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The Prowler (1981) - Joseph Zito



A horror movie with a World War II theme isn't something that you see all that often. That's part of what makes this movie unique. It belongs to that certain breed of film like Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer or Lustig's Maniac. Joseph Zito, the Director, would go on to direct some schlock work as well as Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter. And this would fall into obscurity along with thousands of other horror movies released during the Golden Age of Horror, the nineteen eighties. 


In 1945, on the night of the Graduation Ball in Avalon Bay, a young couple was brutally murdered with a pitchfork. The killer was never found. Thirty-five years later, the town is having their first Graduation Ball since the killings. It's being orchestrated by our heroine, Pam MacDonald and her friends. Things go bad when it starts to look like that same killer from thirty-five years prior, starts killing again. And he kills with extreme prejudice. 




With a horror effects master like Tom Savini working the slop. You know you're in for a treat. This movie delivers with entire boatloads of blood. It's no wonder that Savini considers this to be his best work. There are some really great kill scenes and it has a really eerie feel. The main killer is pretty strange, but it fits in perfectly. It's all very... eighties. 

The acting is pretty warm and fuzzy, but it's nothing memorable. It doesn't need to be. This kind of movie isn't appreciated for it's acting. In fact most of the on screen work is pretty cliche. It's the vibe that the movie gives off that makes it watchable and fun. It's the killings, the music and the practicality all-in-one. 

Initial release: 1981
Director: Joseph Zito
Budget: 1 million USD
Music composed by: Richard Einhorn
Produced by: Joseph Zito

Did ya know: Director Joseph Zito once told a guard at a movie theater where the film was being screened, that he was the director of this film. To this the guard responded, "You really DID kill those people, right?". 


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