The Frighteners

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The Frighteners

R

1996

1h 49m

Fantasy

Comedy

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

65%

Tomatometer

43 Reviews

71%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

Once an architect, Frank Bannister (Michael J. Fox) now passes himself off as an exorcist of evil spirits. To bolster his facade, he claims his "special" gift is the result of a car accident that killed his wife. But what he does not count on is more people dying in the small town where he lives. As he tries to piece together the supernatural mystery of these killings, he falls in love with the wife (Trini Alvarado) of one of the victims and deals with a crazy FBI agent (Jeffrey Combs).

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Critics Consensus

Boasting top-notch special effects and exuberant direction from Peter Jackson, The Frighteners is visually striking but tonally uneven.

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Gene Siskel

Chicago Tribune

08/23/2017

2/4

[Michael J.] Fox seems to be trying to get hip in the movies, and he's lost his way here.

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Todd McCarthy

Variety

03/26/2009

Story was originally conceived as an episode of "Tales From the Crypt," and that is perhaps what it should have remained, as the thinness of the conceit shows throughout, painfully so in the first half.

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Nigel Floyd

Time Out

01/26/2006

At times the relentless special effects and tangled plotting veer towards visual and narrative overkill, but the final tonal swerve is shocking and effective.

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Don Shanahan

Every Movie Has a Lesson

10/13/2024

2/5

Like a scatter gun hitting everything in sight, the movie has a maddening pace and is all over the place.

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Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

09/22/2023

4/5

The rare horror-comedy that is both funny and creepy, thanks to the charming cast and the inventive direction.

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James Croot

The Post NZ

10/27/2021

3.5/5

Twenty-five years on and what's striking about The Frighteners is how well the effects and Jackson's tension-building have held up.

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Albert R

10/10/2021

Starts as a comedy, but turns into a true horror movie. I've of Michael J Fox's best.

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Peter W

@Zed68 Feb 9

Simultaneously highly watchable but irritating at the same time. As a whole the story is well executed, but the script and generally ham-fisted acting all come off like they were written in a foreign language that do not translate well. It seems like a lot of it was done for comedic effect, but it doesn't stick the landing. It is ultimately saved by great pacing and a solid screenplay, which make it a haunted house rollercoaster ride.

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M D P

@RT11302800 Jan 18

It's absolutely pants really. You can get away with this kind of nonsense when you're skint, but hey Mr Jackson this is a studio film so wasting money like this is truly in Bad Taste.

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Thom H

@ThomH Dec 14

The Frighteners is absolutely bursting with the desire to entertain.

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Ryan H.

@RyGuy Oct 27

A psychic cons people with his ghost crew when the spirit of a mass murderer starts killing people in his town. This movie was more tacky and kiddish than I was expecting.

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Shay W

@RT24244689 Oct 21

Michael J Fox certainly wasnt one to play it safe with his career. While mainly known for appearing in Comedies, he also starred in some quite serious roles such as Casualties of War. This movie is a mix of comedy / horror dealing with some serious topics like grief and you can really see that grief etched on Michael's face. The special effects are really quite something, especially seeing as it's not actually filmed in America as it looks like, but in New Zealand. If you haven't seen it, it is well worth a look and some of the visual themes will resonate with fans of the Director's Lord of the Rings trilogy.

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Peter Jackson

Director

Michael J. Fox

Frank Bannister

Trini Alvarado

Dr. Lucy Lynskey

Peter Dobson

Ray Lynskey

John Astin

The Judge

Jeffrey Combs

Milton Dammers

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Back from Hell

3:00

The Frighteners: Official Clip - A-Hole with an Uzi

2:15

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Death Comes for Lucy

2:38

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Frank Bannister in Action

3:29

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Sergeant Spook

1:34

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Fleeing the Reaper

3:00

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Death in the Restroom

2:04

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Psycho Killers

2:39

The Frighteners: Official Clip - African American Apparition Coalition

1:46

The Frighteners: Official Clip - Fighting Death

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Synopsis

Once an architect, Frank Bannister (Michael J. Fox) now passes himself off as an exorcist of evil spirits. To bolster his facade, he claims his "special" gift is the result of a car accident that killed his wife. But what he does not count on is more people dying in the small town where he lives. As he tries to piece together the supernatural mystery of these killings, he falls in love with the wife (Trini Alvarado) of one of the victims and deals with a crazy FBI agent (Jeffrey Combs).

Director: Peter Jackson
Producer: Jamie Selkirk, Peter Jackson
Screenwriter: Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson
Distributor: MCA/Universal Pictures [us]
Production Co: WingNut Films, Universal Pictures
Rating: R
Genre: Fantasy, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 19, 1996, Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 8, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $16.5M
Runtime: 1h 49m
Sound Mix: Stereo, DTS, Surround
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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