SunnyHello Nice effects though.

Kidskycom It's funny watching the elements come together in this complicated scam. On one hand, the set-up isn't quite as complex as it seems, but there's an easy sense of fun in every exchange.

Maidexpl Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

Zlatica One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

christopher-underwood I liked this far more than I imagined I would. The cast performances are variable and I would imagine that more time and effort was put in getting all those vintage cars together than with the actors. But never mind there is enough good story telling and wonderful cinematography to get us by. Wasn't sure I was going to be happy with the narration but it was okay and seemed quite quaint alongside the moments of gory violence. I've no idea why this wasn't more sex and violence orientated, I think it would have helped, but maybe it was the notion that a serious real crime story was being told that caused the makers to veer somewhat away from exploitation. Even though, in the end, that is what this is. Sequences with the 'phantom' in his inspired mask are immensely effective. It is well designed and the breathing drawing in the material most creepy. He moves well too, always aware of the impression his lumbering is going to have - both on the victims and us, the viewer. And talking of the look, what about those Arkansas landscapes - a real surprise and very helpful in maintaining the sinister atmosphere. There are very many good shots, especially towards the end but I especially recall a moonlight sugar cane plantation that was quite sensational.

gizmomogwai I was surprised never to hear of the Texarkana Moonlight Murders until last night; I had studied the case of the Zodiac Killer and never knew an unknown prowler was terrorizing lovers lanes in the US 20 years earlier (I guess the fact that the so-called Phantom Killer never sent a single cipher is what makes him less interesting today). Nevertheless, after the Zodiac terrorized America, the Texarkana murders got the big screen treatment with The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976), a film that, I understand, got played in Texarkana every Halloween for years. The question is why, given the horror is undermined by bad attempts at comedy and that comedy is based on a rather unflattering portrayal of the local yokels. It turns out it's no wonder why the Phantom got away- according to this movie, it was because the Keystone Cops were on the case. The "Sparkplug" character was intolerable, far too stupid to be funny- he has no idea where keys go, and the fact that he drives a car carrying our hero detective into a swamp right when they've apprehended a main suspect is bewildering. In drag, he and the fat detective with the moustache as decoys also look like the least convincing teenagers I've ever seen in film. Given the creative liberties taken with the story, it's disappointing the Phantom never "got" Sparkplug- I surely would have been rooting for the killer in that scenario.It's a shame, because the rest of the film is fairly competently done- not so much as a slasher film but as a murder mystery, which is more of what I was after. They should have stuck with that approach.

poe-48833 What would you get if you took John Carpenter's classic HALLOWEEN and removed any and all suggestion(s) of the supernatural? That's right: THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN. The fact that this one's based on facts (to a degree) is all the more terrifying. While I'm no fan of slasher films (much less GORY slasher films), movies like this one- based on Real Life incidents- hold a morbid fascination. The almost palpable TENSION in THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN stems directly from the fact that it's "based on a true story." Filmmaker Pierce quite naturally takes some artistic liberties with the story, but the overall effect is still downright chilling. In this one, we find the template for most of the slasher films that would follow in the wake of HALLOWEEN (including, to a degree, HALLOWEEN itself). The idea that they never really nailed this guy is all the more frightening- even in retrospect.

nicko252008 This is one of the better horror thrillers to come out of the 70's. The killer wears a terrifying hooded mask and is Merciless. Loved every minute of it, the Texas ranger, spark plug, the killer EVERYTHING. I really like how the killer was never found, or possibly died in the swamp. It keeps that (it could be anybody) feel at the end. Maybe the killer is walking around right next to you... makes you think a bit. And it's a TRUE story, these events actually did occur. And the town shows the movie in the park where the killings took place. That is pretty cool. The town actually embraces the murders, and realizes this movie is a cult classic. The blu ray release looks stunning, very good transfer. I thought the film was shot in the 90's after watching it, it looked that crisp.