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Fright Night (1985)

R | | Horror, Thriller | 2 August 1985 (USA)
Fright Night Poster
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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 | See full cast & crew »
Reviews
Popularity
2,713 ( 795)
5 wins & 4 nominations. See more awards »

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Fright Night Part 2 (1988)
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After a new neighbor moved into the house next door, Charley discovers that he is an ancient vampire and goes in search for the help of Peter Vincent, a famous "vampire killer" to save his neighborhood from the creature.

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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 Jonathan Stark ... Billy Cole
Dorothy Fielding Dorothy Fielding ... Judy Brewster
Art Evans ... Detective Lennox (as Art J. Evans)
Stewart Stern ... Cook
Nick Savage Nick Savage ... Bouncer #1
Ernie Holmes Ernie Holmes ... Bouncer #2
Heidi Sorenson Heidi Sorenson ... Hooker
Irina Irvine Irina Irvine ... Teenage Girl
Bob Corff ... Jonathan (as Robert Corff)
Pamela Brown Pamela Brown ... Miss Nina
See full cast »
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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... Written by Anonymous

Plot Summary | Plot Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

vampire | horror host | homosexual subtext | cult film | transformation | See All (164) »

Taglines:

There are good reasons to be afraid of the dark. See more »

Genres:

Horror | Thriller

Certificate:

R | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 August 1985 (USA) See more »

Also Known As:

Fright Night See more »

Filming Locations:

Laird International Studio - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA See more »
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Box Office

Budget:

$9,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

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

Gross USA:

$24,922,237
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Vistar Films, Columbia Pictures Industries See more »
Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

Coincidentally, Stephen Geoffreys and Amanda Bearse had played a couple in Fraternity Vacation (1985) and went straight from filming that movie to working on 'Fright Night.' Both films were also scored by composer Brad Fiedel. See more »

Goofs

When Charley and Peter enter the house to try to kill Jerry, it is obviously night when they're outside, but when they're inside, you can see that it is day through the curtained window on the door. See more »

Quotes

Evil Ed: [finds Charlie's room full of lit candles, garlic, and crosses] Wow... what's all this for?
Charley Brewster: [sharpening a stake] Self defense, not that I think I'll need it. He'll be dead before nightfall.
Amy: Who will be?
Charley Brewster: Dandridge, I'm waiting for the guy he lives with to leave, then I'll go next door, find his coffin and pound this through his heart.
Amy: That's murder, Charlie!
Charley Brewster: You can't murder a vampire, Amy, he's already dead, remember? Listen, I just taped this.
Evil Ed: [teasingly] Amy, what're we gonna do? This is just ...
[...]
See more »

Crazy Credits

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

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. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Nostalgia Critic: The Langoliers (2011) See more »

Soundtracks

COME TO ME
Written and performed by Brad Fiedel
(uncredited)
See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is 'Fright Night' about?
Q: How does the movie end?
Q: Is 'Fright Night' based on a book?
See more »

User Reviews

 
One Great one
12 April 2005 | by elinspectordetimpanos – See all my reviews

After all this years (20) of vampire slaughtering, Blade's karate Vs vampire flicks, or even Carpenter's Rambo characters, Fright Night still offers the scent of a classic. Tom Holland's masterpiece holds by itself because of a great cast and a plot that gathers every single cliché of the genre and plays a bit with humor and a lot of effective spooks. Roddy Mc Dowall steals the movie with his over the hill terrified looser character. Even special effects are bizarre today as they're a craftsmanship result giving some scenes a bizarre concept that takes you directly into Roger Corman's "B" world. A true pleasure to watch from time to time. Happy 20 years
33 of 40 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you? | Report this
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