Synopsis
Out of Your Own Tomorrow... Out of Time and Space a Fearsome Power!
A college professor, left alone by his wife for the weekend, discovers his new TV set is not only alive, but determined to take control of his entire life.
The Twonky
1953 Directed by Arch Oboler
Cast
Hans Conried William H. Lynn Gloria Blondell Janet Warren Edwin Max Al Jarvis Evelyn Beresford Norman Fields Bob Jellison Stephen Roberts Connie Marshall William Phipps Bennie Washington Lenore Kingston Alice Backes Joe Hawthorne Charles Phillips Gayle Pace Jackson Wheeler Jack Rourke Vic Perrin Florence Ravenel Buddy Roosevelt Brick Sullivan Trilby Conried
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Releases by Date
Theatrical
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USANR
Releases by Country
USA
10 Jun 1953
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This film (written and directed by Arch Oboler) is quite bonkers and really lifted my spirits tonight.
Character actor Hans Conried, the voice of Disney's Captain Hook, takes on a fascist robot from the future disguised as a walking TV set.
It helps him shave and cures hangovers but it also wants to stamp out individualism and independent thought. Really bizarre. And really fun.
I was sad to hear about the passing of B-Movie Cast host Vince Rotolo today- so I decided to check out one of his favorite movies as a tribute.
I've been following the show since 2007 and it really feels like losing a close friend because I've spent hours listening to him over the last decade.
RIP Vince
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By 1953, the television had invaded a significant percentage of American homes, but in many ways it was still quite novel.
Kerry West's (Hans Conried) home is likewise invaded but by a Twonky, a television lookalike and stand-in, who turns out to be a shapeshifting robot from the future. The Twonky tips its hand by lighting cigarettes, shaving his face, shining his shoes, tying his tie. What sort of television does that! (It also prefers marches to Mozart.)
West's chum, Coach Trout (Billy Lynn) dopes out the situation for him, and warns that this invader from the future is ultimately a fascist entity that will numb the mind into obedience so that the machines can run the world. Those who…
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I’d be okay with a TV that can walk, light my bong and produce passable counterfeit money in a pinch.
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I was actually trying to look up The Two Popes, but then Letterboxd divulged the existence of The Twonky, and how could I refuse? The Twonky! A film about a George C. Scott doppelgänger whose life is taken over by his sentient TV set! It lights his cigarettes! It shaves him! It attacks anyone who gets in its way! And is also weirdly adorable?!
You have to see it.
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I love the title! It’s just so fun to say. Twonky twonk, Twonky.
Things aren’t as they seem. And things aren’t as they should be. And things aren’t making sense and neither are the characters. Things are down right wonky and it’s great. Cool 1950’s special effects. The Twonky’s squiggly legs give it so much life! Drinking more coffee is a sensible option for dealing with a twonky. I think I’ll have another cup.
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The plot synopsis for The Twonky reads as follows:
A college professor discovers his new TV set is not only alive, but determined to take control of his entire life.
In 1953, this film was considered sci-fi. But as they years pass, this film is becoming more and more based in reality with our smart TVs, cellphones, and computers. Outside of this allegory, this film is fairly basic and forgettable. However, I may start calling my smart TV The Twonky.
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For a brief moment, I thought the television set had murdered somebody. Straight-up vaporized them.
I don’t know how to write my stunned silence in the form of a review. If I could, you’d be reading, like, ten minutes of nothing.
YouTube: https://youtu.be/eMIo5Yv0YgI
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A very silly, stupid movie about an animate, sentient, omnipotent TV that walks around and controls a poor man's life, placing limits on everything he tries to do or say. Basically it's an hour plus of Hans Conried doing his whiny, enraged routine just like how he played Captain Hook. The effects are also silly but effective. The TV is a console of sorts so it walks around on table-like legs and it emits laser beams to blast things out of hands and to levitate and manipulate objects, and also to control minds. I'm sure had I seen a clearer print there would have been visible wires, but watching it all fuzzy on YouTube, the effects looked seamless. It's all as dumb as it sounds and really not worth seeking out unless you're into mid-20th Century sitcom-style humor. I can take it or leave it but this one didn't do it for me.
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