Half of this film is done like a creepy documentary with a "serious guy voice over" and killing reenactments which are utterly brutal, nasty, misogynistic, and very very suspenseful. That half of the movie I would give ten stars. However the other half which follows a bunch of dumb cops with silly, out of place comedic shenanigans, complete with silly out of place comedic music to boot is an awful eye- and ear-sore! But, oh those killing scenes!!! You've got a guy who looks just like Jason from Friday the 13th Part 2 killing, biting, torturing couples but unlike F13 the the camera lingers on the attacks. He doesn't just pop out, stab someone and disappear, we get to see the whole nasty affair! Then its back to "Barney Fife" and the bumbling cops charade. Blechhh! Cool ominous ending though. Any horror movie fan should definitely check it out!

Ben Johnson leads a Texarkana manhunt for a hooded serial killer. Aproximately every three weeks in 1946, random killings occurred, mostly in lovers lanes. The film has excellent post WW2 atmosphere, and is only weakened by voice overs, and some"Barney Fife" type humor that fails completely. The attacks are sometimes depicted rather darkly, but the hooded killer who does not speak, is memorable. One does sense a feeling of dread among the townsfolk throughout, and the police frustration is also well documented. Sometimes less is best, as is the case with "The Town That Dreaded Sundown". With no idea of who the masked menace is, his motivation, or as the open ended conclusion speculates, is he still out there, ones imagination is left to wonder. - MERK

I couldn't help feeling while watching this picture that it was an early forerunner of the slasher films that would soon make their presence felt with titles like "Halloween" and "Friday the Thirteenth". But this was a true story, which intensifies the horror element when you realize it could happen anywhere if some insane person with a sadistic imagination decides to run amok. It's an unusual picture, because even while it's nominally a crime story with horror elements, some comedic aspects are offered up as well, primarily in the person of Sparkplug Benson (Charles B. Pierce),a sheriff's deputy who has all the poise and self confidence of Mayberry's Barney Fife.

The setting of the story is Texarkana, Texas straddling the Texas-Arkansas border. The area came to a virtual standstill during the summer of 1946 when a series of night time attacks and murders occurred, defying attempts by authorities to solve the crimes. Even an intense manhunt under the supervision of Texas Ranger J.D. Morales (Ben Johnson) failed to identify and capture the 'Phantom Killer' as he became known, a case that remains unsolved to this day.

Despite it's unsatisfying conclusion, the picture never fails to hold one's attention, as the actions of the killer reaches strange and unusual proportions. The trombone stabbing of one of the female victims is particularly noteworthy of a sick and dangerous criminal, one who's not content with mere murder on his mind. Adding to the rural feel of the story's location are the mostly unknown members of the cast, led by the authoritative Ben Johnson in the principal role. TV fans of an earlier decade will certainly recognize 'Gilligan Island's' Dawn Wells as one of the Phantom Killer victims, though she was one of the fortunate few who survived her ordeal.