Ghoulies (1984)

A young man and his girlfriend move into an old mansion home, where he becomes possessed by a desire to control ancient demons.

Director:

Luca Bercovici

Writers:

Luca Bercovici, Jefery Levy

Stars:

Peter Liapis, Lisa Pelikan, Michael Des Barres

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Liapis	...	Jonathan Graves
Lisa Pelikan	...	Rebecca
Michael Des Barres	...	Malcolm Graves
Jack Nance	...	Wolfgang
Peter Risch	...	Grizzel
Tamara De Treaux	...	Greedigut
Scott Thomson	...	Mike
Ralph Seymour	...	Mark (Toad Boy)
Mariska Hargitay	...	Donna
Keith Joe Dick	...	Dick
David Dayan	...	Eddie
Victoria Catlin	...	Anastasia
Charene Cathleen	...	Robin
Bobbie Bresee	...	Temptress
Jamie Bronow	...	Jonathan Graves, as a child

Storyline

A young man and his girlfriend move into an old mansion home, where he becomes possessed by a desire to control ancient demons.

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Plot Keywords:

long feminine hair cut | supernatural power | levitation | strangulation | sunglasses | 

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Taglines:

They'll get you in the end!

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Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy | Horror

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Certificate:

PG-13

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original concept for the film was much different that the final product. Originally, the film was going to be about a kid moving into his grandfather's house who finds out that the inspirations for his grandfather's stories are living in the house and trying to kill him. Fox greenlighted the film for a $12 million budget but along the way, the film was dropped and the script was heavily rewritten to appeal to teenagers.

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Goofs

Cameraman reflected in bookcase glass.

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Quotes

Dick: They call me Dick, but you can call me... Dick.

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Alternate Versions

12 seconds of footage were removed from the American release of Ghoulies in order to achieve a PG-13 rating.

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Connections

Featured in Svengoolie: Ghoulies (1999)

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Soundtracks

Surrender
Written and Performed by Fela Johnson and The Johnsons
Good Guy Music 1983

User Reviews

Puppets with teeth

A surprise hit in the horror film-drenched 1980s that spawned several sequels, GHOULIES was one ii a long line of puppet movies from the old Empire Pictures, the same folks who would soon bring us RE-ANIMATOR. In GHOULIES, a young man moves into an old mansion and before you know it, he is attempting to conjure up a bunch of hellish critters to do his bidding. Soon enough, he has them going after his enemies. The ghoulies themselves are hand puppets that look pretty ferocious for hand puppets. The conjurer, played by an insufferable actor named Peter Liapus, has been possessed by a dark spirit that resides in the old house. A little too much time is spent on the guy and his conjuring, but once the ghoulies get going, watch out! This comedy horror film stands out among many similar flicks from that era. It was obviously inspired by GREMLINS, but in the end it in no way resembles that now-forgotten classic. Worth a look if you can buy the idea of puppet monsters. PUPPETMASTER had the same theme and look, and was also an Empire Pictures job, if I am not mistaken.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 January 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Beasties

Filming Locations:

Wattles Mansion - 1824 N. Curson Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Empire Pictures, Ghoulies Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

81 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1