed seventeen episodes, but he also had a star-studded cast on hand for a great many installments. It’s amazing to think of the talent involved in some of these Alfred Hitchcock Presents episodes. It’s a very worthwhile cause and you can donate here. The “For the Love of Film” blogathon this year is raising money to keep one of Hitchcock’s earlier works, The White Shadow (which he wrote, edited, designed and assistant-directed), available on-line and streaming for free. I’ll be looking at some of the episodes of the classic show that he directed. As part of the “For the Love of Film” blogathon, I’ll be taking a look at Alfred Hitchcock’s contributions to his celebrated anthology series Alfred Hitchcock Presents.
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