The Prowler
Sandhurst | Release Date: November 6, 1981 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
45
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 5 Critic Reviews
Positive:
2
Mixed:
2
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
70
L.A. WeeklyChad Byrnes
Special effects master Tom Savini did the makeup for this overlooked gem (actually, his fingerprints are on a few of the films on this list), and some of the kills are downright ugly (or beautiful, in horror jargon). Read full review
63
Slant MagazineChris Cabin
What the film lacks in narrative drive, coherence, and performance, it makes up with thoughtful lighting, strong cinematography from Raoul Lomas and an uncredited João Fernandes, and, of course, Savini’s lovingly overblown and impossible splatter effects. Read full review
50
Washington PostStephen M. Deusner
For all its boldness of concept and carnage, The Prowler is never entirely satisfying. There are too many missed opportunities to transcend the genre’s schlock, too many passages where nothing happens, too many scares that fall flat. Still, it’s an intriguing artifact of an earlier horror-movie era, one that toys with the idea of villains and victims while slashing the slasher formula to bits. Read full review
40
Time OutStaff (Not Credited)
Mad axeman action yet again, cravenly conformist in every department. Read full review
25
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
The real reason for the existence of this unexceptional film is to show off the artistry of special-effects man Savini. Read full review
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