On night 4 of our #31DaysToHalloween the Mister joins me in reviewing THE STRANGLER (1964), from director Burt Topper, from a screenplay by Bill S. Ballinger. Victor Buono stars as Leo Kroll, a lonely, mother-fixated hospital lab technician who secretly harbors a deep-seated rage against women, which he acts out by serially murdering young nurses and leaving broken dolls at his crime scenes. Kroll's overbearing mother (Ellen Corby), who is a hospital patient, constantly belittles him and convinces him that no woman could ever love him, fueling his dark impulses and his need to kill those he finds attractive and unattainable. After his mother dies and the rejection of a young woman he admires pushes him over the edge, the police finally track him down, leading to a violent confrontation where Kroll plunges to his death. The film clocks in at 1 h and 29 m, is rated Approved. We caught the film on TCM but it is streaming on Fawesome and Tubi and to buy/rent on Prime Video. Please note there are SPOILERS in this review.
#TheStrangler #BurtTopper #BillSBallinger #VictorBuono #LeoKroll #DavidMcLean #LtFrankBenson #DianeSayer #BarbaraWells #DaveyDavison #TallyRaymond #BaynesBarron #SgtMackClyde #EllenCorby #MrsKroll #SeletteCole #Helen #PsychologicalThriller #SerialKiller #Crime #Drama #Horror @tcm @FawesomeTv @Tubi @PrimeVideo #31DaysToHalloween #SpookySeason #Day4 #FridayFamilyFilmNight
Opening intro music: GOAT by Wayne Jones, courtesy of YouTube Audio
