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:

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

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Taglines:

There are 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

Gross USA:

$24,922,237

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$24,922,237

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, 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

The most financially successful horror film of the 1985 summer season, and the second highest grossing horror film of 1985 behind A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge (1985).

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Goofs

When Jerry walks past Mrs Brewster's mirror, and he casts no reflection, some obvious matte work is visible. Also when he shuts the door, the sound effect doesn't match up.

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Quotes

[Charley warns Evil for joking around]
Charley Brewster: You're gonna get yours someday.
Evil Ed: Oh, yeah. When? When I'm bit by a vampire? There are no such things as vampires, fruitcake!

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Crazy Credits

Just as the screen cuts to black at the end, Evil Ed can be heard saying "your so cool Brewster!"

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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 Perfect Strangers: Fright Night (1991)

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Soundtracks

LET'S TALK
Written by Mark Mothersbaugh
Produced by Devo, Inc.
Performed by Devo

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.