Peeping Tom

Release Year: 1960

Director: Michael Powell

Review:  'Peeping Tom' finds Michael Powell without his longtime filmmaking partner Emeric Pressburger.  Powell never ceases to amaze me with the diversity of his talent.  From the epic-style war movie 'Life and Death of Colonel Blimp', to the eloquent examination of the passion of dance in 'The Red Shoes', to this film, a phycological horror thriller.  One constant remains the same, all are magnificently produced and are far ahead of their time.  Powell might have gone too far ahead of his time with this film as the critical backlash devastated his career.  Audiences were not quite ready for the taboo story of a psychopathic serial killer who filmed the deaths of his victims.

It's a creepy movie.  Carl Boehm, who plays Tom, delivers an unsettling performance.  His character is painfully shy, but obsessed with his camera.  The way he delivers his lines in a slow, calculated and cool manner enhances the vile acts he commits.  What is most disturbing is that, while a loner, Tom is an ordinary guy.  He is nicely groomed, and is pleasant to the people who interact with him.  He even manages to charm his neighbor into a romantic attachment to him.  The trust which his victims place in him is the most terrifying part.  They're sheer terror as he slowly approaches them with his camera for their final closeup is haunting. 

 In a way Tom's obsession, his fascination and desire to see the horror contorted on his victims faces, is a reflection of what lies in all movie audiences.  We watch horror movies and we see terrible acts of cruelty and we shovel popcorn in our mouths.  Powell turns the mirror on us, and shows how gruesome this actually is.  Its easy to draw comparisons to 'Psycho' while watching this.  Both deal with psychotic serial killers, tormented by their parents.  'Peeping Tom' might be much less discussed, but its equally as good. 
Rating: 4/5