"Sometimes everything gets sharper and takes on a meaning out of the day, Paradise street is ironic when you're on your way back to Spring grove state hospital, three going out and only two coming back." This episode of Route 66 starts out with the ending as its intro. Our main characters Tod Stiles (Martin Milner) and Buz Murdock (George Maharis) are taking this woman to a mental hospital whom they just met merely five days ago. We begin to learn about her through the flashback of her in the hospital. Lillian Aldrich (Nina Foch) has finally been released from a mental institution after 18 years, which believe it or not was half of her life. She tries to adjust to normal life, as if her life can be normal after what she has lived through for almost two decades. There is a lot of powerful things moving here, after she finally takes her first steps out of the institution she grabs a pile of leaves and begins to smell them. Its a thing almost all of us take for granted until its taken away from you. To be able to go outside, soak up the sun, smell the flowers and trees are things we must treasure. Ms. Aldrich exited the hospital with no one by her side, no friends, and no family. Which leads to her struggling to adjust to everyday life. Her run in with our two main characters only began to peel back the onion. Institutionalized is the perfect word to describe her state, she has become so used to not having freedom that this huge world is just too much for her. Its her against the world and she has no one to turn to, so she begins to confide into our protagonists. Once Tod and Buz entered her life we were then able to dissect her life, and found out the reason she entered the hospital. Ms Aldrich tries to confront her problem head on and when she fails, she decides enough is enough and wants to give up. This to her is going back to the hospital, how can one go back when you have already been medically cleared. Which means she just inst ready to face the world head on and would rather go back to her shelter.
A Bridge Across Five Days (1961), the meaning behind it is she's trying to get over. She's spent a good portion of her life in one place in which she has grown accustom to. So, even though the majority of us wouldn't even want to spend a night there its her comfort zone. She needs time to adjust which is why Tod and Buz will be so pivotal to her, as she she tries to build a bridge across to her new life. Its the separation between past and present, and not allowing yourself to go back. Richard Donner directed this TV episode, you're probably familiar with his other works in Lethal Weapon 1,2 & 3 (1987, 1989, 1992)or even The Goonies (1985). As whole I think he did a good job handling this TV episode, because honestly at times, I feel people don't really care about TV episodes, and it shows when it comes craftsmanship. Not here though, this a well directed show.
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