Night Gallery - Whisper

The peculiar Night Gallery episode, “Whisper”, features two actors I truly treasure, Dean Stockwell (who often talks directly into camera for a change of pace from the usual episodic structure of this series) and Sally Field (seemingly this performance is a test run for one of his most memorable parts, “Sybil” (1976)) as a young married couple from San Francisco, having trekked across country to “the old country” (where a doctor played by Kent Smith of “Cat People” fame tells Stockwell where they have made it to is years behind “modern times”), staying in a southern manor. Field’s Irene allows herself to be taken over personality-wise (Stockwell calls it her “offering a vacancy”, a room inside herself, an openness voluntarily) by “lost souls”, those once lived now dead, a type of medium willing to allow them a chance to access her body as long as she gets to return when ready. But as time goes by, those wanting to occupy the host aren’t leaving quietly, gradually spending more time inside Irene, leaving her husband, Charlie, worried that perhaps her control is slipping. And that fear is justified as we hear Irene’s voice seemingly distant, no longer active inside her body but somewhere fading into the ether.

 A somewhat confounding episode, I am always fascinated by it. The use of wind, very loud and intrusive at times, is quite otherworldly, and director Jeannot Szwarc emphasizes how the trees and leaves aren’t moving so its presence seems less a manifestation of the weather/atmosphere and more supernatural. Field has a field day (pun intended) in the role of Irene and those intruding personalities that shift her in and out can be quite incredible to watch as Stockwell, as her concerned husband, admits that all of this produces some excitement that makes life with her definitely unpredictable and not dull. But when Irene gives too much of herself to the lost souls, that price can be to her detriment…what if she can’t “get back” and instead one of if not multiple souls continue to inhabit her body, leaving her “adrift” in some “other”. I have a hard time describing the experience of this episode but I find it so hypnotic, just the same. Field’s Irene comes and goes but when she is “available” her vibrant personality and smile are radiant, and you can see why Stockwell tolerates her willingness to give up that occupancy. But he loves Irene, not Rachel or any other spirit that takes his wife’s body captive, so the more time she spends away, the obvious worries should be expected. But because he loves her and what she’s willing to do in favor of listening and talking to the spirits that avail themselves to her, Charlie puts up with a lot. Field is so good, each individual personality that comes and goes and her Irene are very distinctive from each other, and she adroitly communicates the “takeover” in one particular scene (under a picturesque sunny day with daisies, on green grass, Irene is all smiles as Charlie hunches down by her, and Irene suddenly seems to be invaded by another presence) quite effectively. The creative decision to have Charlie to directly to us as if we were the spirits invading Irene or narrating what he’s going through, how much he loves her, and the complexities of their situation is unique, giving “Whisper” a personality quite different from past episodes of Night Gallery. There is just nothing quite like “Whisper” during the entire tenure of Night Gallery, definitely making this episode stand out quite a bit. 4/5