The Frighteners

There is much to be enjoyed in this movie, but it definitely feels like the creators ran out of steam after expending their brilliance on the setup. It quickly falls into formula and becomes quite predictable. There is also something just a bit off about all the characters, as it's difficult to find one likable enough to identify with. I was never able to get anchored in the story. Maybe it's because the New Zealand as America scenery is distracting.

Peter Jackson has now directed the three Lord of the Rings films. This film is a Peter Jackson movie that isn't non-stop gore (excluding Lord of the Rings). It is a very fine movie with fantastic special effects, a great performance by Michael J. Fox and a great score by Danny Elfman. Sadly the film is avalible on a very poor DVD. The Frighteners would be a great DVD if it had the features culled from the original laserdisc (UNIVERSAL I HOPE YOUR LISTENING): DISC 1-The Film Director's Cut-DTS/DOLBY Audio commentary by director Peter Jackson The Theatrical Cut-DTS/DOLBY DISC 2-The Features "The Making of The Frighteners" 4hrs 29mins (FROM LASERDISC) Edited Versions 5mins (FROM TV AND EUROPEAN CUTS) Deleted scenes 19mins (FROM LASERDISC) Bloopers 5mins (FROM LASERDISC) Theatrical trailer 3mins (FROM LASERDISC) FEATURES 306 mins

It's not the kind of film you'd expect from Michael J. Fox, but it's a film you SHOULD expect from Peter Jackson. =) I really love the way this film mixes many clichés and many fresh ideas into one interconnected story. Of course, it's not an art film like Heavenly Creatures, but it's very entertaining and everything is in the right place. It creates its own world with weird rules which is crazy and intelligent at the same time. (Can a ghost kill another ghost? Of course he can! He just needs a ghost UZI. =)

As a kid this movie always gave me the heebie jeebies... Especially the scenes with the Grim Reaper and the flashback at the end. But, as an adult I see how awesome it is and it never deserved the low reviews it got from critics. It definitely takes cues from Beetlejuice's humor and soundtrack and the ghost visuals of Ghostbusters. Watching this you can see how Peter Jackson will eventually be a great director for the LOTR trilogy. And of course the movie features America's favorite 80's actor Michael J. Fox and that man can do no wrong. I highly recommended this movie as a late night chill flick and it won't disappoint!