Gideon C.I.D. (TV Series) The Prowler (1965) User Reviews

A real Chiller.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 8/10 · 28 April 2023]

Commander Gideon has his work cut out, as he chases a Prowler that's attacked six women, and stolen cuttings of their hair.

It's a classic episode, I loved the mix of psychology and social order, the killer is aware that he has a problem, but his crimes are facilitated by an overbearing mother, desperate to keep up the social order.

It's a wonderfully atmospheric episode, nothing much beats a foggy London, seeing a big red bus driving through the thick fog, a Prowler on the loose, it's a classic scenario, it may not be the most original, but it really does work. The writing is arguably ahead of its time.

There are some horror vibes throughout, that mask would have worked well in a horror film, I only wish they'd revealed his identity a little later on, that's my one criticism.

Definitely shades of Psycho, you almost feel sorry for Alan, who's the real criminal though, him, or his overbearing mother?

This was a classic, 9/10.

The Prowler

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 3 November 2021]

Shades of Jack the Ripper mixed with Norman Bates and Peeping Tom.

Alan Campbell-Gore (David Collings) is an aristocrat whose mind is disturbed after his fiancée committed suicide.

London is gripped by a prowler, who is killing women and cutting off a lock of their hair. The police are under pressure to catch him.

Campbell-Gore knows there is something wrong with him. He even begs his unsympathetic mother to have him sectioned. He is even distraught to learn that his mother broke the relationship with his fiancée.

It might have been better if the identity of the murderer was not immediately shown. It becomes a character piece of a psychologically disturbed young man with a horrible mother.

I noted there were some comments by a policeman how once the Prowler is caught, some do-gooder will make excuses for him. Maybe pre-empting the vigilante cop movies of the 1970s and 80s.