Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

The Town That Dreaded Sundown

Play trailer Poster for The Town That Dreaded Sundown R 1976 1h 30m Mystery & Thriller Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
46% Tomatometer 13 Reviews 41% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
A hooded madman stalks the lovers' lanes of Texarkana in this fact-based account of a 1946 killing spree.
Watch on Fandango at Home Stream Now

Where to Watch

The Town That Dreaded Sundown

Critics Reviews

View More
Vincent Canby New York Times 05/09/2005
A couple of professional actors, Ben Johnson and Andrew Prine, head the cast, but the film looks nonprofessional in evey other respect. Go to Full Review
Keith Garlington Keith & the Movies May 5
3.5/5
Despite those tonal jolts ...“The Town That Dreaded Sundown” is effective in creating the very dread found in its title. It’s spin on the true events keep us engaged and the finish has an unsettling edge that leaves us wondering. Go to Full Review
Ruth Batchelor Los Angeles Free Press 10/25/2019
We are told from the beginning that this is a true story. So I want to give a true opinion: it stinks. Go to Full Review
Jean Hoelscher Gannett News Service 07/09/2019
The Town That Dreaded Sundown achieves good excitement much of the time, but it could have been a lot stronger with better dramatic involvement. Go to Full Review
TV Guide Staff TV Guide 09/26/2018
1/5
Despite the intriguing premise, Pierce is a stupifyingly unimaginative director, and the film is incredibly dull. Go to Full Review
Felix Vasquez Jr. Cinema Crazed 12/02/2013
A spooky dramatization of actual events, but in the end it feels like a docudrama more than a horror film. Go to Full Review
Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
Steven M Jul 5 Small town life threaten by a brutal killer…my kind of movie. See more Rckn R Feb 16 I'm surprised that there are so many negative reviews. This movie captures a quasi docudrama vibe much like director Charles b pierce other movie" legend of boggy creek ". He's able to get the semi low budget drive in vibe with a bigger budget in this one...much like John Carpenter kept his b movie esthetic in some of his bigger movies . Some people have a problem with the humor ...it's not 1976 humor , it's the kind of humor you'd hear in the late 40s or 50s. Thus making this a more accurate timepiece. What makes it shocking is it can go from safe and humorous to absolute shocking recreation of serial killings . The violent scenes - I'm surprised they were allowed. They are very violent. This movie should be up there with Texas Chainsaw massacre, Halloween, and the first Friday the 13th. I'm sure Halloween and Friday were inspired by it. It's definitely in my top 10 of horror...easily. See more SkyRo P @TheMovieSearch Feb 1 After viewing "The Town That Dreaded Sundown," I had high hopes for a thrilling horror movie that would keep me on the edge of my seat. However, the film turned out to be a letdown, with a twist at the end being the only moment of intrigue. The rest of the movie felt drawn-out, absurd, and uninteresting. As the plot unfolded, it became increasingly clear that the film was leading to nowhere, and the gradual decline in quality left me feeling disengaged until the final twist involving the murderer. Despite some horror elements being teased throughout, they failed to deliver any significant impact, leaving the viewer with a sense of unfulfilled expectations. Additionally, the film relied heavily on sexual themes that felt unnecessary and out of place. Overall, "The Town That Dreaded Sundown" failed to live up to its potential as a captivating horror movie and instead ended up being a disappointing and unsatisfying watch. See more Alec B 01/05/2024 The concept has a lot of promise. Even setting aside the horror, there's so much to explore in how communities react to danger. Unfortunately all you get are sub par genre thrills. See more KerryWhite's S @KerryWhite77 10/12/2023 7/10. 70/100. | Okay I did NOT expect it to be that funny 😆 See more Valerii Ege D 08/22/2023 I wanted to watch this movie so bad. But I am a bit disappointed. Killer sequences are what I was expecting, like Boston Strangler, but other parts, big no. Now I need to watch the 2014 version. See more Read all reviews
The Town That Dreaded Sundown

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW
Dillinger 93% 75% Dillinger Watchlist Boxcar Bertha 54% 33% Boxcar Bertha Watchlist Foxy Brown 57% 66% Foxy Brown Watchlist The Big Sleep 57% 28% The Big Sleep Watchlist Bloody Mama 13% 41% Bloody Mama Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis A hooded madman stalks the lovers' lanes of Texarkana in this fact-based account of a 1946 killing spree.
Director
Charles B. Pierce
Producer
Charles B. Pierce
Screenwriter
Earl E. Smith
Distributor
American International Pictures
Production Co
American International Pictures (AIP)
Rating
R
Genre
Mystery & Thriller, Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 24, 1976, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 17, 2014
Runtime
1h 30m
Most Popular at Home Now