Tuesday, October 31, 2023

The Prowler

aka Rosemary's Killer

In 1945, on the night of the graduation dance in Avalon Bay, Rosemary Chatham and her new boyfriend were brutally murdered. The killer was never found. Flash forward to 1980, where preparations are underway for the first graduation dance since that tragic night back in 1945. Spirits are high among the soon-to-be college graduates, but someone is about to ruin their night. Someone with an old score to settle. The Prowler is a semi-independent horror movie from the golden age of slasher films. It's definitely riffing on movies like Halloween and Friday the 13th and there's even an allusion to Jaws at one point. Plot wise, The Prowler is very similar to My Bloody Valentine. Which is likely coincidental, since they were both released the same year. The cast, the music, the setting and the killer are all on point, but The Prowler's script is a little weak. There's not enough going on in the movie, which feels padded out by some long sequences where the main characters explore the same old house twice. The Prowler's main selling point is definitely Tom Savini's special effects makeup. Unlike some of Savini's other work from this era, The Prowler never holds back during the kill scenes. There are several long, lingering shots of people being stabbed and skewered in The Prowler. The kind of shots that typically got cut down by the MPAA in Friday the 13th films. Though not obscure by any means, The Prowler is an under the radar slasher that is well worth seeking out.

Rating: 71%

(Image from Wikipedia)

No comments: