The Frighteners (1996)
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An architect who gains the ability to communicate with ghosts must confront a murderous spirit posing as the Grim Reaper.
The story
After his wife's death, architect Frank Bannister develops psychic abilities that allow him to see and communicate with ghosts. He begins a business where he 'exorcises' spirits for a fee, often using ghost partners to stage hauntings. However, his life is upended when a malevolent entity posing as the Grim Reaper begins appearing, capable of attacking both the living and the dead. Frank is forced to investigate this supernatural presence while navigating the consequences of his own actions and the growing danger posed by the Reaper's presence in the mortal world.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 1964, serial killer Johnny Bartlett is executed, while his lover Patricia Ann Bradley is imprisoned. Decades later, Frank Bannister, an architect who can see ghosts after his wife's death, runs a fraudulent exorcism business with ghost companions Cyrus, Stuart, and The Judge. During a job, Frank notices a 'Grim Reaper' entity marking victims for death. He discovers the entity is actually the spirit of Bartlett, who has returned from hell. Frank teams up with a physician, Lucy Lynskey, to stop him. They discover that Patricia has been summoning Bartlett to continue his killing spree. After a series of sacrifices and a confrontation at a derelict sanatorium, Frank and Lucy manage to trap Bartlett in an urn. In a final confrontation, Frank's spirit faces off against Patricia and the Reaper. Ultimately, Frank is resurrected by his ghost friends and begins a relationship with Lucy, who also gains the ability to see ghosts.
- First release year
- 1996
- Runtime (minutes)
- 110
- Production countries
- United States; New Zealand
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Peter Jackson
- Writers
- Fran Walsh · writer; Peter Jackson · writer
- Cast and characters
- Michael J. Fox · Frank Bannister; Trini Alvarado · Lucy Lynskey; Peter Dobson · Ray Lynskey; John Astin · The Judge; Dee Wallace Stone · Patricia Bradley; Jeffrey Combs · Milton Dammers; Jake Busey · Johnny Bartlett; Chi McBride · Cyrus
- Genres
- supernatural comedy horror; black comedy; comedy horror
- Themes
- guilt; supernatural; sacrifice
- Tone and mood
- dark comedy; supernatural
- Setting
- Fairwater and surrounding areas in the 1990s.
- Premise and plot tags
- ghost hunting; serial killer; exorcism
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film received generally positive reviews from critics but was not a box office success. It gained a cult following and is considered an overlooked work in Peter Jackson's catalog.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 6.2 · scale: 10 · review count: 44
- Awards and nominations
- Saturn Award · Best Director · 23rd · nomination; Saturn Award · Best Writing · 23rd · nomination; Saturn Award · Best Horror Film · 23rd · nomination; Saturn Award · Special Effects · 23rd · nomination; Saturn Award · Make-up · 23rd · nomination; Saturn Award · Music · 23rd · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film was originally intended to be a spin-off of Tales from the Crypt.; The production was so demanding that it was one of the longest shooting schedules ever approved by Universal Pictures.; The film's score was released on cassette and compact disc in 1996.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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