This film begins in Las Vegas with a newspaper reporter by the name of "Carl Kolchak" (Darren McGavin) getting an assignment to cover the murder of a young woman in the local area. Although he is at first hesitant to cover this story, he soon finds himself immersed in it when the body count increases and there is one striking similarity to them all-they are completely drained of blood. And although he is instructed to keep most of the details secret, it soon becomes evident to all of those involved in this case that the perpetrator is no ordinary serial killer. Now, rather than reveal any more, I will just say that I remember watching this movie when it first came out on television and I was greatly impressed with it at the time. That said, having recently seen it again some 50 years later, I remain impressed. Admittedly, being a made-for-television movie, there isn't that much graphic violence or gore that one might expect to see these days--but even so, it has still retained its charm and I have rated it accordingly. Above average.
Review of The Night Stalker
