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The Town That Dreaded Sundown (1976)

Rate: 9
Viewed: 1/12, 10/14

TDread
1/12: The Town That Dreaded Sundown, which is a great title by the way, was one of the earliest slasher films that may have influenced the creation of Friday the 13th.

Before there was Jason Voorhees, there was the Phantom Killer of Texarkana who was never caught for his crimes, giving the unsolved case an ominous feel. Although the horror aspects meet the standards of the 70's-80's slasher flicks, the direction is disappointingly weak. If not for Sparkplug, The Town That Dreaded Sundown would've been better.

At the end, there's an explanation of what happened to the characters, and Sparkplug turns out to be fictional. Then, why bother having him in the first place? The best part is the narration, and the filmmakers should've stuck with it from start to finish.

All in all, The Town That Dreaded Sundown needs a better director, but it's a cool poster right there.

10/14: It's Halloween time which means I'm in the mood for a horror movie, and my choice is The Town That Dreaded Sundown.

It's an underrated serial killer picture. I'm still annoyed by the presence of Sparkplug who's merely there to provide comedy relief when he should've been dropped. On the other hand, I like Vern Stierman's narration, giving the film a matter-of-factly tone in a haunting manner. Deputy Norman Ramsey, who's played well by Andrew Prine, starts things off, and then the old pro, Ben Johnson, takes over to make the murder mystery plot credible.

The Phantom, who dons a white pillowcase with poked holes, is terrifying. I can't help but feel that he must be suffocating with all the breathing inside. Anyway, I love the cinematography and the setup of the eerie atmosphere as it's mostly shot on location in Texarkana where the Phantom struck in 1946 and was never caught thereafter.

All in all, The Town That Dreaded Sundown is an influential horror classic that could've gotten a '10' from me had Sparkplug been eliminated.