Fright Night (1985)

A teenager discovers that the newcomer in his neighborhood is a vampire, so he turns to an actor in a television horror show for help dealing with the undead.

Director:

Tom Holland

Writer:

Tom Holland

Stars:

Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Amanda Bearse

5 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chris Sarandon	...	Jerry Dandrige
William Ragsdale	...	Charley Brewster
Amanda Bearse	...	Amy Peterson
Roddy McDowall	...	Peter Vincent
Stephen Geoffreys	...	Evil Ed
Jonathan Stark	...	Billy Cole
Dorothy Fielding	...	Judy Brewster
Art Evans	...	Detective Lennox (as Art J. Evans)
Stewart Stern	...	Cook
Nick Savage	...	Bouncer #1
Ernie Holmes	...	Bouncer #2
Heidi Sorenson	...	Hooker
Irina Irvine	...	Teenage Girl
Bob Corff	...	Jonathan (as Robert Corff)
Pamela Brown	...	Miss Nina

Storyline

For young Charley Brewster, nothing could be better than an old horror movie late at night. Two men move in next door, and for Charley with his horror movie experience, there can be no doubt that their strange behavior is explained by the fact that they are a vampire and his undead day guardian. The only one who can help him hunt them down is a washed-up actor, Peter Vincent, who hosts Charley's favorite TV show, Fright Night. Vincent doesn't really believe that vampires exist, but does it for the money...

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Plot Keywords:

homosexual subtext | vampire | horror host | cult film | transformation | 

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Taglines:

There are some very good reasons to be afraid...of the dark.

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 August 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fright Night

Filming Locations:

Laird International Studio - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$9,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,118,543, 4 August 1985, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$24,922,237

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Vistar Films, Columbia Pictures Industries

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

It took 8 hours to do the makeup for Jerry's final transformation.

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Goofs

The nails Charley hammered into the window disappear and reappear between scenes.

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Quotes

[the vampire movie shows Peter Vincent catching Miss Nina in the act]
Peter Vincent: Stop, you creature of the night!
Miss Nina: [Nina hisses] Who are you who interrupts my nightly feeding?
Peter Vincent: I... am... Peter Vincent, vampire killer!

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Crazy Credits

During the opening credits, the F and T in Fright Night (1985) elongate into a pair of fangs.

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Alternate Versions

The Swedish version (cinema and video) misses the following: The transformation scene with Ed was removed (1m 50sec), and the scene where Dandrige's assistant melts was shortened by 16 sec.

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Connections

Referenced in Cinemassacre's Monster Madness: Day of the Dead (2013)

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Soundtracks

BOPPIN' TONIGHT
Written by Gary Goetzman and Mike Piccirillo
Produced by Mike Piccirillo and Gary Goetzman for Goetzman/Piccirillo Productions
Performed by Fabulous Fontaines

User Reviews

'Campy' Fright Night Fun To Watch

I incorrectly assumed this might be some dumb teen vampire flick when it came out about 20 years ago, but that wasn't the case. It was simply a very entertaining horror flick with a good mixture of suspense, comedy and good special- effects. The kids - William Ragsdale, Amanda Bearse and Stephen Geoffreys - are all excellent but the two adults - Chris Sarandon and Roddy McDowell - steal the show.

Sarandon is very cool as the vampire; cocky, arrogant and smooth. He is easily the best character in the movie. McDowell does a nice job as the reluctant vampire slayer.

The special-effects are good and the film is played strictly for fun, even with the suspenseful scenes. In fact, it reminds me of the word "camp" because it's so hokey in spots. Yet the film definitely has its scary moments. Note: I watched this 3-4 times on the tape so I am familiar with most of the film and after seeing the DVD, I swear several short scenes are missing (such as Bearse's quick shower scene). I've never come across something like this before.