CinemaClown An interesting journey into the mind of a serial killer that also touches on themes of voyeurism, loneliness, childhood trauma, sexual repression & the art of filmmaking, Peeping Tom was torn to shreds by critics when it premiered but just like any other film that was ahead of its time, it has garnered a cult following and is now regarded as a genre classic.Set in London, the story of Peeping Tom follows a lonely young man obsessed with the effects of fear and is making a documentary on it, the content of which involves him recording the final expressions of victims as he murders them. Things are set in motion when the woman living below his apartment befriends him and later comes across his works inadvertently.Directed by Michael Powell, the film packs a number of shooting tips & tricks up its sleeve and opens with a scene that introduces the protagonist doing what he does best, all captured from his camera's viewpoint. Powell paints a tragic portrait of the killer here, keeping his human aspects in tact throughout while showing him to be a psychotic product of child abuse.Also notable is the self-reflexive use of camera as this cinematic device narrates a story of its own through its POV shots, smooth manoeuvring, sharp images, bright lighting & vivid use of colour palette. Humour is cleverly incorporated in spite of the dark tone. Editing keeps the tension palpable, even leaving few murder moments to viewers' imagination, but the pacing is a bit on the slow side.Coming to the performances, Carl Boehm plays the serial killer and does a fantastic job at capturing his human side and articulating it to the audience in a relatable way. It's a thoughtful, balanced & impressive act by all means. Anna Massey is in as the girl next door but her work is mediocre at best while her mother, played by Maxine Audley, manages to leave an impression of her own despite her limited screen time.On an overall scale, Peeping Tom is a fascinating example of psychological horror that's skilfully directed by Michael Powell and is brilliantly steered by Carl Boehm's terrific rendition of his simultaneously creepy & pitiful character but there are slow patches in the middle that make the ride a bit tedious at times plus the interaction between our protagonist & his girl friend isn't quite engaging either. Controversial at its time of release, Peeping Tom has rightfully earned its place today amongst the finest works of its genre.

Alan Smithee Esq. It's exactly what you think a murder-thriller based on voyeurism would be like and then some. But it was made decades (probably) before you were born. Controversial on release this movie was truly ahead of it's time. This inspired countless films like it but you can't beat the real thing. It packs one hell of a punch.

deideiblueeyez This film is not a thriller but more of an experience in which you put the pot of water on the stove but remove it before it begins to boil furiously; a slow-burner, if you will. What really matters is the aura that cloaks the male protagonist Mark. There is something fragile about him, something *vulnerable* that Vivian--the daughter of the couple renting the bottom floor of Mark's house--immediately notices and attempts to reach out to him. The viewer already knows that Mark is dangerous, but despite the psychopathy he has demonstrated in the precision of his killings, despite the perverseness of him filming it while it happens, and despite him developing said film so he can relive the moments over and over in the comfort of his makeshift studio, you pray that not only will Vivian be able to slip from his fingers unharmed as she unwittingly treads closer and closer to finding out his secret, but that her desire to know him better and to smooth out the kinks in his demeanor (the visible ones, anyway) makes for a surprisingly endearing couple.As the title of this review should tell you, it reminds me a lot of Francis Dolarhyde's relationship with Reba in Manhunter (much more pronounced and tragic in the Red Dragon version), in which the killer finds temporary solace in an unlikely 'Morality Pet', which, despite her attempts to help their secret killers, are in the end unable to do so, and to me they serve as reminders to the viewer that compassion and empathy are indeed imperative in the handling and treatment of the mentally ill or disturbed, but they alone cannot solve the psychosis (as Vivian's intuitive mother hinted to Mark near the end of the film).I would recommend watching this for those who are curious about the psychological horror genre but are intimidated by David Lynch and Stanley Kubrick's works.

Alice Digsit I had a rather odd viewing of this film in that I half-watched it at a the house of friend of mine who happens to be colour-blind. We were talking and the sound was down for much of the time and I didn't see the beginning or the end. But what I saw mesmerised me.Having not really caught much of the plot except for moments when my host was making tea, I am reminded more of Blow-Up, made several years later, than of any other film. The main character of the film seemed to be photography itself, and the psychology of the antihero and his victims faded into insignificance in the fragmented view of the film that I had.Not only did cameras abound in the film, and were at once the means of vision - both in the sense of the making of film itself and also in the sense of being the main agency in allowing the protagonist to fulfil his aims - they are perhaps also cyphers for seeing and for viewpoint and for perspective and outlook, drawing the viewer into a world of questions on these subjects.What fascinated me most about the film though was the colour. This was frustrated by my only having my colour-blind friend to discuss it with, and while he does see quite a lot of colours he doesn't see them all and this undermines his interest in colour generally.This film was made long after 2-colour films were obsolete, yet the film is shot to look like 2-colour Technicolor. IMDb credits it as using Eastmancolor 35mm film, so the colour set-ups in the film are self-consciously reproducing an earlier era of film by controlled use of hair colourings, set design, light gels and costume. The palette of the film is fascinating and beautiful, revisiting the stylised colour gamut which had decades earlier - after it's initial impact - come to leave film audiences unsatisfied by its unrealism. By the time this film was shot audiences were accustomed to rich full-spectrum photography and the colouring of the film subverts that, while highlighting the beauty of the older films at their best with, perhaps, an added glow that memory and nostalgia and better technology can create.Having missed most of the plot of the film, I have no idea if this colour lushness is purely a sensual layer of technical beauty this film is imbued with or whether it has an important interaction with the film's philosophical or psychological elements - but it sure was good to look at.