Ghost in the Machine (1993)

Director:

Rachel Talalay

Writers (WGA):

William Davies (written by) &
William Osborne (written by)

Release Date:

29 December 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Plug in to your worst nightmare

Plot:

Karl, a technician in a computer shop, is also the "Address Book Killer," who obtains the names of his victims from stolen address books...

Plot Keywords:

Address Book | Computer | Hospital | Airline Employee | Magnet

Cast

Karen Allen	...	Terry Munroe
Chris Mulkey	...	Bram Wlaker
Ted Marcoux	...	Karl Hopkins
Wil Horneff	...	Josh Munroe
Jessica Walter	...	Elaine Spencer
Brandon Quintin Adams	...	Frazer
Rick Ducommun	...	Phil Stewart
Nancy Fish	...	Karl's Landlord
Jack Laufer	...	Elliott Miller
Shevonne Durkin	...	Carol Maibaum
Richard McKenzie	...	Frank Mallory
Mimi Lieber	...	Marta
Mickey Gilbert	...	Mickey the Driver
Ken Thorley	...	Salesman
Carl Gabriel Yorke	...	Safety Technician

Also Known As:

Deadly Terror

Runtime:

104 min | USA:93 min (VHS version) | Argentina:93 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Argentina:16 | Iceland:16 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Sweden:15 | Australia:M | Norway:18 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Santa Monica, California, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

Approximately 40 minutes into the movie, a computer is scrolling through a list of names in a phone book, in search of its next victim. The names listed are mostly Hollywood producers. Going through the list slowly reveals Caryn Mandabach (listed as "Caryn Mandab"), Wink Martindale, Lorne Michaels (of "Saturday Night Live" (1975)), Bill Melendez ("Charlie Brown" specials), Neal Marlens ("Growing Pains" (1985)), Thomas L. Miller ("Full House" (1987)) and a host of others. The name the computer is searching for is Terry Munroe, which (maybe by coincidence) happens to be the birth name of actor Stepin Fetchit.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Carol (the babysitter) unbuttons her shirt for the two boys, the shot is a close up of her chest, there is then a shot of the boys screaming, then the shot reverts back to the closeup of her chest again, at which point she slams her shirt closed and the camera rolls seamlessly up to her face. However, a quick eye will notice that on the second closeup, not only have her breasts shrunk to about half the size they were in the closeup where she actually opened her shirt, but also, the style of bra she is wearing in the second shot is totally different, making clear the use of a body double.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Bram: Terry?
Terry Monroe: Yeah?
Bram: Do me a favor.
Terry Monroe: Anything.
Bram: Turn off that damn machine.
[Terry switch off the ECG monitor Bram is hooked up to]

Movie Connections:

Features "In Living Color" (1990)

Soundtrack:

Living with a Stranger

Kinda lame. Shevonne Durkin makes it watchable (sorta)

I know that's probably a horrible thing to say about the movie, but everytime I see it on one of the premium channels, I usually watch it just to see the babysitting scene with Shevonne Durkin. That said, this isn't a good movie at all. It hits its mark throughout. The idea is a nice one, but it's too much. It was made to shock with lots of gorey scenes, but it doesn't do so well on the horror side. The acting is decent, and I like Karen Allen and the two young boys in it, but the plot is off. If you see it on tv, you might check it out, but don't rent it. A movie with the best scene being the babysitter showing her bra is one I wouldn't spend money on!