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'Psycho': The 2nd Best Horror Movie From 1960

Alfred Hitchcock's magnum opus, 'Psycho' is often included in the discuson of greatest horror movies of all time. In terms of history, 'Psycho' may very well be the most popular horror movie ever made, alongde the likes of 'Halloween', 'Friday the 13th', 'A Nightmare on Elm Street', etc. However, there was another horror film that came out just prior to Hitchcock's clasc that rarely gets mentioned in the same breath. 'Peeping Tom' (1960) is an under-appreciated gem that frequently gets overlooked amongst other heavyweight genre offerings of the era. 'Peeping Tom' is about a man named Mark, who as a child had to endure the torturous experiments of his scientist father who studied the effects of fear, ung his son as a human guinea pig. Of course, due to the psychological torment that he received as a youngster, Mark eventually begins to kill women with the aid of his tripod camera in order to catch their reactions to fear as well. Carl Boehm's performance as Mark, a quiet, awkward, yet amiable killer takes quite a toll on the viewer. Mark is too much of a likable, sympathetic figure for the viewer to immediately root against. He is not a Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, Freddy Krueger, or Pinhead. The viewer empathizes with the killer due to his all-too-disturbing childhood which is why 'Peeping Tom' was such a controveral movie. It not only made you feel bad for Mark but it also depicted things from his viewpoint. The audience and critics were not very receptive to this sort of thing and automatically shunned the movie without giving it a fair chance when it was first released in the U.K. A few months later, 'Psycho', which also stars a sympathetic killer, came out and was universally accepted. 'Peeping Tom' unfortunately and unfairly ruined director Michael Powell's movie career much like the much-maligned horror clasc 'Freaks' ruined director Tod Browning's career just thirty years earlier. To this day, 'Peeping Tom' can still get under the skin of any viewer without resorting to over-the-top gory set-pieces. Watch for yourself and see why 'Peeping Tom' is the best horror movie that 1960 has to offer.

The Criterion Edition is essential! great film!!!!

The Criterion Edition is essential! great film

It certainly is. 'Peeping Tom' is one of the most psychologically disturbing horror movies I've ever had the pleasure of viewing. I truly hope it gets more recognition.

Are there any other 'Peeping Tom' fans around here?