Hangman's Curse (2003)

Bullying students are becoming deathly ill after screaming the name of a legendary ghost. What's to blame? An exotic illness? An illicit drug? Or is it the supernatural? The clues are few ... See full summary »

Director:

Rafal Zielinski

Writers:

Frank Peretti (novel), Kathy Mackel (screenplay)

Stars:

David Keith, Mel Harris, Leighton Meester

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
David Keith	...	Nate Springfield
Mel Harris	...	Sarah Springfield
Leighton Meester	...	Elisha Springfield
Douglas Smith	...	Elijah Springfield
Jake Richardson	...	Ian Snyder
Bobby Brewer	...	Leonard Baynes
Daniel Farber	...	Norman Bloom
Edwin Hodge	...	Blake Hornsby
Andrea Morris	...	Crystal Sparks
William R. Moses	...	Coach Marquardt
Margaret Travolta	...	Debi Wyrthen
Tom Wright	...	Dan Carillo
Frank Peretti	...	Dr. Algernon Wheeling
Liz Schilling	...	Shawna Miller
Teresa Suter	...	Julie

Storyline

Bullying students are becoming deathly ill after screaming the name of a legendary ghost. What's to blame? An exotic illness? An illicit drug? Or is it the supernatural? The clues are few and time is running out for the students of Rogers High School. The only hope is the Veritas Project, a highly trained investigative team working undercover to expose the truth. Lives hang in the balance as they scramble to unravel the mystery and protect the student body from their own hatred and fear.

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Plot Keywords:

ghost | bullying | undercover | high school | based on young adult novel | 

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Taglines:

Watch your locker. Watch your back. Watch your soul.

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for elements of violence/terror and for brief drug material

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

12 September 2003 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Veritas Project: Hangman's Curse

Filming Locations:

Riverside State Park - 9711 W. Charles Road, Nine Mile Falls, Washington, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$78,084, 14 September 2003, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$168,406

Company Credits

Production Co:

Namesake Entertainment,North by Northwest Entertainment,The Total Living Network

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

When Sarah picks up the disk to the digital recorder in the RV, she is wearing white gloves. But when Elijah immediately takes the disk from her, the gloves are gone.

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Quotes

Blake Hornsby: Do you believe in the hereafter?
Elisha Springfield: Most definitely.
Blake Hornsby: Then you must know what I'm here after.
Elisha Springfield: And you must know you won't get it.

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Connections

References Hawaii Five-O (1968)

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Soundtracks

Lonely Man
Written by Bob Herdman / Mark Stuart / Will McGinniss / Tyler Burkim / Ben Cissell
Performed by Audio Adrenaline
© 2001 Up in the Mix Music/Flicker USA Publishing (BMI).
All rights administered by EMI Christian Music Publishing.

User Reviews

A "clean" yet creepy mystery that keeps you guessing!

I was pleasantly surprised by "Hangman's Curse". As a Christian, I have seen many Christian-themed films that underwhelmed me with the story, acting, sets and cinematography. By the end of "HC" I said to my friend in the theater: "That was a good movie, Christian or not!" And if you're not Christian---don't worry. The movie is not heavy-handed with a religious message in any way (until one scene near the end). While the acting won't remind anyone of Olivier and Streep, it's pretty good. David Keith ('An Officer And A Gentleman', 'Daredevil') and Mel Harris ('thirtysomething') are very good. Frank Peretti---who wrote the book "Hangman's Curse", provides some good comic relief in his role as an eccentric scientist. I was also impressed that the makers of "HC" weren't afraid to include a subplot of an interracial romantic relationship. By far the story is the star of the "Hangman's Curse". It has plenty of plot twists, yet they were believable. My friend solved who/what was behind the Curse before I did (much to my chagrin!) You can tell that "HC" was not a cheaply-made movie. A few of the night scenes are a little too dark, but in other scenes the camera angles and close-ups helped maintain the suspense. Both teenagers and adults will enjoy this movie. I highly recommend that parents go see it with their teenage kids and discuss the issues of the movie afterward. It wasn't until I was leaving the theater that I realized that "Hangman's Curse" had no gory slasher scenes, no nudity and no profanity, yet was entertaining. When was the last time you could say that about a mystery/thriller film?