Main cast: Luke Perry (Dr Michael Sears), Sherilyn Fenn (Charlotte), Hart Bochner (Jack), and Henry Rollins (The Host)
Directors: Nick Gomez and Michael W Watkins
Now He’s Coming Up the Stairs and Used Car have something in common: stories that are not very satisfactory to follow.
In the first one, psychiatrist Dr Michael Sears is considered a faith healer by other members of the medical profession as he has the woo woo. Actually, he has the ability to absorb his patient’s illnesses into himself, but this is more of a curse than a blessing, as using his gift is slowly killing him.
Upon the advice of his doctor, he decides to take a long break in order to recuperate, but of course, he is approached by a desperate woman whose kid is catatonic, only being able to rock himself back and forth while muttering over and over four lines about someone coming into the house, up the stairs, and so forth.
Perhaps this behavior is linked to an accident in which the mom ran into some hobo during the rain and, sort of, oopsie, killed the man. Maybe the kid is now being haunted by the dead guy?
This one is pretty predictable as from the get go, this segment makes it clear what would happen to Michael as he insists on pushing over his mental limit right off the cliff, which he does here. So, basically, while the kid is innocent and by right doesn’t deserve being tormented like he is in this segment, somehow Michael gets the ultimate finger instead of the woman that fatally ran down the dude.
It’s the same with Used Car. Through a rather implausible coincidence, Charlotte finds herself in possession of a haunted car, and ends up being viciously punished for the sins of her husband.
How is this satisfying to watch? Sure, you can say life is unfair, and any lady that finds herself married to a character played by Hart Bochner should be prepared to meet a grisly end, but come on.
The so-called twists in these two segments aren’t fun because there is no build up to them and hence no good pay-off. The whole exercise just feels random and pointless, like watching people being run down just because they happen to be at the wrong place and the wrong time.
The cast members of both episodes are okay, and the late Luke Perry actually makes a very appealing tortured protagonist in the first segment. Even the kid in that segment isn’t annoying, although the lady playing his mother is pretty wooden through and through.
Sadly, the performances of these cast members are wasted on the two segments that try to put some kind of cynical twist on the concept of karma boomerang only to fumble at it.
