Self-absorbed hypochondriac Walter Bedeker (well played to the obnoxious hilt by David Wayne) sells his soul to the sinister Cadwallader (a wonderfully robust performance by Thomas Gomez) in exchange for immortality.
Director Mitchell Leisen keeps the entertaining story moving at a quick pace and maintains a neat tongue-in-cheek tone throughout; it's a riot to watch the selfish and irritating Bedeker take initial greedy advantage of his new found immortality by doing stuff like jumping off train platforms so he can collect insurance claims before he eventually gets bored with his indestructibility. Rod Serling's clever script bristles with sharp witty dialogue and has a spot-on solid central message about accepting mortality as a necessary part of human existence. Virginia Christine lends sound support as Walter's worried wife Ethel. The nicely ironic ending wraps things up in a satisfying way. A real hoot.
Director Mitchell Leisen keeps the entertaining story moving at a quick pace and maintains a neat tongue-in-cheek tone throughout; it's a riot to watch the selfish and irritating Bedeker take initial greedy advantage of his new found immortality by doing stuff like jumping off train platforms so he can collect insurance claims before he eventually gets bored with his indestructibility. Rod Serling's clever script bristles with sharp witty dialogue and has a spot-on solid central message about accepting mortality as a necessary part of human existence. Virginia Christine lends sound support as Walter's worried wife Ethel. The nicely ironic ending wraps things up in a satisfying way. A real hoot.