I couldn't help feeling while watching this picture that it was an early forerunner of the slasher films that would soon make their presence felt with titles like "Halloween" and "Friday the Thirteenth". But this was a true story, which intensifies the horror element when you realize it could happen anywhere if some insane person with a sadistic imagination decides to run amok. It's an unusual picture, because even while it's nominally a crime story with horror elements, some comedic aspects are offered up as well, primarily in the person of Sparkplug Benson (Charles B. Pierce), a sheriff's deputy who has all the poise and self confidence of Mayberry's Barney Fife.
The setting of the story is Texarkana, Texas straddling the Texas-Arkansas border. The area came to a virtual standstill during the summer of 1946 when a series of night time attacks and murders occurred, defying attempts by authorities to solve the crimes. Even an intense manhunt under the supervision of Texas Ranger J.D. Morales (Ben Johnson) failed to identify and capture the 'Phantom Killer' as he became known, a case that remains unsolved to this day.
Despite it's unsatisfying conclusion, the picture never fails to hold one's attention, as the actions of the killer reaches strange and unusual proportions. The trombone stabbing of one of the female victims is particularly noteworthy of a sick and dangerous criminal, one who's not content with mere murder on his mind. Adding to the rural feel of the story's location are the mostly unknown members of the cast, led by the authoritative Ben Johnson in the principal role. TV fans of an earlier decade will certainly recognize 'Gilligan Island's' Dawn Wells as one of the Phantom Killer victims, though she was one of the fortunate few who survived her ordeal.
The setting of the story is Texarkana, Texas straddling the Texas-Arkansas border. The area came to a virtual standstill during the summer of 1946 when a series of night time attacks and murders occurred, defying attempts by authorities to solve the crimes. Even an intense manhunt under the supervision of Texas Ranger J.D. Morales (Ben Johnson) failed to identify and capture the 'Phantom Killer' as he became known, a case that remains unsolved to this day.
Despite it's unsatisfying conclusion, the picture never fails to hold one's attention, as the actions of the killer reaches strange and unusual proportions. The trombone stabbing of one of the female victims is particularly noteworthy of a sick and dangerous criminal, one who's not content with mere murder on his mind. Adding to the rural feel of the story's location are the mostly unknown members of the cast, led by the authoritative Ben Johnson in the principal role. TV fans of an earlier decade will certainly recognize 'Gilligan Island's' Dawn Wells as one of the Phantom Killer victims, though she was one of the fortunate few who survived her ordeal.