Who Killed Teddy Bear? -1965

Director Joseph Cates

Starring Sal Mineo, Juliet Prowse, Elaine Stritch

Scott’s Review #1,526

Reviewed April 5, 2026

Grade: A-

Enshrouded with groovy, almost psychedelic camera shots and black-and-white filming, Who Killed Teddy Bear? (1965) has tremendous style and cinematic creativity.

The film also shows the seedy nature of 1960s New York City, a time when crime increased, and the once culturally and artistically safe haven was suddenly shrouded in filth and danger.

This sets the stage for a film about stalking, menacing, and murder.

Frequent exterior shots of Manhattan, including 42nd Street, Central Park, and Times Square, make it feel relevant and alive. I’m glad these were incorporated over solely studio sets.

Additionally, taboo subjects like lesbianism, pornography, and incest are explored, enhancing a stark direction in cinema from the wholesome 1950s to the edgy 1960s, to the intensity of the 1970s, when the envelope in filmmaking was gloriously pushed and pushed.

Combined with the experimental visuals, the film is a measured success.

The overall story, though, disappoints due to ambiguous motivations and an unsatisfying conclusion.  Right off the bat, the cover art essentially gives away the film’s predator, which the film sets up as a whodunit of sorts.

Nonetheless, thanks to its daring, I rank Who Killed Teddy Bear? as a compelling, impressive effort despite some reservations about the writing.

The film follows Norah Dain (Juliet Prowse), a nightclub disc jockey and aspiring actress living alone in a sublet apartment in Manhattan. Norah begins to receive a series of obscene phone calls from someone who seems to be watching her every day.

She also finds a decapitated teddy bear in her apartment.

Suspects like police detective, Dave Madden (Jan Murray), whose own wife was raped and murdered, and takes a personal interest in Norah and her case, and a waiter at the nightclub, Lawrence Sherman (Sal Mineo),  who lives with and cares for his nineteen-year-old sister Edie (Margot Bennnett), who has a brain injury and has the mind of a child, are introduced.

Of course, we know from the very first scene that the stalker is a man, but we don’t know his motivations or why he targets Norah in particular.

Does he have a mental illness, merely obsessed with a pretty girl, or are his reasons more personal? What does the teddy bear have to do with anything?

In an opening scene, and what could have been influenced by Hush, Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964), a young girl falls down the stairs, clutching a teddy bear that she ultimately drops.

Is the stalker out for revenge for a past wrongdoing, and what does Norah have to do with that? How does Marian Freeman (Elaine Stritch), the older, experienced manager of the nightclub who takes a personal interest in Norah, fit into the puzzle?

Mineo gives an impressive performance right alongside Prowse, and his character is the most interesting to dissect once the film concludes. Nearly rivaling his performance in Rebel Without a Cause (1955), his character is flawed, ruined, and emotionally scarred, and we yearn to know more about him.

Sadly, there is more left to learn.

Prowse deserves praise for carrying the film and exuding cautious rebellion and a thirst for life. Norah refuses to cower in her apartment; instead, she lives her life, yearning for freedom in the big city, and Prowse captures this wonderfully.

Aspects of Peeping Tom (1960) and Psycho (1960) regarding voyeurism and ‘mommy issues’ can be seen in Who Killed Teddy Bear? and in the yet-to-come Black Christmas (1974), which may have been influenced by the film.

I can’t find much about director Joseph Cates, but he has a masterful cutting-edge technique.

Considering the multitude of taboos and perversions the film explores, that almost no films were doing is to be celebrated. Who Killed Teddy Bear? (1965) is a messy, sometimes uneven film, but rocks the boat in all the best ways.