The Twilight Zone (2002): The Monsters Are on Maple Street

Air Date

Wednesday February 19, 2003

Production Code

130

Top Episodes

• It's Still a Good Life
• Mr. Motivation
• Fair Warning
• Night Route
• Cradle of Darkness
• The Collection
• Into the Light
• The Pharaoh's Curse
• The Executions of Grady Finch
• Sanctuary

•  

  8 Great

  A perciveed terrorist threat by an ill-informed community results in great paranoia hide show

  This episode does a good job of highlighting how in today sociaty when people are leaving in fear can easily be turned into witch hunt. It shows how reason seems to be trumped by fear and how easy it is to convince poeple into becoming monsters. As the narrator says at the end when we dont find the enemy we make one ourselves in order to fill like we have a level of control over things, though i believe this to be true this episode how ever comes up shot in its conclusion because in the end we never know who the real monster is, whether it is the military for not stoping the situation in time or the community for act out of paranoia

  Do you agree?

    0 0

  Report Abuse

  Quachett Added Aug 9, 2009 All my reviews
•  

  4 Poor

  Pointless remake hide show

  Sorry, but this rewrite of Serling's classic script just doesn't work. For one thing, Andrew McCarthy doesn't play his character as particularly sympathetic. Willever's character is a one-dimensional bully. The rest of the mob except for the somewhat quirky Phyllis are pretty forgettable.
  
  The rewrite folks seem to have forgotten that the title refers to _Monsters_. The original not only had aliens as the source of the problems, but the neighbors were paranoid about aliens. Maybe the rewriters thought in these "modern" days that aliens wouldn't have the same resonance. Maybe they just wanted to make a comment about terrorism and the War therein.
  
  This episode shares more with another original TZ episode: The Shelter. Like that episode, this one is non-fantastical and it has everyone turning into a jerk.
  
  This remake also suffers the flaw of the original Monsters... in that they somehow try to portray each neighborhood as an island totally separate from the neighboring blocks. Just hop over the backyard fence, folks.
  
  Overall, there seems little point in this remake. Unlike the remade Eye of the Beholder, they tried to do something different. They just didn't make much difference.

  Do you agree?

    4 4

  Report Abuse

  Gislef Added Sep 17, 2008 All my reviews
•  

  8.9 Great

  Meaningful Paranormal? hide show

  Great episode, and it shows a meaning too. This was the first Twilight episode I've ever seen since my ex Language Arts teacher showed it to our class. And it was a good episode, just thought the acting needed a little bit more work. Maybe they should have let them rehearse their lines more? Anyways, the names are so confusing, but the message is real. It's hard to explain the message this episode gives us so I'll try to put words together to make sense. The message is that if a disaster happens, we go around blaming other innocent people instead of just helping each other. Violence breaks loose.
  
  I think I got my words right. Maybe a prolific user can review better.
  
  I recommend this episode for everyone because of the message and what all.

  Do you agree?

    0 1

  Report Abuse

  joeyissoweird Added Mar 31, 2008 All my reviews

• Guest Cast

  • Kristi Angus Holly Marshall
  • Enid-Raye Adams Phyllis
  • Brody Smith Jason
  • Russell Jung Simon
  • Peter Williams (IV) Tyrone
  • Andrew McCarthy Will Marshall
  • Titus Welliver Dylan

• Consulting Producers

  • Zack Stentz Consulting Producer
  • Frederick Rappaport n/a
  • Brent V. Friedman n/a
  • Ashley Edward Miller Consulting Producer

• Creators

  • Rod Serling n/a

• Castings

  • Holly Powell n/a
  • Elizabeth Melcher n/a

• Main Title Theme (Written/Performed)S

  • Jonathan Davis n/a
Episode Cast and Crew Details »

• When Marshall is walking up the path to see the new neighbors, we can see a white car parked in the drive next to the house. Earlier, when everyone first came out of their houses, there was no car parked there, and we just found out that the cars don't work. [edit]
• At the neighborhood meeting when all the phones go off, and the power goes out, we see the window shatter and the punch bowl break. When the camera pans around after the shaking, we catch a glimpse of the punch bowl, fully intact, on the table, then see that the window is fine too. [edit]

• A remake and updating of the original TZ episode of the almost-same name. [edit]

• Will: (to his wife) You want to fit in? With people like Phyllis who's afraid to do anything unless it's approved by a military committee, or Dylan who's afraid his sperm count will actually drop if he used his brain for five minutes? [edit]
• Host: (opening narration) Maple Street, U.S.A. A suburban community on a pleasant Saturday afternoon. But in a few moments everything will change for the residents of Maple Street as they discover that the monsters they fear may already be among them. [edit]
• Host: (Closing Narration) It isn't enough for a sole voice of reason to exist. In this time of uncertainty we're so sure that villains lurk around every corner that we will create them ourselves if we can't find them. For while fear may keep us vigilant, it's also fear that tears us apart. A fear that sadly exists only too often outside The Twilight Zone. [edit]

• Jason: This is just like ID4.
  Referring to the blockbuster movie Independence Day (1996), starring Will Smith, Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, and Randy Quaid. The movie features aliens that invade Earth. [edit]