FlashCallahan The happiness and the sanity of a W.W.II vet is destroyed when he returns home and finds his girl in the arms of another at the town's annual dance. Outraged, he kills them with a pitchfork, and the town does not hold the dance again for 35 years. When the vet hears about the dance being resurrected, it stirs up those bitter painful memories once again, so he comes back to do a little more killing...This is one of those film that have been mimicked so many times, if you haven't seen the original before the slew of re-imaginings/side-quels/homages, you may lose the overall effectiveness of the original.Much like I did.For me, it's pretty perfunctory stuff, with the added bonus of some wonderful make up by Tom Savini. But other than that, it's just a case of teen girls running down a corridor and reaching a locked door, while being prowled by the bad guy in Hellboy.The cast are fine, they do their job as you'd expect, it can be slightly tense in some places.It's my bad really for not seeing it any sooner, as I'd probably regard it a lot higher than I actually do.But I will give it something to its credit, it hasn't been remade as of yet.If you are just starting out with horror films, and you want a good old fashioned stalk n' slash horror, you'd be good to catch this as soon as possible.You'll appreciate it a lot more than I did.

warsystem04 What can be said that already hasn't been said about "The Prowler"? Highly praised and widely regarded as one of the better slasher films of the 1980's, this movie has everything a fan of the genre could crave, and more. Focusing more on suspense and tense, dark atmosphere than "scares", "The Prowler" almost has the feel of a giallo at times, but never strays from the tried and true American slasher formula. The kills are especially gory, creative and outstanding, which is no surprise since Tom Savini is behind the effects in them. The team of Joseph Zito and Savini would of course soon after work together on Friday The 13th: The Final Chapter, in my opinion the best in the series.Although often rightfully compared plot wise to "My Bloody Valentine" (another magnificent slasher), this film provides a lot more backstory and "flavor" to the killer. Little humor is present in this one, as the stalking of the victims and the uncovering of the mysterious killer are the main focus. This is not for fans of over the top cheese or "torture porn" garbage, this is for someone who can appreciate suspense and story.I can not stress enough the dark atmosphere that "The Prowler" creates. To me, this movie embodies "stalk and slash", in a way that is without pretension and without any try hard tactics. This is horror at it's finest. In my book this one is a must see, the pool scene alone will make any slasher junkie want to burst out in applause.

Horror Banana-nanza The slasher genre was an explosion in the early 80's, with such hits as "Friday the 13th" and "Nightmare on Elm Street". A lot of films were overlooked or thought of as copycats, including the vastly unknown "The Dorm That Dripped Blood." However, of all the brutal teen slashers during that time, one sticks out to me, purely from an entertainment standpoint.Joe Zito, who worked on "Friday the 13th IV : The Final Friday" brings his direction along with outstanding special effects work by the master, Tom Savini. The story is pretty simple. After World War II, there's a dance, and someone is killed. This someone just told her lover she couldn't wait anymore. So...guess we know who the killer is already, huh?Like all great slasher villains, this guy's got a unique look to him, dressed in soldier clothes, including a gas mask. Man alive, the guy's creepy to watch. The plot doesn't really deviate from the usual stuff. The killer killed the girl during a dance, so for a few decades, they don't have one. Then as soon as they do, he's killing again, this time with a pitchfork, a bayonet, and other awesome utensils. The best kill in the movie, (yes, that's how these movies are judged) is the woman in the shower being ran through with a pitchfork. Fantastic effects.So we eventually are down to our two heroes, a guy and a girl who's names I frankly don't remember, and they face off against the killer. One line that the heroine utters will stick with me forever. As the two approach the house the killer is in, the man says "I'm going to go in there. You stay here." And like every single person in the audience, her response is dead on."That doesn't make any sense."Talk about an understatement.I love this movie. I don't really know how to explain why I do. It doesn't really have that zany element "The Burning" has, or the over the top nudity that any of the "Friday the 13th" films have, but there's just something about this movie that keeps me coming back. And that's what a movie should do.I recommend it, especially if you're a fan of the genre. If not, well, you probably don't want to see it anyway. _____________________For all the Horror Banana's reviews, visit http://morozov924.hubpages.com/

Greg Released in 1981, The Prowler never got the recognition of its peers. Friday the 13th, My Bloody Valentine and Prom Night all went on to pop culture familiarity spanning countless sequels and eventual remakes. Yet the Joseph Zito classic about a masked World War II army gear wearing slasher remains nothing more than a footnote in the annals of horror history.And that is unfortunate. For not only does The Prowler exhibit some of make-up effects artist Tom Savini's best work, but it also might just be the best slasher film released in the glory days of the early 1980's.Opening after the conclusion of World War II where a couple is brutally murdered, the film forwards 35-years to present day (1981 present day) where a group of college kids are preparing for an annual spring dance. Mysteriously, the fatigue donning killer reappears and using his weapons of choice (a bayonet and a pitchfork) he begins his night of terror that will leave the small New Jersey town soaked in adolescent blood.A slasher film is routinely graded on the graphicness or originality of its kills. And The Prowler delivers the bloody goods thanks to the aforementioned Tom Savini. A pitchfork puncturing shower scene, a pool throat slashing and the shotgun blow to the head were arguably three of the best kills of The Prowler's era – and era that included Friday the 13th sequels, A Nightmare on Elm Street and Halloween II.The story itself is horror routine. But the execution by director Joseph Zito (Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, Invasion U.S.A.) is brilliantly choreographed in a thrilling and exciting film that holds up as well today as it did over 30-years ago. The Prowler was produced for $1 million but was self-distributed by Zito therefore relegating the title to the background of VHS rental video stores. But now that it is available on DVD and blu-ray, the title should be sought out by anyone who wants to be considered an authoritative voice on the genre.www.killerreviews.com