The Wraith (1986) 5.4
Jamie, killed by neighborhood thugs, returns as a mystical figure named Jake (The Wraith) to gain revenge. Director:Mike MarvinWriter:Mike Marvin |
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The Wraith (1986) 5.4
Jamie, killed by neighborhood thugs, returns as a mystical figure named Jake (The Wraith) to gain revenge. Director:Mike MarvinWriter:Mike Marvin |
|
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Charlie Sheen | ... | ||
| Nick Cassavetes | ... | ||
| Sherilyn Fenn | ... | ||
| Randy Quaid | ... | ||
| Matthew Barry | ... | ||
| David Sherrill | ... |
Skank
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| Jamie Bozian | ... |
Gutterboy
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| Clint Howard | ... |
Rughead
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Griffin O'Neal | ... |
Oggie
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Chris Nash | ... |
Minty
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Vickie Benson | ... |
Waitress
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Peder Melhuse | ... |
Murphy
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Jeffrey Sudzin | ... |
Redd
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Michael Hungerford | ... |
Stokes
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Steven Eckholdt | ... |
George in Daytona
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Packard Walsh and his motorized gang control and terrorize an Arizona desert town where they force drivers to drag-race so they can 'win' their vehicles. After Walsh stabs the decent teenager Jamie Hankins to death for being intimate with a girl whom Walsh wants for himself, the mysterious Jake Kesey arrives, an extremely cool motor-biker with an invincible car. Jake befriends Jamie's girlfriend Keri Johnson, takes Jamie's sweet brother Billy under his wing and manages what Sheriff Loomis can not - the methodical and otherworldly elimination of Packard's criminal gang. Written by KGF Vissers
Maybe if you've seen one 1980s horror/sci-fi/romance, you've seen them all. But you still need to see "The Wraith". It portrays a young guy (Charlie Sheen) riding into a small Arizona town which seems to be nearly run by a gang of hoodlums. The gang leader (Nick Cassavetes) is very jealous of one of the teenage girls (Sherilyn Fenn) and gets nasty if it looks like anyone else is approaching her. But things start to change for everyone once a strange black car starts driving through town.
Think about what all this movie portrays. First off, it stars Martin Sheen's son, John Cassavetes's son, Ron Howard's brother (Clint Howard sports a crazy hairdo and plays the only intelligent member of the gang), and Dennis Quaid's brother (Randy Quaid plays the sheriff and was noticeably leaner back then). Speaking of weight, women in movies were meatier back then; check out Sherilyn Fenn in her waitress outfit (or in another scene)! But another thing is about the definition of the title. A wraith is an apparition, often portending someone's doom (the word comes from Scottish, but I don't know the full origin).
Are the car races the highlight? That's debatable. The road looked very much like the same road that they used for the desert scenes in "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World", which of course starred another hot babe (I mean Dorothy Provine, hubba hubba).
Anyway, this is one that you're sure to love. And just keep watching the skies.
Back when Martin Sheen's father immigrated to the US from Spain and John Cassavetes's father immigrated to the US from Greece, they probably never guessed that their grandchildren would co-star in this sort of movie. Hell, back in the days when Ron Howard played Opie on "The Andy Griffith Show", people probably never guessed that his brother would star in this sort of movie. I don't know what people would have thought when Randy Quaid debuted in "The Last Picture Show".