The Prowler
Tags: cruelty, murder, cult, violence, horror, flashback, insanity, romantic, suspenseful, sadist

Plot synopsis:
It is the end of the second World War and newsreel footage shows us the troops returning from Europe onboard the Queen Mary.In a letter dated March 12, 1945 and sent to her lover abroad, a woman named Rosemary writes that she can no longer wait for him. She tells him that so much has happened and that perhaps they can be friends upon his return.On the evening of June 28, 1945 in the small seaside New Jersey town of Avalon Bay, the townspeople hold it's graduation dance. G.I.s escort their girlfriends to the ball. Inside, the class of '45 are swinging to the orchestra's music.Rosemary (Joy Glaccum) is attending with her new boyfriend Roy (Timothy Wahrer). The two decide to go off by themselves and drive to a lake where they spend some romantic time together in a gazebo. Lights are strung up around the gazebo and along the small nearby walk-bridge. Ominously, someone approaches the couple and cuts the power. The stranger is wearing full combat gear and carrying a pitchfork. As Rosemary and Roy embrace, she looks up and sees the pitchfork over them. Rosemary screams and the stranger plunges it through the both of them...and then leaves a long-stemmed red rose in the dead woman's hand. The revelers are oblivious back at the dance.35 years later. The town prepares for its graduation dance once again. There hasn't been one since that fateful night. Pam MacDonald (Vicky Dawson) stops by to see Sheriff George Fraser (Farley Granger) and they discuss the event. The discussion turns to the invalid Major Chatham (Lawrence Tierney), a fellow World War II veteran, over his refusal to allow the annual celebrations after the murders all those years ago. Sheriff Fraser tells Pam that someone has robbed a store in the nearby town of Columbus and then cut up a kid and took his car.Authorities there are afraid the killer is headed towards Avalon. Despite that possibility, the sheriff is leaving town to go fishing. He puts Mark London (Christopher Goutman), his deputy, in charge. Before Sheriff Fraser takes off, he stops by a convenience store owned by Pat Kingsley (John Seitz). One of the employees is Otto (Bill Hugh Collins), a strange "slow" fellow whom the sheriff seems to mistrust.Pam and Mark have an attraction for each other and go on a lunch date. She shows him an article she wrote about the return of the graduation dance and tells Mark she's concerned about his safety. Pam also tells her roommate Sherry (Lisa Dunsheath) that she's worried about the Columbus killer. Sherry tries to calm her friend's nerves while the other girls in the dormitory are excitedly preparing for the dance. Lisa (Cindy Weintraub) even flashes Major Chatham, who's sitting in his wheelchair in the house across from them.As Pam is putting the finishing touches on her outfit, someone else is getting ready too. But this person is putting on a military combat uniform, complete with a bayonet, hunting knife, and a sawed-off double-barrelled 12-gauge shotgun.Sherry gets into the shower, and before Pam heads out, she asks Sherry if she should wait. Sherry tells her to leave because she's waiting for her boyfriend Carl (David Sederholm). When Carl shows up, he surprises Sherry in the shower. Hoping to have a little fun before they leave, he goes into the bedroom to undress. Suddenly, an intruder grabs him from behind and plunges the bayonet through Carl's head until the other end comes out of his neck. The force is so great that the victim's eyes roll back into his head. Sherry is still in the shower when she sees someone through the curtain approaching. She thinks it's Carl... until the killer (wearing a military helmet and with a gas mask covering his face) pulls the curtain open and is holding a pitchfork. As Sherry screams, he lunges it under her breasts. He then lifts her up as he sticks the pitchfork in further killing her.At the party, Pam is happy to see Mark when he arrives. But before she can talk to him, Lisa pulls him away to dance. Pam stands by the cocktails, frustrated and annoyed. When Mark comes over to talk to her, Lisa follows him. Tipsy from the alcohol, she knocks into him and he spills some liquor on Pam's dress. Pam is furious and heads back to the dorm to change her outfit.When Pam gets to her room, she hears the shower running. Still thinking that Sherry is in the shower, she closes the door. Little does she know that Sherry is dead and that the killer is still in the bathroom. The room is dark enough that she doesn't see Carl's blood on the bed. She changes and then leaves. But as she's going down the stairs, she hears something. Pam looks up at the top of the stairs and sees a dark figure... what looks like a G.I. wearing a gas mask. She gets creeped out and runs through the dorm.There's no one around and just as the killer comes near her, Pam makes it outside. She knocks right into Major Chatham in his wheelchair, who grabs her arm. She breaks free and finds Mark. When she tells him that someone has been chasing her, he takes his flashlight and searches around the dorm. Mark doesn't find anything besides wheelchair marks on the ground which lead to the sidewalk.He returns to his car where Pam is waiting for him - and she tells him to check the dorm because Sherry and Carl are still in there. Mark goes inside and towards the bedroom but the door is locked. He doesn't see that there are two dead bodies in the tub.Pam and Mark go to Major Chatham's house. It's dark and the old man is nowhere to be found. The killer is in the house and he watches them from an upstairs window. During their search, Pam finds an old scrapbook and discovers that Chatham's dead daughter's middle name was Rosemary. She was the girl killed 35 years ago.The two then go back to the dance, where they tell Miss Allison (Donna Davis) about the prowler on the campus. The teacher tells the students they should stay put and not go out until the person has been apprehended. That message comes too late for Lisa.Angry that her date Paul has been puking in the bathroom, she's gone to the pool for a late night swim. After doing a few laps, Lisa ascends the stairs of the pool to go back to the party. The killer is standing above her and kicks her in the face. Shocked by the attack, Lisa tries to swim away but is unable to get her bearings. The killer then jumps into the pool, comes up from behind her, takes his bayonet... and slices her neck. Her body falls lifelessly to the bottom of the pool.Paul wants to leave the dance and find Lisa but the teachers won't let him. He's so drunk and rowdy that he gets thrown out. Mark and Pam take him to the police station house, where Mark puts him in a jail cell.Meanwhile, Mr. Kingsley organizes an armed posse of several men to search the neighborhood for the prowler. Otto is given a rifle and invited to come along with them.Told that the local cemetery has been desecrated, Mark and Pam head out to see what's happened. When they get there, they find Rosemary Chatham's grave dug up. They open the coffin and find Lisa's body in it.Meanwhile, Miss Allison has left to see if she can find Lisa. She sees blood in the pool and panics. As she tries to run away, the killer grabs her and thrusts the bayonet into her neck.Mark tries to reach Sheriff Fraser at the lodge he's staying at but can't get in touch with him when the overweight and lazy front desk clerk refuses to place a call to his cabin, claiming that the sheriff is not there. Before heading back to Major Chatham's house, Mark tries to drop Pam off at the dance. She refuses and insists on going with him. When they get to Major Chatham's house, Mark leaves her for a moment and is knocked unconscious by the killer.Pam spies a necklace dangling from inside the fireplace and tries to pull it out. Still in her graduation dance dress, Rosemary's skeleton falls out of the chimney. Pam tries to find Mark but is confronted by the killer. She runs through the house trying to get away and hides under a bed. The madman is now in the same room. Pam makes every attempt to be still... even as a rat comes near her. Finally, Pam gets up and runs out of the room. She manages to get the pitchfork away from the killer and holds it up for protection as he comes near her.Just then, Otto, the clerk from Kingsley's convenience store, enters the room and shoots the prowler with his hunting rifle. Seconds later, the killer takes out his double-barreled shotgun and shoots Otto in the chest who falls dead. As the killer reloads the shotgun to shoot Pam, she stabs the prowler in the back with the pitchfork and they struggle for the shotgun. The wounded murderer pulls his mask off and Pam is horrified to see who it is. It's been Sheriff Fraser all along. Pam gets the upper hand, points the shotgun at his head and fires... exploding it to bits.The next morning, Pam returns to the dorm, she goes into the bathroom in her bedroom and opens the shower door. The shower is still running and Sherry's body is still on the floor of the tub and Carl is hanging from the shower head by his tie. Suddenly, Carl's corpse reaches out to grab her. She screams and the screen cuts to black.

Review: The film is directed by Joseph Zito who has special effects wizard Tom Savini to thank for the film's best scenes.
Only instead of full mining gear, our Prowler is dressed in WWII era military fatigues.The gore is by far the best thing this film has going for it.
By far my favourite of the early eighties dorm slashers, THE PROWLER is an excellent and exciting film brought to the screen with finesse by Joseph Zito.
The Prowler is not a great little slasher flick, there are a few redeeming features; highish production values, some suspenseful chase sequences, gruesomely effective gore effects courtesy of Tom Savini.
The film tries to set itself up as a bit of a mystery and much is made of the snooping couple looking for clues, I factor that I always finds interesting in these movies, the killer's identity is a surprise, It could have been anyone.A prime example of the slasher genre that gleefully touches all the familiar bases before sliding home (home being an exploding head courtesy of living legend Tom Savini).
In the case of THE PROWLER you'll probably guess the identity of the killer way before the final 'unmasking'-scene.The plot is straightforward and easy to follow (like almost every slasher-flick).
Further more, there are at least two jump-scenes that really work (always a good thing in a horror movie, but you might wanna turn up the volume) and I thought the roses were a nice touch.It was also a nice surprise to see a slasher-movie that knows the rules of the genre and dares to break a few too (you figure out which ones yourself).
80's slashing is in the house.This rather predictable and slow slasher is saved by the gore set-pieces by effects maestro Tom Savini.
Aside from the gore, one of the things that was actually enjoyable about "The Prowler" was that it did offer a little bit of suspense and tension, and the direction by Joseph Zito is perfect while he creates a scary atmosphere and uses the camera to make his killer all the more terrifying.
It is rare that people nowadays can cringe at slasher films from this era, but "The Prolwer" certainly will add a little bit of suspense.The acting isn't as bad as one might think, and its shocking that most of these stars were never heard of again.
However, as mentioned, it is the director Joseph Zito and the make-up artist Tom Savini (of the "Friday the 13th" and "Dawn of the Dead" fame) who really make "The Prowler" worth your time.
I must say that these effects are the best I've seen in a horror film from the time period, and they surpass "The Burning", "Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter", and "Sleepaway Camp"."The Prolwer" is available on DVD, from the Blue Underground Company completely uncut, uncensored, and relentless.
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.
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.
A masked killer, wearing World War II U.S. Army fatigues, stalks a small New Jersey town bent on reliving a 35-year-old double murder by focusing on a group of college kids holding an annual Spring Dance."The Prowler" was directed by Joseph Zito, an incredibly nice guy and talented artist, probably better known for his installment in the "Friday the 13th" series.
He goes around in full WWII combat gear with a mask over his face.Jump 35 years later and at the new graduation dance (the 1st one since 1945), the killing begins again with various college students having their throats slit, pitchforks in their bellies and being chased all around Cape May, New Jersey.
The atmosphere is there, the characters aren't that bad, the killer is imposing, the kills are brutal and nasty...but then...(sigh) things just fall apart and don't get semi-exciting again until the last 10 minutes.The Prowler might be so wonderful in its first act, because it starts off like most slasher flicks end.
An often overlooked entry in the early 1980s slasher genre, "The Prowler" (otherwise known as "Rosemary's Killer" in other territories) benefits a great deal from the unrelenting gore and inventive death scenes delivered by special effects maestro Tom Savini (Dawn Of The Dead, Friday The 13th) and in the surprisingly solid direction of Joseph Zito, who would later go on to deliver one of the most memorable (and bloody) installments in the Friday The 13th franchise, "The Final Chapter."The film opens up with a solider being informed via Dear John letter that his lover is breaking up with him.
"The Prowler" definitely leaves something to be desired in terms of plot...but the amazing gore effects from Savini and the good direction make this a stand-out among other slashers of the 80's.
When a serial killer attacks the students, Mark and Pam seek his hidden place.I bought the DVD "The Prowler" with great expectations based on the good reviews in IMDb. Unfortunately I found a senseless, boring and dated low-budget slasher movie with awful screenplay and lines.
Yet another entry in the flood of early '80's slashers, this one mainly remembered for Savini's awesome gore FX.Gilted WWII soldier kills ex-girlfriend and her lover upon returning home, now decades later he begins to randomly murder.
Does it have anything to do with the Graduation Dance being held again or is it because lovely Pam McDonald is coming too close to solving the mystery of the long-ago murders?While the film's story line is thin indeed (infact, it's kinda similar to that of the earlier slasher My Bloody Valentine) this killer thriller isn't without its merits.
Rejected soldier reaps revenge on unfaithful sweet-heart and new partner, then returns to wreak havoc on anniversary of the killings.The Prowler in question is suitably chilling, dressed in Army fatigues, face hidden under camouflage netting and armed to the teeth with combat knives and assorted garden tools and implements(!?!)Plotline typical affair with obligatory death sequences for this genre, though orchestrated expertly by Special make-up effects wizard Tom Savini,(Friday the 13th, Maniac, Day of the Dead,) some subsequently cut from U.K. release.
The tension never relaxes, and the murders,courtesy of gore effects maestro Tom Savini,including a pitchfork shower killing,an exploding head and a bayonet through a skull,are genuinely shocking,no cheap cutaways here.
Despite this stuff,there's a sense of fun about some parts of the movie,especially during a swimming pool stalking which copies some of the exact shots from Jaws.The acting's pretty feeble {although look out for a 'slumming it' Farley Granger and Lawrence Tierney} and there is rather too much footage of the hero and heroine wandering around the killer's house,the tension TOO drawn out here.
But the big thing with this film to me is the effects done by Tom Savini are great in being graphic and skillful (much like he did a year earlier with FRIDAY THE 13TH).
Yes "The Prowler" also known as Rosemary's Killer from director Joseph Zito is my personal 80's slasher horror favorite film.
One of the best gore overdone death scenes I ever saw in the movie.A group of college students holding a graduation spring dance, 35 years after a double-homicide occurred.
The Prowler I love so sue me.There is a lot of gore, bloody cruel body counts, Tom Savini's effects are excellent.
Friday the 13th Part IV: The Final Chapter is my number 1 all time favorite film in the franchise, Friday the 13th (1980) is in my fourth rank in the "Friday the 13th" franchise just like in this movie I love Tom Savini's effects.Come out the same year as Friday the 13th Part 2, My Bloody Valentine, The Burning, Halloween II did and more gory slasher films, the year 1981 was full of slaher films.
35 years later, there is another graduation dance and that's when our mysterious killer shows up again to murder more people.The Prowler delivers some suspense and gruesome scenes of people being murdered.
"The Prowler" is one of many in the long line of 'slasher' films produced in the early 1980s after the success of "Friday the 13th." Many would have you believe it's one of the greater efforts, but I'm convinced their opinion is swayed by the excellent gore effects provided by Tom Savini.
The majority of the murders take place within the first half hour, and you know something is seriously off about a slasher film where the 'final girl' (the one that usually survives until the end) discovers the carnage so early on in the movie that she's reduced to running around town playing detective with the town deputy for nearly half the film.
Excellent pacing is critical to making a good slasher, and this entry unfortunately isn't up to par, resulting in a disjointed, often meandering film.But as such, some of Tom Savini's best effects are on display here (the pitchfork in the shower scene is genuinely uncomfortable) and make this worth checking out if not just to see one of the few '80s slashers that managed to escape the MPAA unscathed (they would later crack down on many of these films, often sanitizing them to the point that fans have been pleading for uncut releases of their favorite slashers for decades).Not a total waste, but one has to wish they'd thrown in a little more suspense and better pacing to go along with the excellent gore..
I don't want to give the good scenes away, as it is Savini's effects that are the greatest quality of this film, but I can assure that no gore lover will be disappointed.
I watched The Prowler many years ago and the only thing I had really remembered about the movie was that Savini provides some really good special effects.
Look for the best head exploding scene ever.I really would have to say this movie is for Savini fans or just people that like to see ultra gore.
Those who want to see gore, you've got gore.As for the plot, it's really not that important but let me explain a little: in an openly long prolog, a World War II vet in the small town of Avalon Bay returns home from Europe in 1945 having received a "Dear John" letter from his fiancee who does not take it easy, and armed with a pitchfork, he kills her and her new boyfriend one night during a graduation dance at the local college.Cut to 35 years later, the present, it's the day of the first graduation dance since the murders.
But the thing to see are the murders: pitchforkings aside, there are stabings, throat-cuttings, a bayonet through the skull, and an exploding head, most of it shown in considerable detail.Contents: Seven killings; superior blood; one nude scene where Lisa Dunsheath takes a shower (and gets pitchforked); masked psycho; a pathetic red herring; a little suspense; and a couple of surprises..
Yeah, the plot isn't all that great, the pace of the movie drags in places, and several questions ultimately go unanswered - but I was genuinely surprised at the identity of the killer (who is pretty intimidating in his killing garb), the lead actress is fairly cute, and - as is always important for us gorehounds - I was absolutely delighted at the spectacle of blood and gore on display.
The prowler to me might be the second best slasher film of the early 80s with The Burning #1 either way all the gore effects r done by the best man in the business Mr. Savini..
The Prowler is by far the best slasher film of the 80's due to its amazing practical make up effects done by Spfx master Tom Savini and great direction from Joseph Zito.
Yes, all the dumb clichés of horror films are present here, sexed up teens dispatched, a heroine in distress, some red Herring's as to the identity of the slasher, several "false alarms" to set up the real scares, and some of the most idiotic actions by the characters when faced with the stress of evading the killer (running wrong way, tripping over everything, going into one exit rooms, calling out "who's there" when they hear a creepy noise, etc.) but despite all this, I consider it a nifty little film, and one worth watching..
But, then again, that just goes to show you that there's absolutely no accounting for one's puzzling taste in movies.I recently read that make-up effects man, Tom Savini, considers the gore-effects he created for The Prowler to be his very best work.
Well, if this is really so, then I can't imagine how Savini has been able to survive in this competitive field of work for all of these years.From its predictable story-line, to its dismal suspense, to its overloud music, to its laughable, surprise/shock ending, The Prowler was a certified dud on all counts.It made absolutely no sense to me why (after committing his first murder in 1945) the pitchfork-wielding killer took an incredibly long, 35-year hiatus off (that's right!
Joseph Zito's The Prowler (released on video here in the UK as Rosemary's Killer) still commands quite a lot of attention from fans of 80s slashers, primarily for its outstandingly bloody special effects work courtesy of movie make-up legend Tom Savini.
When the main characters, college girl Pam MacDonald (Vicky Dawson) and deputy sheriff Mark London (Christopher Goutman) aren't wandering aimlessly through a dark house, they're engaged in a variety of other mundane activities, and with the killer rarely breaking a sweat to catch his victims, the viewer is left counting every excruciatingly drawn-out second until the next vicious murder.I rate The Prowler 6/10, but solely for the outstanding splatter from Mr. Savini..
Following a terrific pre-credits sequence (which evokes the post-war period through a combination of soft-focus cinematography and imaginative production design), the movie segues into a by-the-numbers slasher scenario, lacking all but the most rudimentary elements of suspense.Savini's effects are just as shocking today as they must have seemed in 1981, particularly a mean-spirited twist on the PSYCHO shower murder which revels in the victim's blood-spattered torment.
Prowler, The (1981) ** (out of 4) A graduation dance is the setting for this slasher that features a masked killer wearing WW2 fatigues.
Joseph Zito The Director Of "Friday The 13th The Final Chapter" And The Chuck Norris Action Film "Missing in Action" Has Directed a Brilliant And Gory Film Called "The Prowler" When The First Time i Saw This Movie it Was Very a Good Slasher Flick And Also Too The Gore Special Make Up Effects is By The Great Tom Savini And This Slasher Film Has Two Hollywood Legend Actors in Special Appreances One is Lawrence Tierney From Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs And The Warner Bros Gangster Classic Film "Dillinger" And The Other is Farley Granger From Alfred Hitchcock's "Rope" Who Plays Shreiff George Fraser Also Known As "The Prowler" This Film The Prowler is One Of The Greatest 80s Slasher Movie Period.
The film's plot is simple: a World War II vet who killed his ex-girlfriend and her lover in 1945 has suddenly began killing again 35 years later, dressed in complete military regalia and using instruments such as a pitchfork and a machete.Like many of its contemporaries, THE PROWLER has little going for it besides gore.
Veteran actors Farley Granger and Lawrence Tierney, who could have lifted the film above most of its contemporaries in terms of acting, are given precious little to do.The main saving grace of THE PROWLER is the special effects work by gore maestro Tom Savini.
Great ending, in my opinion, one of the best of any slasher flick.I highly recommend "The Prowler" for people who enjoy violent and scary movies.
The acting is on the higher end of the spectrum for similar slashers and the director's look of the film is very good, especially (duh) his utilization of Savini's gore.
The Prowler 9/26/2010This early 80's slasher film by Joseph Zito is a horror classic.
"The Prowler"(1981,Joseph Zito)is a lot better than many other slasher flicks.The film is about a WW2 veteran who first kills his girlfriend who left him and her current boyfriend and then goes on a rampage years later,brutally killing teenagers.There are some truly creepy moments and the gore effects made by maestro Tom Savini are truly gruesome.Yes,there are some boring scenes,but who really cares?The killings are unique and extremely bloody.A young guy gets a knife through the top of his head and then out of his jaw,a girl,while seen swimming neo-nude,has her throat slashed,a woman is brutally stabbed in the throat etc.The killer's demise is also great-he gets his head blown off with shotgun(this sequence is very realistic and reminiscent to the one in William Lustig's "Maniac").Besides the gore,the acting is surprisingly decent and Vicky Dawson plays a really likable heroine."The Prowler" is rather hard to find,so if you get a chance watch it.I can safely say that it's ten times better than stupid and politically correct teen slasher movies of the 90's.Highly recommended..
"The Prowler", aka "Rosemary's Killer" is a 1981 slasher movie that begins on the night of June 28, 1945 at a graduation dance in a small town.