User Reviews

Ida Lupino stars with Arthur Franz in this rather muddled melodrama concerning widower Franz who takes up with Lupino. She bears a startling resemblance to his late wife and Franz gets quite obsessed.

Elements of the Hitchcock classics Rebecca and Vertigo are present here. Lupino, Franz and the rest of the cast do their best. But this little ply makes no coherent sense.

Da Lupino gets to play a dual role in the offbeat Four Star Playhouse segment, directed by Roy Kellino. It starts as light romance, but segues into classic Gothic melodrama, replete with white nightgown action, eerie music and repressed guilt.

In a sort of riposte to the "meet-cute" scene of traditional rom-coms, Richard Comstock (Arthur Franz) is thunderstruck at the sight of Ida, working in a department store where he shops for his mother. When she discovers that Mrs. Comstock refers to his mom, not to a wife, she deigns to go out with him and romance blossoms.

Everything is hunky-dory until he brings her home to the family mansion to meet his mother (nicely play by Olive Blakeney). The show immediately turns into a suspense tale, as she's given a "forbidden room" to stay in, where she's shocked to discover a framed photo of Richard's late wife, her own doppelganger!

How this strange tale is resolved requires viewing, not a synopsis (IMDb's summary is erroneous and misleading). Lupino's dramatic acting is excellent and transcends the insistent genre cliches of the material.

It's impossible, to find an anthology series where every single episode is great. There always are a few stinkers....always. Think about "The Twilight Zone", for example....a great show but a few episodes just didn't work at all. It happens. Well, the same thing occurred with "Four Star Playhouse". Despite some great actors and writers, every so often a dud...and "Looking Glass House" is truly a stinker! In fact, I think it's one of the worst episodes of ANY show of the era...it's that bad!

Ann (Ida Lupino) works at a department store and a customer is very taken with her. Again and again, Richard (Arthur Franz) asks her out and eventually she gives in...and soon they are married. Only then does Ann learn that Arthur was married before....to Lydia...and Lydia looked EXACTLY like Ann...but was evil!! Now, dead Lydia seems to be trying to make a comeback and it's really bad. How do I know? The hokey theramin music, that's how!!

First, while identical strangers is a theme in some TV shows and movies, it's a stupid and overused trope. They should have tried more to make Ann and Lydia look different other than just a silly black wig. Second, the plot is just a muddled mess...and embarrassing and stupid mess. You just have to see it for yourself to realize just how bad and badly written it is. Additionally, while Lupino was a fine actress (and director), here she is at her worst...no doubt much of which is due to the dopey script. Yes, I said dopey!!