- 2 days ago
“Judgment Night” is the tenth episode of the original The Twilight Zone (1959) first season, premiering on December 4, 1959. Penned by Rod Serling and directed by John Brahm, this suspenseful psychological drama unfolds aboard a British cargo liner where a mysterious passenger begins to sense an impending catastrophe.
The story centers on Capt. Carl Lanser, portrayed by Nehemiah Persoff, a brooding and secretive man haunted by premonitions of doom. As the ship sails through wartime waters, he grows increasingly anxious—certain that the vessel is destined for destruction from enemy attack. Despite mounting tension, the ship’s Captain Wilbur (played by Ben Wright) and crew members dismiss Lanser’s fears as paranoia.
Lt. Mueller (James Franciscus) and others onboard begin noticing odd patterns: unexplained crew absences, odd electrical disturbances, and passengers exhibiting signs of dread. Hugh Sanders as Jerry Potter senses that something is amiss long before formal alarms are raised. Meanwhile, fellow passengers like Barbara Stanley (Deirdre Owen) exchange nervous glances as unsettling coincidences escalate.
Lanser's mounting terror accelerates when crew members realize they are hurtling toward potential annihilation. His suspicion of a Nazi submarine exposed ship-wide vulnerabilities. Rod Serling’s narration bookends the story with poetic reflection: glimpses into human fear, fate’s inevitability, and the hidden moral consequences of ignoring intuition.
“Judgment Night” stands out as a tightly wound, claustrophobic tale anchored by Persoff’s intense performance. The confined setting of the cargo liner becomes a character in itself, enhancing suspense and urgency. Serling’s writing explores the thin line between rational caution and haunting premonition—delivering one of the series’ early explorations of foreboding intuition.
Fans and critics recognize this episode for its emotional tension and moral ambiguity. It challenges viewers to ask: What if warnings go unheeded? What price is paid when dread is dismissed as delusion? Even decades later, the episode resonates as a parable about judgment and destiny aboard a seemingly ordinary ship.
For Dailymotion distribution, use the title “Judgment Night (1959) – The Twilight Zone Episode 10”. Select dramatic thumbnail visuals—perhaps Lanser in shadow, worried officers on deck, or a submarine silhouette. Combined with the tags above and this rich description, this upload will engage audiences seeking classic suspense, Cold War–era sci-fi, or emotional anthology storytelling.
Whether you're drawn to existential tension or vintage anthology drama, “Judgment Night” offers a gripping portrayal of fate, fear, and forewarning on the open sea—classic Twilight Zone style.
Nehemiah Persoff as Capt. Carl Lanser – the tense, brooding passenger with a hidden secret
Ben Wright as Captain Wilbur – the ship’s captain caught in unfolding suspense
The story centers on Capt. Carl Lanser, portrayed by Nehemiah Persoff, a brooding and secretive man haunted by premonitions of doom. As the ship sails through wartime waters, he grows increasingly anxious—certain that the vessel is destined for destruction from enemy attack. Despite mounting tension, the ship’s Captain Wilbur (played by Ben Wright) and crew members dismiss Lanser’s fears as paranoia.
Lt. Mueller (James Franciscus) and others onboard begin noticing odd patterns: unexplained crew absences, odd electrical disturbances, and passengers exhibiting signs of dread. Hugh Sanders as Jerry Potter senses that something is amiss long before formal alarms are raised. Meanwhile, fellow passengers like Barbara Stanley (Deirdre Owen) exchange nervous glances as unsettling coincidences escalate.
Lanser's mounting terror accelerates when crew members realize they are hurtling toward potential annihilation. His suspicion of a Nazi submarine exposed ship-wide vulnerabilities. Rod Serling’s narration bookends the story with poetic reflection: glimpses into human fear, fate’s inevitability, and the hidden moral consequences of ignoring intuition.
“Judgment Night” stands out as a tightly wound, claustrophobic tale anchored by Persoff’s intense performance. The confined setting of the cargo liner becomes a character in itself, enhancing suspense and urgency. Serling’s writing explores the thin line between rational caution and haunting premonition—delivering one of the series’ early explorations of foreboding intuition.
Fans and critics recognize this episode for its emotional tension and moral ambiguity. It challenges viewers to ask: What if warnings go unheeded? What price is paid when dread is dismissed as delusion? Even decades later, the episode resonates as a parable about judgment and destiny aboard a seemingly ordinary ship.
For Dailymotion distribution, use the title “Judgment Night (1959) – The Twilight Zone Episode 10”. Select dramatic thumbnail visuals—perhaps Lanser in shadow, worried officers on deck, or a submarine silhouette. Combined with the tags above and this rich description, this upload will engage audiences seeking classic suspense, Cold War–era sci-fi, or emotional anthology storytelling.
Whether you're drawn to existential tension or vintage anthology drama, “Judgment Night” offers a gripping portrayal of fate, fear, and forewarning on the open sea—classic Twilight Zone style.
Nehemiah Persoff as Capt. Carl Lanser – the tense, brooding passenger with a hidden secret
Ben Wright as Captain Wilbur – the ship’s captain caught in unfolding suspense
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Short filmTranscript
00:00you're traveling through another dimension a dimension not only of sight and sound but of
00:14mind a journey into a wondrous land whose boundaries are that of imagination that's
00:19the signpost up ahead your next stop the twilight zone
00:3012 o'clock noon an ordinary scene in ordinary city lunchtime for thousands of ordinary people
00:44to most of them this hour will be a rest a pleasant break in the day's routine
00:49to most but not all to edward hall time is an enemy and the hour to come is a matter of life
00:57and death
01:27mister what's the matter you seek
01:34what's the matter you seek
01:53we've been expecting you mr. Hall
01:55we'll go right in
02:02hello mr. Hall
02:12what's the matter are you ill
02:16no
02:17no
02:18i'm tired
02:19oh
02:20you better rest
02:21over here mr. Hall
02:23oh
02:24no
02:25oh
02:26oh
02:27oh
02:28oh
02:30it's
02:31very
02:44in
02:45I thought you said you were tired.
03:07I am.
03:08I'm the tiredest man in the world.
03:11You all know how many hours I've been awake?
03:1387 hours.
03:16Almost four days and nights.
03:17And you can't go to sleep, is that it?
03:20No, doctor, not can't. I mustn't.
03:23I mustn't go to sleep because if I do, I'll never wake up.
03:35Thanks.
03:36Do you mind if I walk around a bit?
03:38It's the only way I can stay awake.
03:39Stand on your head if you think it'll help.
03:43What's funny?
03:44You, uh, monsieur, you're a psychiatrist?
03:47Why do you ask?
03:48I don't know. I guess I expected something different.
03:51Like an old man with a white beard and a German accent?
03:55Maybe.
03:55I know.
03:57It's what everybody expects and they're always disappointed.
04:00I've often thought of wearing a disguise.
04:04Now, feel more comfortable?
04:06Look, doctor, you can't help me.
04:11I'm just wasting your time.
04:12You sure of that?
04:13Yeah.
04:14Why'd you come to me?
04:15Well, it was Fred Jackson's idea. He's my regular doctor.
04:17I know. He called me.
04:19What did he say?
04:20Not much.
04:22Your name?
04:23Edward Hall.
04:25Age 35, occupation draftsman, single, heart condition, no history of mental disease.
04:30That's it.
04:32Now, you want to tell me the rest?
04:33No, no. Forget it.
04:39Okay.
04:47Mr. Hall.
04:51Now, you really think running away will do you any good?
04:55Now, don't get me wrong.
04:56Sometimes running away is the best answer.
04:58But I don't know that yours is that sort of problem.
05:03Maybe it is and maybe it isn't.
05:07Well, you do what you like.
05:14You promise you won't put me in a straitjacket?
05:17I don't promise anything.
05:19Okay.
05:22Okay, it doesn't make any difference.
05:28Can I open this?
05:40Quite a drop.
05:45Now, Mr. Hall, I'll have to close the window.
05:50I only wanted some air.
05:52Well, I'll turn a conditioner up.
05:54It works best with the windows closed.
05:56Did you think I'd jump?
06:00Well, you might have.
06:02Not a chance.
06:03I want to live.
06:03That's my problem.
06:05Huh?
06:07All right, Mr. Hall.
06:08Suppose you tell me all about it, everything.
06:12Start anyway.
06:15Okay.
06:16But I'm warning you.
06:17You're going to think I lost my marbles.
06:19No.
06:20Marbles can be found, Mr. Hall.
06:23Go on.
06:26Did you ever look at this picture?
06:37I mean, really look at it.
06:40I think so.
06:41Why?
06:43Has it ever moved?
06:46No.
06:47Not to my knowledge, anyway.
06:49I can make it move.
06:53Can you?
06:54Yes.
06:56But not really.
06:59When I was a kid, we had a picture like this in our house.
07:03Not the same thing exactly, but pretty close.
07:06A boat.
07:08My mother used to tell me to look at it.
07:10She said if I looked at it long enough, it would move.
07:12All I had to do was keep looking at it.
07:16I didn't believe her, but the idea fascinated me.
07:20One night, I spent a whole hour just staring at that silly boat.
07:24And did it move?
07:28Yes.
07:30Now, you understand, there's nothing strange about that.
07:33It was an optical illusion.
07:34Yeah, I know.
07:35Except that after a while, I couldn't control it.
07:39Every time I looked at that boat, the sails would fill in and it would begin to dip.
07:44I just couldn't stop it.
07:47Imagination that's strong and a growing boy.
07:49Yeah, I realized that.
07:50I realized it even then.
07:53But the point is, I got just as scared as if it were really happening.
07:59The mind does everything.
08:00If you think you've got a pain in your arm and there's no physical reason for it,
08:03it hurts just the same, doesn't it?
08:06Granted.
08:21Is that how you managed to stay awake?
08:25How else?
08:26How many grains a day?
08:27I don't know.
08:29I haven't got much longer anyway.
08:30You want to hear the rest or not?
08:32Yes.
08:33When I was 15, I developed a rheumatic heart.
08:40They said I'd never really get well.
08:43That I'd have to take it easy.
08:44No strenuous exercise.
08:46No long walks.
08:47No stares.
08:49No shocks.
08:50Avoid any kind of shock, they said.
08:55They forget about my imagination.
08:57Three years ago, a woman was killed by a man who was hidden in the back seat of her car.
09:04You may have read about it.
09:05I did.
09:06Anyway, it started me thinking.
09:07Maybe somebody was hiding in the back seat of my car.
09:11Maybe one night driving over Laurel Canyon, I'd look up in the rearview mirror.
09:15And I'd see somebody or something coming up out of the darkness.
09:20I had to drive the canyon twice a day.
09:24It's a rough road.
09:25One slip and you're over the edge.
09:29One night, like every other night, I was headed for home.
09:32Suddenly, I began to feel uncomfortable, as if I weren't alone in the car.
09:37It was ridiculous, but I couldn't shake the sensation.
09:40I kept thinking, there's somebody back there.
09:44I'll look in the rearview mirror and I'll see his face.
09:47And I'll see his hands reaching up.
09:50Here's the important thing, Doctor.
09:52I knew intellectually that I was alone.
09:55But I also knew that my imagination could make me see something if I thought about it long enough.
10:02Of course, there wasn't anyone else in the car.
10:24It was all in my mind.
10:27What difference did that make?
10:28I crashed anyway.
10:30I was lucky.
10:33The shock should have killed me.
10:35I couldn't survive another one, the doctor said.
10:37I could be sure of that.
10:38And has there been another one?
10:42No.
10:43But there will be, just as soon as I fall asleep.
10:46The girl will be in this dream again.
10:48And it'll be the last shock.
10:49When I was a kid, I used to dream in sequence.
11:02Remember the adventure serials you used to have in the movie theaters?
11:05It was like that.
11:08Every dream was a chapter.
11:09I'd always remember because when I woke up, I'd write down what happened.
11:15It's crazy, huh?
11:17Not necessarily.
11:18Could simply be that the dreams conformed to the notes, not the other way around.
11:22Then you don't believe it's possible to dream in episodes?
11:26Well, I don't say it's impossible.
11:28It isn't.
11:28Believe me.
11:32For a long time, I didn't dream at all.
11:35Then a week ago, it started.
11:37I went to bed around 11.30.
11:40I wasn't too tired, but I needed the rest because of my heart.
11:44I don't know when I fell asleep, but all of a sudden, I wasn't at home anymore.
11:49I was at an amusement park.
11:56It was the kind of place you see only in nightmares.
12:00Everything warped and twisted out of shape.
12:02But it was real, too.
12:04Very real.
12:06Hurry, hurry, hurry.
12:07This is where you get those big prizes.
12:10Six shots for a dime.
12:12Hit the bullseye and you get a goopy doll.
12:14How about it?
12:15Come on.
12:15Ten cents.
12:16Ten pennies.
12:17Hurry, hurry, hurry, hurry, friends.
12:19The show is about to begin.
12:21See our dance, see our wiggle.
12:23The most sensational and electrifying exhibition since Little Egypt.
12:27Now, friends, you're not going to be able to see anything standing out there.
12:30You've got to get down close.
12:31That's the idea right over here.
12:32Right down close.
12:34That's it, friends.
12:34I'm not too close.
12:35Let's not trample each other.
12:37Our friends, you say you want fat ones, we got them.
12:40You say you want thin ones, we've got them.
12:42Blondes, brunettes, redheads.
12:44And believe me, folks, if they ain't up here, they ain't worth looking at.
12:48And now to give you a little demonstration of what you're going to see on the inside.
12:52Maya, the cat girl.
12:55Come on, baby.
12:57We know you're modest, but why should the folks out there take my way for it?
13:01Let's go.
13:02Let's go.
13:14ourselves.
13:15We arebabies.
14:45Are you alone?
14:48Yes.
14:54Then come with me.
14:55You want to, don't you, Edward?
15:03How do you know my name?
15:04Oh, I know a lot of things.
15:08I'm Maya.
15:11Don't be afraid.
15:14I'm not.
15:15Then come.
15:16You are afraid.
15:21Only because this isn't happening.
15:24This is a dream.
15:26I'm not here.
15:26I'm at home, asleep.
15:28And you're part of that dream.
15:29I know that.
15:33You do?
15:35Of course.
15:39Come.
15:41Come.
15:43Take me in there, Edward.
16:07It's dark inside.
16:11It's soft and cool and dark.
16:15Please.
16:16How can I argue with a dream?
16:19I don't know.
16:20How can I argue with a dream?
16:23would you?
16:32How can I argue with a dream?
16:33Let me in there, Stephanie.
16:35I know everything.
16:35Look.
16:36Show me, sir.
16:36Let me in there.
16:37Help me.
16:37Oh, my God.
17:08We've been expecting you, Mr. Hall.
17:10What?
17:13You can kiss me now.
17:17What if I don't want to?
17:19Oh, you want to.
17:22Now look whose dream is this anyway.
17:37That's when I knew she was trying to kill me.
17:59And you woke up then, hmm?
18:01Yes.
18:02My heart was beating fast.
18:05I had a life still for an hour, waiting for it to settle down.
18:08The doctor said I almost had it.
18:10Tell me, do you know who the girl was?
18:13No idea.
18:15She looked familiar, but I know I'd never seen her before, except maybe on the street or something.
18:20But you're sure she wanted to kill you?
18:23Yeah.
18:26Go on.
18:27The next night I put off going to sleep until one o'clock.
18:30But it didn't matter.
18:32The dream was out of control.
18:35I was back in the amusement park.
18:37I was running.
18:45Edward?
18:49Edward!
18:50Get away from me.
18:52There's nothing to be afraid of, Edward.
18:54It's only a dream.
18:56I've got a heart condition.
18:57I can't stand all this excitement.
18:59But silly, there isn't any excitement.
19:01You said so yourself.
19:03They're at home, asleep in bed.
19:06Now you can do all the things you can't do when you're awake.
19:10That's not true.
19:11The doctor said...
19:12Look, Edward!
19:14Look, Edward, look!
19:22Come on, come on, Edward.
19:24It's fun!
19:25Come on.
19:25I didn't want to go anywhere near that roller coaster.
19:29But I couldn't help myself.
19:31I had to follow her.
19:33Even though I knew exactly what it would mean,
19:35I had to follow her.
19:36Hold on, Edward.
19:59Go, Edward!
20:18Go, Edward!
20:22David, stop it!
20:30They can't it, drink!
20:52I've got to get out!
20:59I've got to get out!
21:01Jump, Edward!
21:02Jump!
21:04Jump, Edward!
21:05Jump!
21:08I understand it.
21:10Yeah, that's it.
21:12If I go to sleep, I'll go right back to the roller coaster.
21:15Maya will reach me.
21:17She'll push me.
21:18And that'll be the end of me.
21:20On the other hand, if I stay awake any longer,
21:23the strain will be too much for my heart.
21:25And that'll be the end of me.
21:27Head you win, tails I lose.
21:30That's quite a choice, huh, Doctor?
21:36Where are you going?
21:38Out.
21:38Get some fresh air.
21:40I wouldn't advise it.
21:41What do you advise, a straitjacket?
21:43So long, Doc.
21:45You can't do anything more for me.
21:50Maya!
22:08What's the matter, Hall?
22:10It's her.
22:11A receptionist?
22:13I'm sorry, but her name doesn't happen to be Maya.
22:15I'm sorry.
22:34Well, Miss Thomas?
22:37Yes, Doctor?
22:39Would you come here, please?
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:40Yes.
22:41Yes.
22:42Yes.
22:42Yes.
22:42Yes.
22:42Yes.
22:42Yes.
22:43Yes.
22:44Yes.
22:45I'm afraid he's dead.
22:52But he came in just a minute ago.
22:55I know.
22:57When he came in, I told him to sit down, and he did.
23:01Less than two seconds, he was asleep.
23:07Then he gave that scream you heard.
23:10Heart attack?
23:12Probably.
23:12Probably.
23:15Well, I guess there are worse ways to go.
23:17Well, I guess there are worse ways to go.
23:18At least he died peacefully.
23:23They say a dream takes only a second or so.
23:27And yet in that second, a man can live a lifetime.
23:31He can suffer and die, and who's to say which is the greater reality?
23:34The one we know or the one we know or the one in dreams, between heaven, the sky, the earth, in the twilight zone.
23:43We'll be sal à, and we're all minus one of a few years, but he entirely did.
23:44Now, have you been auz conteúdo?
23:44Yeah.
23:45Who is to say, what do I do to dock with the two
24:01ets?
24:02No.
24:03Well, I have.
24:03We're.
24:04The second.
24:05The second.
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