After a tragic car accident that kills his wife, a man discovers he can communicate with the dead to con people. However, when a demonic spirit appears, he may be the only one who can stop it from killing the living and the dead.
After a car accident in which his wife, Debra, was killed and he was injured, Frank Bannister develops psychic abilities allowing him to see, hear, and communicate with ghosts. After losing his wife, he then gave up his job as an architect, letting his unfinished "dream house" sit incomplete for years, and put these skills to use by befriending a few ghosts and getting them to haunt houses in the area to drum up work for his ghostbusting business; Then Frank proceeds to "exorcise" the houses for a fee. But when he discovers that an entity resembling the Grim Reaper is killing people, marking numbers on their forehead beforehand, Frank tries to help the people whom the Reaper is after!Written by
Anthony Pereyra <hypersonic91@yahoo.com>
The film was not released to theaters in Tasmania, a state in Australia. The Port Arthur Massacre rather spookily mirrored the film's content and happened not long before the film's release. It was released on video and subsequently broadcast. See more »
Goofs
When Milton Dammers screams, "I'm wearing a lead breastplate!" and rips open his shirt, his tie is hanging nearly straight down. When we cut back to him, his tie is tossed over his shoulder, while both of his hands are still holding his shirt open. See more »
Quotes
Ray Lynskey:
[Frank has smashed one of his lawn gnomes]
No! Not Budzo! My Budzo! My Budzo! I've got your license plate number, you bastard!
See more »
Alternate Versions
When Peter Jackson learned during post-production that the MPAA was going to give the movie an R-rating (despite many efforts to go for a PG-13 rating), he made Milton Dammers' death scene more gruesome by blowing up his head, instead of just having him shot in the chest and blown through the chapel doors. This caused problems with the BBFC, who cut the one continuous shot into two shots, minus the bullet blowing up the head. This censored Region 2 DVD was released throughout Europe. The U.S. television version uses the take where Dammers is blown through the chapel doors. See more »
What sets out to be a comedy movie with ghosts, (and anyone could be forgiven for thinking this is what it would be given that Michael J Fox has the lead) rapidly becomes a very dark supernatural thriller.
The special effects still look good even by todays standards, and the story is solidly written, good characters and good direction, there is not much to criticise in this movie.
The film itself is one that you should not miss, and certainly not because you think its something that it isn't.
8/10 A surprising film, that has probably been overlooked by too many movie lovers.
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What sets out to be a comedy movie with ghosts, (and anyone could be forgiven for thinking this is what it would be given that Michael J Fox has the lead) rapidly becomes a very dark supernatural thriller.
The special effects still look good even by todays standards, and the story is solidly written, good characters and good direction, there is not much to criticise in this movie.
The film itself is one that you should not miss, and certainly not because you think its something that it isn't.
8/10 A surprising film, that has probably been overlooked by too many movie lovers.