Phantoms (1998)

One hundred fifty dead, and three hundred fifty missing in the tiny mountain town of Snowfield, Colorado, and that's only the beginning.

Director:

Joe Chappelle

Writers:

Dean R. Koontz (novel) (as Dean Koontz), Dean R. Koontz (screenplay) (as Dean Koontz)

Stars:

Peter O'Toole, Rose McGowan, Joanna Going

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter O'Toole	...	Dr. Timothy Flyte
Rose McGowan	...	Lisa Pailey
Joanna Going	...	Jennifer Pailey, M.D.
Liev Schreiber	...	Deputy Stuart 'Stu' Wargle
Ben Affleck	...	Sheriff Bryce Hammond
Nicky Katt	...	Deputy Steve Shanning
Clifton Powell	...	Gen. Leland Copperfield
Rick Otto	...	Scientist Lockland
Valerie Chow	...	Scientist Yamaguchi (as Rachel Shane)
Adam Nelson	...	Scientist Burke
John Hammil	...	Scientist Talbot
John Scott Clough	...	Scientist Shane
Michael DeLorenzo	...	Soldier Velazquez
William Hahn	...	Scientist Borman
Robert Himber	...	Scientist Walker

Storyline

One hundred fifty dead, and three hundred fifty missing in the tiny mountain town of Snowfield, Colorado, and that's only the beginning.

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Plot Keywords:

oil | quarantine | devil | hazmat suit | eaten alive | 

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Taglines:

This Time Terror Comes From Below

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Genres:

Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sci-fi violence/gore and language

Details

Country:

USA Japan

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 January 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dean Koontz's Phantoms

Filming Locations:

Colorado, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,065,951, 25 January 1998, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$5,657,370, 15 February 1998

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax, Dimension Films, Fuji Creative (FCC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Lisa, Jennifer, Stuart, and Bryce are in the police station, the phone rings and noises begin emitting from it. The first names written on the speed dial buttons on the phone, are those of several of the crew members: Joe (Director Joe Chappelle), Deb (Production Designer Deborah Raymond), Dorian (Production Designer Dorian Vernacchio), and Dave (Best Boy Grip David Youngs).

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Goofs

Everyone goes into the lab and it begins to snow. Jennifer, Lisa, Bryce, and Flyte are the only people left in town. Yet, when Flyte leaves the lab later, there are footprints and tracks in the snow.

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Quotes

Sheriff Bryce Hammond: All right, enough.
[shouts]
Sheriff Bryce Hammond: Enough! It's not a god, it's not a devil. It's just a fucking animal, and any living thing can be killed.
Timothy Flyte: But this thing is what wiped out the dinosaurs! Which were pretty tough fucking customers!

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Connections

Referenced in Going to Pieces: The Rise and Fall of the Slasher Film (2006)

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Soundtracks

Don't Count Me Out
Performed and Written by K. Perry
Courtesy of Zomba Music Services
Published by Jim Long Music (ASCAP)

User Reviews

Fun rip off of somepast sci-fi greats

This film was a fascinating melding of various classics and not-so-classics of the creature feature genre done with style. It did exactly what a good B-movie Sci-fi should do: Rip off better films and do it knowingly with tongue firmly in cheek. The cast was interesting and had decent star power for the grade of motion picture (film legend Peter O'Toole, "Scream 2" Star Liev Schreiber, Ben Affleck and "Boston Publics" Nicky Katt"), except for Rose McGowan, who, as talented as she is, was way too old to play a 14-year-old. It was also good to see Ben Affleck not trying to win awards in some silly Michael Bay movie. Whoever did the makeup effects must have seen 1989's "Leviathan" and the script had elements of the movies "Leviathan," "The Thing," "Virus" and even the remake of "The Blob" (the final scene had shots that were exactly the same, minus the snow machine, of course) In short, if you are kicking back and want to see something with some cool effects but not much thought, rent this and have some fun.