Back to trending
The Prowler

The Prowler

Horror · Thriller · Mystery · 1981

Thirty years after a murder on the night of Avalon Bay's graduation dance, the sleepy town's teens meet grisly ends at the hands of a prowler once thought to be a jilted soldier home from war.

Movie details

The Prowler

“If you think you're safe... you're DEAD wrong!”

1981 Horror · Thriller · Mystery 1h 29m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

5.8 / 10

Community rating

Thirty years after a murder on the night of Avalon Bay's graduation dance, the sleepy town's teens meet grisly ends at the hands of a prowler once thought to be a jilted soldier home from war.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Prowler?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Eyes of Laura Mars

Eyes of Laura Mars

Mystery · 1978

A famous fashion photographer develops a disturbing ability to see through the eyes of a serial killer.

The Inhabitant

The Inhabitant

Thriller · 2022

Like any other teenage girl, Tara is just surviving high school — yet her father and mother seem strangely distant. Amidst a nearby spree of gruesome ax murders, Tara has sightings of terrifying entities, forcing her to question her own sanity and shocking ancestry.

Night of the Hunted

Night of the Hunted

Horror · 2023

When an unsuspecting woman stops at a remote gas station in the dead of night, she's made the plaything of a sociopath sniper with a secret vendetta. To survive, she must not only dodge his bullets and fight for her life, but also figure out who wants her dead and why.

I Know What You Did Last Summer

I Know What You Did Last Summer

Horror · 1997

After an accident on a winding road, four teens make the fatal mistake of dumping their victim's body into the sea. Exactly one year later, the deadly secret resurfaces as they're stalked by a hook-handed figure.

Lady in White

Lady in White

Mystery · 1988

Locked in a school closet during Halloween 1962, young Frank witnesses the ghost of a young girl and the man who murdered her years ago.

Maniac Cop

Maniac Cop

Action · 1988

A killer dressed in a police uniform begins murdering innocent people on the streets of New York City.

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning

Horror · 2006

Chrissie and her friends set out on a road trip for a final fling before one is shipped off to Vietnam. Along the way, bikers harass the foursome and cause an accident that throws Chrissie from the vehicle. The lawman who arrives on the scene kills one of the bikers and brings Chrissie's friends to the Hewitt homestead, where young Leatherface is learning the tools of terror.

Influencers

Influencers

Horror · 2025

In the picturesque landscapes of Southern France, a young woman's chilling fascination with murder and identity theft sends her life into a whirlwind of chaos.

Jason Lives - Friday the 13th Part VI

Jason Lives - Friday the 13th Part VI

Horror · 1986

Tommy Jarvis, tormented by the fear that maybe Jason isn't really dead, unwittingly resurrects the mass murderer for another bloody rampage.

The Dogs

The Dogs

Horror · 2025

After fleeing his psychotic father, a young teen and his mom seek refuge in a remote farmhouse, only to face a pack of ferocious dogs and the sinister spirits that haunt the property.

Where it lives

Watch in your region.

Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.

Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.

Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Joseph Zito

Written by

Glenn Leopold · Neal Barbera

V

Vicky Dawson

Pam MacDonald

Christopher Goutman

Christopher Goutman

Mark London

Lawrence Tierney

Lawrence Tierney

Maj. Chatham

Farley Granger

Farley Granger

Sheriff George Fraser

Cindy Weintraub

Cindy Weintraub

Lisa

Lisa Dunsheath

Lisa Dunsheath

Sherry

David Sederholm

David Sederholm

Carl

Court is in session

Put The Prowler on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Arthouse Gremlin

“Its refusal to behave is the point.”

The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.

The prosecution The Prestige Tourist

“Oddness is not depth.”

A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.