The Prowler (1981)

[Joshg]

The Prowler is a killin'! Classic (yes, I said it) slasher from the early 80s that is filled to the rim with gore and atmosphere. Adorn it to the max, because this highly praised Joe Zito film is one that should make a home in YOUR living room.

Buy the Blue Underground DVD today, complete with commentary.

And discuss the legend that is...The Prowler!!!

[sCabbOy]

3/5

had some great moments, and some dull moments.

[Joshg]

Agreed. I think I was on the verge of giving it a 6/10, but that ending boosted it up a notch. 7/10, I'm holding out for the vote. Great killer and motive though.

[Rich]

I'm with the Scabster here. I just loved the shower kill scene though. It is moments like that that prove just how much of a make-up effect god Tom Savini really is and that was such an easy thing to do too, but it just looked so damn real.

[The Dream Master]

This is one of my favorite 80s slashers right there. Great little flick, as it pretty much embodies everything a slasher should be.

[James M]

I voted a 3/5, even though I sort of consider myself a fan. The thing is, the film itself is kind of dull, and the story is really nothing special. However, it is a notable film for its highly brutal and realistic death scenes. The victims don't just die instantly, they struggle and squirm (especially the blade through the skull, the death on the fence, and the death in the pool). Some of it is truly hard to watch sometimes, which I can't say about many other fake killings. These seem almost real.

[MaDMaNMaRz]

Damn, I wanted to give it 3 stars, but accidentally put 4. :(

Anyways, I really like The Prowler. I agree with scab....it has it's moments where the pacing is great, and then there are some dull, slightly boring parts. But overall, it's really good film. Savini's effects were done well.....the end is one of his greatest, IMO. I won't spoil it for anyone that hasn't seen it.

3/5

[Joshg]

Wow, guess it really is a 3/5 type film. Amazing. :)

[101ant101]

3/5

had some great moments, and some dull moments.


agreed. it remined me of My Bloody Valintine. but anyway it was really slow and boring at sometimes. but when all the chaseing started happning it got better like the end.

[Joshg]

I dunno. I much prefer MBV to The Prowler.

The Prowler has a lot of blood and gore, yet quite a few nerve-racking boredom scenes.

My Bloody Valentine (at least the one we're used to) has little blood and gore, but the screen brings you into its realm. Little boredom abounds.

In the end, I like MBV so much more, because I do not think that gore makes a horror film, but atmosphere and characters do. Now, this doesn't mean I'm not up for the very long awaited uncut version. Grrrrr,

[101ant101]

I dunno. I much prefer MBV to The Prowler.

The Prowler has a lot of blood and gore, yet quite a few nerve-racking boredom scenes.

My Bloody Valentine (at least the one we're used to) has little blood and gore, but the screen brings you into its realm. Little boredom abounds.

In the end, I like MBV so much more, because I do not think that gore makes a horror film, but atmosphere and characters do. Now, this doesn't mean I'm not up for the very long awaited uncut version. Grrrrr,

same MBV is much better. and the way it ended was brilliant:D top class film.;)

[kramerfan]

I love the Prowler but still wonder why they never went anywhere with the couple kissing in the basement.It showed um but they were never killer off.I gave it a 4.

[101ant101]

i agree with you bud but some scenes were a let down

[Fowlees]

I dunno. I much prefer MBV to The Prowler.

The Prowler has a lot of blood and gore, yet quite a few nerve-racking boredom scenes.

My Bloody Valentine (at least the one we're used to) has little blood and gore, but the screen brings you into its realm. Little boredom abounds.

In the end, I like MBV so much more, because I do not think that gore makes a horror film, but atmosphere and characters do. Now, this doesn't mean I'm not up for the very long awaited uncut version. Grrrrr,

I'd agree with this. Josh, your point about atmosphere and characters making a horror film are spot on. I'd also add suspense aswell, which i believe is vital.

I did quite enjoy The Prowler but i thought it was going to be better than it was. I guess i shouldn't listen to the hype.

[nottidelterrore]

5/5. I love this movie. The dull moments didn't bother me one bit. One of my favourite slashers from the 1980s. Pretty gruesome headshot in it too.

[Patrick]

This movie is awesome. Farley Granger was good in it. It was odd seeing him in this after seein him in Alfred Hitchcock's 'Strangers on a Train' and 'Rope'.

[Joshg]

Woohoo! I just received "The Prowler" for Christmas! Talk about a surprise, huh?

[Ron]

I thought this film was a bit overrated. It had some cool savini effects, but it was a pretty drab slasher.

[sCabbOy]

It really is a bit overrated because it isn't an amazing film. However, much, much, much better than a lot in 1981 and it's a nice film to watch evey now and then.

[Ron]

I agree...many people consider this slasher to be one of their favorites.

[Joshg]

Very overated. Critics give it a smile and nod. Why this one? What's so fresh about this one?

Anyways, The Prowler came out at an excellent time. 1981 was one of the best years for slashers. Period.

[Ron]

Very overated. Critics give it a smile and nod. Why this one? What's so fresh about this one?

Anyways, The Prowler came out at an excellent time. 1981 was one of the best years for slashers. Period.


I wish that I could live unside that post! Soooo true.

[sCabbOy]

Yeah a lot of good movies came out in 81, but also a lot of crap. That was the start of the slasher craze... and a lot of good came with a lot of bad. Anyone see the Boogyman movie from 81? HORRIBLE.

[MaDMaNMaRz]

Very true. Lots of shitty slashers came out in 1981. F13 Part 2 was easily the best to come out that year IMO.

[Joshg]

I just watched this again. This time, my father watched it with me. Afterall, he bought it.

Now, keep in mind, he's a church-going, onscreen nudity and gore head shaking, DAD. Okay, so after the film is done, I ask him to give The Prowler, a mark out of ten.

He gave it....a 6!!!! Whaaa? 6/10? That was a shock. I never in a million years thought that he'd think of it as a good flick. But he did figure out who the killer was very easily.

Anyways, I stick by my mark of 7/10 for The Prowler. All in good fun, but the 35-45 minute marks were so freaking slow!

[Ron]

This movie had a pretty decent backstory from what I remember.

[nottidelterrore]

I can't believe I didn't find out who the Prowler was the first time I watched it. It was so obvious too. Then when I watched it again I was like "aaaahh yes." Haha.

[sCabbOy]

It's only obvious the second time around... just like most of the "whodunit" slashers.

[MaDMaNMaRz]

Yeah, I had no idea the first time I watched it. They did a good job of keeping the Prowler's identity a secret.

[The Dream Master]

Man, I really dig the song the band plays during the dance. It's 80s as fuck.

[Ron]

come to think of it..I can't even remember who the killer was. This film is extremely forgettable to me.

[Melanie Jarvis]

I only watched this movie once when I rented it a few months back. I thought it was pretty decent.

[Joshg]

It's very subtle, but: The answer is given to the audience before the reveal.

Basically:

In the 1945 clips, Rosemary and her bf are talking. She says she doesn't want anyone to see them together. I forget the exact translation, but "what if George sees" is imputted.

Then, when Pam and her boyfriend/2nd deputy/balding eighties hair guy go to call the Sheriff, the guy asks for "Sheriff George Fraser"!!! Dead giveaway. But it's not something handed to you. You've got to be awake and into it. Hehe, I never caught it the first tiem I saw.

[sCabbOy]

I never picked up on the George thing, thanks for pointing that out!

[Patrick]

Yeah a lot of good movies came out in 81, but also a lot of crap. That was the start of the slasher craze... and a lot of good came with a lot of bad. Anyone see the Boogyman movie from 81? HORRIBLE.

Oh no....that was a piece of shit. And I made the mistake of buying Uli Lommell's Boogyman II or some shit because it was $10...I wish I could have gotten my money back. I don't know what the hell it was, but it was horrible. I honestly don't know what was worse....Boogyman II or the so-called Howling 7. Neither one of them are worth poopin' on.

The Prowler on the other hand is great 80's slasher at it's best.

[sCabbOy]

Oh no....that was a piece of shit. And I made the mistake of buying Uli Lommell's Boogyman II or some shit because it was $10...I wish I could have gotten my money back. I don't know what the hell it was, but it was horrible. I honestly don't know what was worse....Boogyman II or the so-called Howling 7. Neither one of them are worth poopin' on.

The Prowler on the other hand is great 80's slasher at it's best.

I have the Boogyman 1 and 2 DF. Boogyman 2 is basically a flashback of Part 1 with some new scenes. Sort of what SNDN2, Hills Have Eyes 2, Criminally Insane 2 and so may others did.

[Ron]

SNDN 2 was such a let down.

[MaDMaNMaRz]

I hate when sequels just show flashback clips for the original, and only have about 30-40 minutes of new footage. :(

Josh - I actually didn't notice that the first time I watched it. Thanks for that tidbit.

[Patrick]

Flashbacks are cool when they are done the way Paramount did with the Friday the 13th films......mainly Parts 2, 3, 4 and 7. Those are cool. But when it is supposed to be a sequel....let it BE a sequel. Not a rehash of the one before it. Otherwise, what's the point? You are getting jipped.

[Ron]

Well they're good in the Friday films because they get them out of the way in the intro of the film, and they never over saturate the movie with them.

[nottidelterrore]

I hate when sequels just show flashback clips for the original, and only have about 30-40 minutes of new footage. :(

Josh - I actually didn't notice that the first time I watched it. Thanks for that tidbit.

I typically hate that too with the exception of SNDN 2 because the actual new footage is just so laughably bad(Red car...good point!) that you could make millions of those huge late 1980s-early 1990s gold necklaces that Run-DMC used to wear.

[Jigsaw]

I'd give The Prowler a 6/10. It's okay, but pretty boring and slow a lot of the time.

[Ron]

Exactamundo Jiggy! There's a lot better, but a lot worse..this was a good slasher, but way overrated.

[Jigsaw]

I thought it took forever to get going, however it has very good gore and a creepy atmosphere.

[Ron]

Tom Savini was pretty much one of the only things that this fillm had going for it..the story was good, but still lacking..

[Jigsaw]

I think the movie was too slow and took too long to get going.

[nottidelterrore]

I still think The Prowler is absolutely great. I'd take it any day over all of the garbage we get nowadays.

[Joshg]

I thought the pacing in this one was fairly good, except for, ya know, about 20 combined minutes of pure slowness! Ach! The other 70 minutes were Halloweenish. Suspenseful.

[Jigsaw]

There's times this movie is very suspenseful and eerie. It just needs to be shorter to tighten up the pacing and not drag so much.

[Joshg]

10 minutes could have easily been pulled from the flick.

[MaDMaNMaRz]

Well they're good in the Friday films because they get them out of the way in the intro of the film, and they never over saturate the movie with them.

I agree. Showing flashback clips in the prologue is alright, but not for the entire movie. :lol: I've always loved the F13 prologues....especially Part 7's.

[Ron]

I felt that they get all fans, die hard or not, up to date on the entire series up to that point.

[Sketch Sanchez]

I just bought this on DVD and I need to watch it again and maybe pay a little better attention to the movie, but I found it a bit dull. Aside from the gore, this movie dont have much else going for it.

[redragon]

The Prowler is a slasher classic. Along with Black Christmas hands down my fav. It was nice to see it uncut thanks to Blue Underground.

[Jigsaw]

I just bought this on DVD and I need to watch it again and maybe pay a little better attention to the movie, but I found it a bit dull. Aside from the gore, this movie dont have much else going for it.


That's pretty much how I feel about this movie. In addition to the gore it also has some neat stalking scenes in it, but I find it too slow and boring.

[Ron]

the market was also being flooded with these films at the time. I felt the same way about this film at one point, but realized that we may have become 'used' to these films and their delivery which could make some feel the effect of repetition.

[Fowlees]

Lawrence Tierney , of Reservoir Dogs and Silver Bullet fame, had quite a big billing as Major Chatham in this film.

Now, i haven't seen The Prowler for some time , but i honestly cannot remember him really featuring in this movie at all, save for a few small scenes.

Maybe there are some different version of this flick out there , in which some of his scenes have been cut. (i own the Region 0 DVD).

Maybe i'm mistaken....i'll have to watch it again.

Can anyone shed some light on this?

[101ant101]

im still hoping for a remake of this. anyone got any news or heard?

[Jigsaw]

Haven't heard about anything regarding a remake of this movie, but I wouldn't be surprised if it happens at some point down the line.

Fowlees, I too don't remember Lawrence Tierney getting a lot of screentime in this movie. I remember his screentime being very limited and brief to the point where he's pretty much not in the film.

[Fowlees]

Fowlees, I too don't remember Lawrence Tierney getting a lot of screentime in this movie. I remember his screentime being very limited and brief to the point where he's pretty much not in the film.

It's strange isn't it. To be honest, i can't recall him having any dialogue either!!:confused::confused::confused:

[nottidelterrore]

I'm pretty sure he didn't have any dialogue at all. He was just there for a little while then wasn't seen again.

Too bad he didn't have any Reservoir Dogs-like dialogue. Haha.

[Fowlees]

Yeah, he was great in RD.

Funny thing, i work with a bloke who looks just like him, with the same mannerisms and everythiing.

[Fowlees]

Lawrence Tierney , of Reservoir Dogs and Silver Bullet fame, had quite a big billing as Major Chatham in this film.

Now, i haven't seen The Prowler for some time , but i honestly cannot remember him really featuring in this movie at all, save for a few small scenes.

Maybe there are some different version of this flick out there , in which some of his scenes have been cut. (i own the Region 0 DVD).

Maybe i'm mistaken....i'll have to watch it again.

Can anyone shed some light on this?

I watched this again last night. I was right . Lawrence Tierney had no dialogue whatsoever in the version of the film that i've got. Indeed he only appeared in the film in two very short scenes, and his total screentime must have equated to about 20 seconds....Bizarre since he gets quite a big billing on the back of the DVD case.

There are a few scenes in this film that are truely classic and suspenseful, but on the whole the movie does seem to drag quite a bit, plus there's no real characterisation so you have no sympathy for any of the characters involved.

On the whole i'd give it 3 stars....and i have!

[sCabbOy]

That's movies for you, and is a huge trend these days at least. You get a box that has Kane Hodder, Tony Todd, Englund or whoever on the front of the box, on the cover art or whatever and they ar ein the movie for like 20 seconds. It's called marketing (I call it deceiving) but it is done for a reason and that's to sell a few copies based on someone thinking they are the stars.

That's one thing I hate the most about independent horror. They pay a big name a small amount to bein their movie for a few seconds then plaster their name allover the cover... coughHATCHETcough.

[Lance Lives]

Yeah, that really pisses me off. It's kinda funny to see some of the older stuff that had actors in 'em before they were stars and then the DVD covers feature them prominantly. It sucks and makes for more terrible DVD covers but it's just a tad bit funny.

I ordered The Prowler tonight...I've heard good things and I'm excited to see the gore.

[The Dream Master]

Lance, I wouldn't go into this looking for a ton of gore. Don't get me wrong--it has its moments, but I think The Prowler works more for its atmosphere and photography more than anything else. I think you'll like it.

[Lance Lives]

Cool. I've heard it's a good slasher, and if it doesn't have over the top gore but a good atmosphere and setting I'll still be happy.

[The Dream Master]

See, that's what I like about this one: the gore isn't over the top at all. Instead, it's brutally realistic at times. I'll say this: if you're a fan of the first four or five Friday the 13th films, you'll love this.

[Lance Lives]

I'll love it then:p

[MaDMaNMaRz]

I know you'd love this one, Tim. Like Brett said, it's not REAL over the top....but alot of the murders are pretty brutal, and realistic.

[nottidelterrore]

I agree that you'll love it, Tim. It's one of my favourite slashers. Good stuff!

[kramerfan]

It is great.

[Patrick]

I love this movie. Great atmosphere.

[Lance Lives]

You guys are getting me stoked, this disc can't arrive sooner. Does the disc contain any special features? I think I've heard that Savini may have some Behind the Scenes stuff like he usually does.

[God of Thunder]

5/5 I think it's a spectacular film! It has a cool story, a few scares, a cool killer, and some kickass gore (the stab through the head, throat slitting, and exploding head are some of my favorites). And it's a lot of fun to watch. Definitely a highlight of the 80's slasher flicks.

[Patrick]

It has a great behind the scenes documentray. The poor chick in the pool....lol.

[Lance Lives]

Recieved this yesterday. I really hope I get to watch it soon because it looks badass. I'm stoked to see that there is a commentary. Why didn't they do one for part 4?!?

[sCabbOy]

Different producers,I'm sure Zito would have done commentary for 4 but Paramount probably wouldn't set t up or couldn't afford to.

[cropsy]

I just recieved it yesterday and must say it is a 3/5 type of movie. The kills were fun and well done but the slow parts did bug me a bit. Savini the master he is really did a great job as always. I must say i was very glad I bought it.(didn't hurt I got another copy of The Burning with it. lol )

[MaDMaNMaRz]

Damn, Scott! You must have at least 15 copies of The Burning, haha. :D

[cropsy]

I think i do actually. lol I was looking for copies I didn't have and saw the two dvds together in a package deal and had to do it. I had been wanting to check out The prowler for awhile as so many had said it was worth checking. I'm amazed I didn't see it before actually. well worth the $21.50 I paid.

[Lance Lives]

I watched this flick a bit ago but forgot to post about it. I really liked it. The kills were all really badass, the pool one especially. I loved the kick in the head as she was getting out.

[kramerfan]

Yeah i love the kills in this one.Kinda strage shed go swimming like that.

[cropsy]

The kick was perfect but it was strange her going swimming like that but then again these days I see stranger stuff done.

[Lance Lives]

Hell, if I had complete easy access to a pool like that, I'd probably go for a dip every now and then too, especially if I was pissed off and wanted to be solo as she did.

[Wolfgang]

I saw this movie the other week and I loved. Definitely one of the greatest slashers I've seen. The deaths were fantastic.

[Lammert]

I finally saw this a few weeks ago... and...
..it was a little boring.

I expected more gory effects, more back info on Rosemary... to many gaps.

Overall I enjoyed it.