A mere eight months after World War II has ended, the peaceful and quaint community of Texarkana is suddenly shaken up by the presence of a hooded, silent killer. At first, he attacks a young couple at a lovers' lane, sending them to the hospital with gashes, bite marks, and multiple injuries. The local police chief suggests warning youths to stay away from lonely roads and areas, but when another pair is discovered by a local deputy, this time slain and lying in the woods, the force comes to the conclusion that they will need outside assistance. With that, a famous Texas Criminal Investigator is brought in, and the crew begins their search for a man that one person simply dubs "a phantom."
Director Charles Pierce's The Town That Dreaded Sundown has been on my "to watch" list for what feels like an eternity. The influential proto-slasher picture, based loosely on a true story that continues to haunt the small area of Texarkana, has been sited as a notable influence on multiple pictures in the horror field, including Friday the 13th Part 2, wherein Jason Voorhees dawns a sack to wear over his head before switching over to his infamous goalie's mask in the later sequels. There's even a remake/sequel on the way from Orion Pictures, which will hit select theaters and On-Demand channels around the same time. Outside of a Blu-Ray purchase, I was ready to give up hope that there would ever be a way of viewing this cult classic by not spending more than twenty dollars. Suddenly, it popped up on Netflix Instant Streaming. Huzzah! After four years of doing this marathon, I was finally ready to dive in.
And….*takes deep breath*….I was pretty disappointed by it.
Before my elitist friends and/or readers chew my head off similarly to how the Phantom killer reportedly chewed on one of his own victim's body parts, let me explain and try to justify my own opinion (which is just that). I think that The Town That Dreaded Sundown is competently made, well-directed for the most part, and hides its low budget rather well. Heck, the performances from leads Andrew Prine and Ben Johnson are actually quite good, as is a small role that Ms. Dawn Wells of Gilligan's Island fame takes part in. At least two of the scenes involving our mysterious murderer stalking and ultimately ending the lives of his victims are close to being classified as creepy.
What swayed me to the side of ultimately disliking the film came down to its awkward setup and execution. I was hoping that the decision to cast a narrator for The Town That Dreaded Sundown was only going to be a temporary and one-time use. Instead, Vern Stierman's voiceover pops in way more often than I believe he should have, making the picture feel like a compilation of an afternoon television show, or worse yet, a History Channel special involving better actors and actresses. To call it heavy on exposition is being kind. There's also the incredibly bizarre choice of throwing in far too many comedic elements. I'm sure that these were supposed to make the film feel more grounded, and keep the audience's attention intact, but for the most part, they feel so out-of-place and take you out of what's going on so often, that it kills the possibility of setting up a real mood or atmosphere (a sequence involving the police having to dress in drag while waiting for the Phantom's next strike is just too weird to be funny). The poor lighting also doesn't help matters, making every stabbing, shooting, and beating nearly impossible to see, and I was honestly perplexed every now and then as to whether anybody was even being hurt by this masked madman.
Maybe I was misled into thinking that The Town That Dreaded Sundown was going to be a completely different film than what it was. Back in the day, I assumed that it would be supernatural-based, which it most certainly wasn't. After glancing at the poster (you can thank the tagline for essentially giving away the ending), I also assumed that it would be much bloodier and nastier. When neither of these turned out to be true, I was still willing to go with the flow and hope to find a new favorite flick to add to my future collection. But even after all was said and done, I think the movie just never quite lived up to its true potential. If it was supposed to pique my interest in the case of the "Moonlight Murders," then it did an average job at it. I wouldn't be opposed to watching this aforementioned remake/sequel coming out within one day from the time of my review being posted (I can assure you, I'll be watching more unnecessary sequels and remakes sooner than you can imagine), but I don't know what my expectations will be.
However, I do know that if it doesn't involve death by trombone stabbing, then I'm giving it all of my fingers down.
Speaking of remakes, tomorrow I'm taking an even bigger, deeper breath, and journeying into 2005's remake of John Carpenter's The Fog!
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