Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Michael J. Fox | ... | Frank Bannister | |
Trini Alvarado | ... | Lucy Lynskey | |
Peter Dobson | ... | Ray Lynskey | |
John Astin | ... | The Judge | |
Jeffrey Combs | ... | Milton Dammers | |
Dee Wallace | ... | Patricia Bradley (as Dee Wallace Stone) | |
Jake Busey | ... | Johnny Bartlett | |
Chi McBride | ... | Cyrus | |
Jim Fyfe | ... | Stuart | |
Troy Evans | ... | Sheriff Perry | |
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Julianna McCarthy | ... | Old Lady Bradley |
R. Lee Ermey | ... | Hiles | |
Elizabeth Hawthorne | ... | Magda Rees-Jones | |
Angela Bloomfield | ... | Debra Bannister | |
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Desmond Kelly | ... | Harry Sinclair |
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 FRIGHTENERS has just the right blend of comedy and horror, and will please most audiences. Director Peter Jackson did a great job directing this film, and Michael J. Fox gives one of his most unusual performances as a "ghost buster" who has a rare gift that allows him to see the dead.
All in all, a unique film that is very different from its competition in the horror drama and really only falls apart towards the end, when it resorts to the typical slasher ending with plot twists. Apart from the end, it's sure to keep you entertained throughout!
4/5 stars
JOHN ULMER