The Devil's Ticket
- Episode aired Apr 18, 1961
- 1h
IMDb RATING
8.4/10
259
YOUR RATING
An artist "pawns" his soul to the devil and must retrieve it by painting a portrait of another person whose soul will be exchanged for his.An artist "pawns" his soul to the devil and must retrieve it by painting a portrait of another person whose soul will be exchanged for his.An artist "pawns" his soul to the devil and must retrieve it by painting a portrait of another person whose soul will be exchanged for his.
Photos
Paul Bradley
- Art Gallery Patron
- (uncredited)
Steve Carruthers
- Art Gallery Patron
- (uncredited)
George DeNormand
- Art Gallery Patron
- (uncredited)
Bess Flowers
- Art Gallery Patron
- (uncredited)
Edwin Rochelle
- Waiter
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaHector Vane's pawn ticket is redeemable at sundown on 5th April. The writer of the screenplay Robert Bloch's birthday was 5th April.
Featured review
Here's why I think this might be the BEST "Thriller" of all....
OK---why does Macdonald Carey just stand there and let Patricia Medina destroy the new painting, which more-or-less damns him to eternal torment?
Other than this one directorial mis-cue (yeah, maybe he's so shocked by her hysteria that he CAN'T move..), "the Devil's Ticket" is, in my opinion, as close to perfection as "Thriller" gets. Bloch's script is superbly structured and paced, the direction is first-rate, and the performances, especially John Emery's, are outstanding. I feel that there is not a wasted frame in this film, which seems to improve with each viewing. Yes, it's the first "Thriller" I ever saw (on 4/18/61) but no, I don't feel that my judgement is affected by sentiment, since I never regarded it as one of the really cool "spooky" shows; but upon re-encountering it in the mid '80's, I realized that this episode is practically flawless in its storytelling, both written and visual.
Emery strikes an uncanny balance (thanks to Bloch's writing,): courtly and polite, sly and amusingly witty...with a nasty hostility lurking just beneath the surface. Here's a "Thriller" that contains comparatively little of the gloom of the great horror episodes; much of the settings have a brightness that reflects Hector Vane's new-found social status, which somehow makes the creeping terror all the more exciting....as the months, weeks, and days tick away while Hector seems to be getting NOWHERE; his life continues to spin out of control, as he desperately attempts to outwit Satan himself.
The final encounter between Carey and Emery, played out in an upscale bedroom of all places, is masterfully directed and played. And whereas many may have guessed that Vane paints the Devil, how many anticipate Bloch's FINAL twist? Anyone who guessed it back in '61 would have been a bit too clever to be entertained by "Thriller".
Incidentally, John Emery bore a distinct resemblance to John Barrymore, even down to the famous profile. Emery was actually married for a while to Tallulah Bankhead--an experience that he probably drew on when preparing to play the Prince of Hades.
Special mention to Robert Cornthwaite who, as usual, acquits himself superbly as Spengler, the pawnbroker-- a nifty one-man mini-drama to set this engrossing drama/black-comedy in motion.
But what's with that '50's space-age, ICBM-tipped, double-barreled brassiere that Patricia Medina wears in Act 3? Holy Cow, Hector, watch out...you'll put 'yer eye out on that thing!
Morton Stevens' score is excellent-- strings, piano, harp, and occasional percussion. I especially like that ghostly wooden rapping sound that punctuates the gloom of the pawnshop; and notice how the low strings keep repeating that mysterious rising 5-note motif during this scene, which soon is transformed into a "high-society" waltz, complete with cocktail piano, as we are whisked into the montage that depicts Hector's rise to the top; but as the euphoria fades, there's John Emery perched on the stool in his pawnshop, diligently paging through his ledger. GREAT STUFF from the guys who gave us "Thriller"!
And how bizarre that Morton Steven's grand, lounge-like waltz--which so effectively underscored the sequence as Hector painted his wife's portrait--- now accompanies the closing credits, after we have just witnessed him get fried. There's something just a tad repulsive about it--in a GOOD way.
"Devil's Ticket" might be the underdog/best of all "Thrillers". LR
Other than this one directorial mis-cue (yeah, maybe he's so shocked by her hysteria that he CAN'T move..), "the Devil's Ticket" is, in my opinion, as close to perfection as "Thriller" gets. Bloch's script is superbly structured and paced, the direction is first-rate, and the performances, especially John Emery's, are outstanding. I feel that there is not a wasted frame in this film, which seems to improve with each viewing. Yes, it's the first "Thriller" I ever saw (on 4/18/61) but no, I don't feel that my judgement is affected by sentiment, since I never regarded it as one of the really cool "spooky" shows; but upon re-encountering it in the mid '80's, I realized that this episode is practically flawless in its storytelling, both written and visual.
Emery strikes an uncanny balance (thanks to Bloch's writing,): courtly and polite, sly and amusingly witty...with a nasty hostility lurking just beneath the surface. Here's a "Thriller" that contains comparatively little of the gloom of the great horror episodes; much of the settings have a brightness that reflects Hector Vane's new-found social status, which somehow makes the creeping terror all the more exciting....as the months, weeks, and days tick away while Hector seems to be getting NOWHERE; his life continues to spin out of control, as he desperately attempts to outwit Satan himself.
The final encounter between Carey and Emery, played out in an upscale bedroom of all places, is masterfully directed and played. And whereas many may have guessed that Vane paints the Devil, how many anticipate Bloch's FINAL twist? Anyone who guessed it back in '61 would have been a bit too clever to be entertained by "Thriller".
Incidentally, John Emery bore a distinct resemblance to John Barrymore, even down to the famous profile. Emery was actually married for a while to Tallulah Bankhead--an experience that he probably drew on when preparing to play the Prince of Hades.
Special mention to Robert Cornthwaite who, as usual, acquits himself superbly as Spengler, the pawnbroker-- a nifty one-man mini-drama to set this engrossing drama/black-comedy in motion.
But what's with that '50's space-age, ICBM-tipped, double-barreled brassiere that Patricia Medina wears in Act 3? Holy Cow, Hector, watch out...you'll put 'yer eye out on that thing!
Morton Stevens' score is excellent-- strings, piano, harp, and occasional percussion. I especially like that ghostly wooden rapping sound that punctuates the gloom of the pawnshop; and notice how the low strings keep repeating that mysterious rising 5-note motif during this scene, which soon is transformed into a "high-society" waltz, complete with cocktail piano, as we are whisked into the montage that depicts Hector's rise to the top; but as the euphoria fades, there's John Emery perched on the stool in his pawnshop, diligently paging through his ledger. GREAT STUFF from the guys who gave us "Thriller"!
And how bizarre that Morton Steven's grand, lounge-like waltz--which so effectively underscored the sequence as Hector painted his wife's portrait--- now accompanies the closing credits, after we have just witnessed him get fried. There's something just a tad repulsive about it--in a GOOD way.
"Devil's Ticket" might be the underdog/best of all "Thrillers". LR
helpful•30
- lrrap
- Mar 28, 2020
Details
- Runtime1 hour
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.33 : 1
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