THE PROWLER (1981, Blu-ray released July 27, 2010 – MSRP $29.98)
As much as I love the horror genre, I’ve never really cared for slasher fliks. Freddy and Jason have never been my cup of tea. Imagine my surprise when I found myself enjoying the heck out of Blue Underground‘s new Blu-ray edition of the 1981 rarely-seen sleeper slasher, The Prowler!
From the Blu-ray package:
- “Avalon Bay, 1945: On the night of her graduation dance, young Rosemary and her date are brutally murdered by a prowler thought to be a jilted soldier home from the war. The killer was never found. Thirty years later, the dance is held again for the first time since that horrific evening – but something else may have also returned… Tonight, the teens of this sleepy town will meet their grisly ends at the hands – and pitchfork, blade and more – of THE PROWLER!“
As much as The Prowler may have flown under the radar of most slasher fans, the die-hards who’ve had a chance to catch a screening or grab it up on home video over the years know that it’s something quite special. The plot is rote in its structure – you won’t find anything inventive in the construction of the material here, as the film moves from standard plot device to standard plot device as one would expect, with foolish, sex-crazed teens meeting their demise left, right and centre. The magic of the film is in its handling, masterfully written and directed by Joseph Zito (Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter) with ghastly, all too realistic bloody effect work by master of the macabre, Tom Savini (of the amazing, original Dawn of the Dead fame!) The characters are, for the most part, quite believable, ably performed by a cast of unknowns alongside the late, great Lawrence Tierney (Dillinger, Reservoir Dogs) and Farley Granger (Rope, Strangers on a Train.) But character and plot are rarely the point in films such as this. In the slasher genre, it’s all about the killings. And they are as gory, upfront and realistically detailed in The Prowler as I’ve ever seen them before. I can’t imagine a Freddy or Jason fan asking for anything more.
The Prowler arrives on Blu-ray disc with a transfer that is no doubt the best it has ever looked, and the best it will ever look on home video. High-def fanatics are not going to be blown away by the dark, grainy image on the disc but rest assured, this is great work considering the films origins and a vast improvement over the previously available DVD edition of the film. The DTS-HD MA 7.1 lossless soundtrack is also just about the best you could expect from the source material. While clean and clear, you won’t find many ambient effects emanating from your rear channels. The mix is very front and centre oriented without much low end to give your LFE a workout. The film’s original mono mix is also included for film purists.
Special features on the disc are an exact copy of those available on the DVD, with the feature length commentary track by Zito and Savini standing tall as the best of the bunch. Genre fans will love this playful sit-down with their heroes, as both men recall stories from the set and share a wealth of insight into their film making processes. Equally as delightful, is the 10-minute “Tom Savini’s Behind-the-Scenes Gore Footage” which is exactly as it sounds – raw footage of the gore-make-up guru hard at work on the set of the film. This is rare and amazing stuff! The disc is rounded out with the original theatrical trailer for the film.
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