Sadly Over-hyped

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

It's simply great fun, a winsome film and an occasionally over-the-top luxury fantasy that never flags.

A shocking , unnerving and controversial film at the time , that caused real controversy , being no apt for the easily nauseated or sickened ; in fact it was extremely panned by critics . It deals with a psychopath called Mark Lewis , Karlheinz Bhom , who lures women before his film camera , then he records their feared faces . Meanwhile , two police inspectors , Jack Watson and Nígel Davenport , are investigating the weird events .Disturbing subject matter about a psychopatic cameraman who uses his camera to record women's agonies , it is rendered breathtakingly by a great director , the British Michael Powell who performs briefly the part of Mark's abusive daddy , as he is shown on home movies harassing and tormenting the little boy ; furthermore , including a brilliant cinematography by Otto Heller. This is a splendid , thrilling , and gripping as well as adult entertainment, no recommended for nervous or squeamish . A classy of its kind but ultimately not for everyone . Powell is usually associated to great and colorful films , but here he made one of the most terrifying and frightening contributions to the cinema of the macabre since WWII. The killings themselves are horrifyingly tense , causing panic and fear . Karl Bohm gives a nice acting as the ruthless psychopath young photographing his terrified victims at his hand , he couldn't be bettered as the horrible and cruel psycho. Support cast is frankly excellent, such as : Anna Massey, Maxine Audley as her mother , Moira Shearer , Shirley Anne Field , Keith Baxter , Michael Goodliffe , Brenda Bruce , Esmond Knight , Miles Malleson , Martin Miller , Nigel Davenport, Jack Watson, among others.The motion picture was originally made by Michael Powell , but it was so vilified by reviewers and officials alike , that he didn't work in Great Britain for a very long time. As the original uncut version was not realised until 1970 . Michael started working at various jobs in the English studios of Denham and Pinewood on a series of quota quickies . Later on , he made all kinds of genres with penchant for Dramas , Musical and WWII films . As he directed : The tales of Hoffman , The red shoes , The elusive Pimpernel , Pursuit of Graf Spee , The small black room , Black narcisus , Contraband , The thief of Bagdad , Edge of the world , I know where I am going , Night ambush , The lion has wings , Spy in black , The forty-ninth parallel , One of our aircrafts is missing, Life and death of Colonel Blimp , Canterbury tale . Many of them are considered masterpieces, and being produced under banner his production company : The Archers , along with Emeric Pressburger . Powell was rediscovered in the late 1960s and early 70s by Martín Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola . In fact , Powell worked as Senior in Coppola's Zoetrope Studios and he married Scorsese's longtime editor Thelma Schoonmaker. He died of cancer in 1990.

Peeping Tom succeeds in creating a portrait of a vicious killer but at the same time does not abandon our sympathy for him. It's a little dated now. The writing is clunky, the accent a little distracting. But it remains impactful even today.

Some films are so innovative, so ahead of their time, so wholly engaging, that they leave the audience in a perpetual state of "wow" as they watch; Peeping Tom is one such film. Directed by Michael Powell in 1960 explores voyeurism and hypocrisy in a similar fashion to Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho released the same year. Starring Karlheinz Böhm and Anna Massey, Peeping Tom delves into the emotional psyche of a man who uses his camera to kill people while simultaneously using it to film their dying reactions. Powell manages to tap into the sexual interest of voyeurism of his principle characters as well as the hypocrisy of what constitutes art in amazing ways. Showing such stark juxtapositions to illustrate hypocrisy was stunning. To watch this film in 2017, it's possible to miss just how revolutionary this film was for 1960, but nonetheless, Powell deserves to be recognized and praised for his innovative film.Mark Lewis (Karlheinz Böhm) is an introspective, shy man who works as a production assistant on British films. When he is not working on the film set, Mark takes pictures of naked women to be sold somewhat secretly by a store in town. Mark attempts to take artistic shots but is always brought back by the owner of the shop who constantly reminds him to only photograph naked women, as that is what sells. When Mark is not on film sets, or at a porn shoot, he spends the majority of his spare time tucked away in a bonus room in his flat watching reels of footage, that he makes, trying to chase his dream of becoming a filmmaker. The unsettling aspect is what Mark is viewing, Mark shoots murders, ones that he commits, and then watches them later in his flat. Mark's sexual repression is never more clear than when he is watching these films and becoming aroused by them. It becomes clear that Mark is obsessed with the effect of fear, and how it is experienced by others. Believing he is doing somewhat of a service by continuing his father's work on fear and the central nervous system, Mark views his films as research, thereby absolving himself of any guilt of committing murder. Mark fills his life with the different forms terror assumes, becoming obsessed with the emotion and willing to chase it no matter the cost.The most mesmerizing thing that Peeping Tom does is explore hypocrisy. Mark has the drive to create art, he wants to be a filmmaker, creating something for the rest of mankind, but is continuously denied the chance. Mark has taken to photographing subjects believing it to be an artistic outlet until he realizes he is supposed to take the most carnal of photos. Art is only valuable if it sells, and the naked women are all that his boss is interested in selling. Powell's ability to make such a statement on art and the way it is created and consumed was masterful. Peeping Tom is a wonderful suspense film, with each line of dialogue and image shown to the camera having a distinct place in the film. Any decent suspense film is dependent upon its score, and Peeping Tom has the perfect score for a suspense film. Another stand out technical aspect of the film is the interesting way in which color is used. Powell creates a world in Peeping Tom and uses color as an aid in such a way that the audience actually feels drawn into Mark's screening room. Karlheinz Böhm absolutely makes the film, creating a creepy yet unassuming Peter Lorre-type of performance, demanding attention from even his most subtle times on screen. Peeping Tom laid a foundation for many films to come yet continue to hold the respect of being one of the first of its kind, that "originals" often lose.

This wonderfully creepy 1960 horror film predates Psycho by about 3 months and predates the "slasher" film by about 16 years and, in braving new ground which deviated from the Gothic Horror film movement spawned by Hammer Films in 1957, helped move horror from the Gothic castles to the house next door. Michael Powell's film presents us with a young man who is so fascinated by the subject of fear, that he stalks young women and kills them while filming their deaths with his movie camera. In to the young man's world, comes a young woman who only wants to understand him and love him, but will she find out his horrible secret before its too late? However, on a cerebral level, Peeping Tom retains its capacity to disturb. Rarely has a film depicted the process of a killer being created so chillingly, nor the manner in which such individuals are capable of conflicted, dualistic personalities. Consider how many serial killers have been described to be charming and kind by others who knew them (Dennis Nilsen or Ted Bundy for example).The scenes showing this transition from shy man-child to confident killer are masterful, with Carl Boehm overcoming other more obvious limitations in his casting (the accent mainly) to portray this aspect unerringly. Peeping Tom has been an incredibly influential film for today's filmmakers, as its influences can be seen in films from Road to Perdition to Red Dragon. I highly recommend it to any fan of film and film history.Overall rating: 8 out of 10.