RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
Check out the new RT Community
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | In Theaters
  • | Opening
  • | Upcoming
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / The Messengers
The Messengers

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Get this Movie
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

The Messengers (2007)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
6 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:18

Fresh:1

Rotten:17

Average Rating:3.6/10

Consensus: The Messengers is an atmospheric but derivative rip-off of countless other horror movies.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for mature thematic material, disturbing violence and terror.

Runtime: 1 hr 31 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Theatrical Release:Feb 2, 2007 Wide

Box Office: $35,374,833

Synopsis: Twin filmmakers Danny and Oxide Pang's creepy 2003 feature THE EYE earned them enough kudos to make the leap to Hollywood, and their first effort is the creepy chiller THE MESSENGERS. A... Twin filmmakers Danny and Oxide Pang's creepy 2003 feature THE EYE earned them enough kudos to make the leap to Hollywood, and their first effort is the creepy chiller THE MESSENGERS. A Chicago-based family comprised of Roy (Dylan McDermott), his wife, Denise (Penelope Ann Miller), their teenage daughter, Jess (Kristen Stewart), and young son, Ben (played by twins Evan and Theodore Turner) try to put the hard times behind them with a move to a picturesque farmhouse in North Dakota. Jess quickly becomes convinced that the house is haunted after some peculiar occurrences while she's alone there with young Ben. But Ben can't articulate what he's seen, and Jess's story is met with skepticism by her parents. It soon becomes apparent that past family tensions are slowly boiling to the surface. Meanwhile, the ghosts keep coming, and the Pang brothers never keep their audience waiting for long before another nerve-jangling scene shudders into view. But as the ghosts torment their new residents, Jess does a little research on the old farmhouse and discovers a few secrets that may just hold the key to why this is all happening. Packed full of CGI effects and a few moments that may cause a jump or two, THE MESSENGERS is a horror movie aimed at a young audience and not horror aficionados, as indicated by its PG-13 rating. [More]

Starring: Dylan McDermott, Penelope Ann Miller, John Corbett, Kristen Stewart

Starring: Dylan McDermott, Penelope Ann Miller, John Corbett, Kristen Stewart

Director: Oxide Pang, Danny Pang

Director: Oxide Pang, Danny Pang
Screenwriter: Todd Farmer
Producer: Sam Raimi, William Sherak, Jason Shuman, Rob Tapert
Composer: Joseph LoDuca
Studio: Columbia Pictures

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
  • Trailer
    >
    Exclusive Clip
    >
    Dylan McDermott
    >
    Kristen Stewart
    >
  • Penelope Ann Miller
    >
1 - 4 of 5

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Get This Movie

Rent DVD
 
 

Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.

 
 
Buy DVD
 
 
Release:

Jun 5, 2007

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Desperate for a fresh start after a tough two years in Chicago, the Solomon family retreats to a desolate sunflower farm in North Dakota. But the calm of farm life is shattered when 16-year-old Jess (Kristen Stewart) and her 3-year-old brother Ben begin to see nightmarish apparitions throughout their new home -- visions that nobody else can see. As the visions grow darker, they become fear-inspiring experiences and Jess' parents (Dylan McDermott and Penelope Ann Miller) start to question their daughter's sanity. Now, Jess must find a way to save her family and win..
  • Source: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for The Messengers

    • T-Meter Critics
    • Top Critics
    • RT Community
    • My Critics
    • My Friends
    • DVD
     
     
    1 - 16 (sorted by date)
    Text View
    Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
     
     

    The MessengersI/i> is textbook, and the course it's teaching is HSL: Horror as a Second Language.

    Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
    05/28/07
    Ty Burr
    Ty Burr
    Dallas Morning News
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    No one says, "Gimme the bat, Wendy," or, "Here's Johnny!" But they come close.

    Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
    03/03/07
    Christy Lemire
    Christy Lemire
    Arizona Republic
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The Asian-horror-movie moment feels long since passed, both here and abroad. Let our zombies walk or even sprint again! Give our creepy kids back their pupils!

    Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
    02/07/07
    Gregory Kirschling
    Gregory Kirschling
    Entertainment Weekly
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Sadly, the movie just doesn't deliver chills.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
    02/07/07
    Andrea Gronvall
    Andrea Gronvall
    Chicago Reader
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    [The film is] hampered by hauntingly lame performances by McDermott and Miller, who phone in their parts, and a screenplay that has the sophistication and complexity of a college dorm message board.

    Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
    02/05/07
    Tirdad Derakhshani
    Tirdad Derakhshani
    Philadelphia Inquirer
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Nicely photographed but slow-moving, dull and utterly predictable.

    Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
    02/05/07
    Lou Lumenick
    Lou Lumenick
    New York Post
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    If the ghosts were magnets and the Solomons were paperclips, the two parties couldn't be in a bigger rush to collide.

    Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
    02/05/07
    Geoff Pevere
    Geoff Pevere
    Toronto Star
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Every movie has to have its own sense of logic, horror movies perhaps most of all, but as this story heads towards its climax it begins to contradict what it's told us to believe all along.

    Full Review Source: Newark Star-Ledger | comment Comment
    02/05/07
    Stephen Whitty
    Stephen Whitty
    Newark Star-Ledger
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    It's awards season, so we'd like to nominate The Messengers for the yet-to-be-established Tippi Hedren Award for best use of malignant ravens in a motion picture.

    Full Review Source: Newsday | comment Comment
    02/05/07
    John Anderson
    John Anderson
    Newsday
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    With The Messengers, the Pang brothers devise scenes so scary that they stain the imagination and never scrub out.

    Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
    02/05/07
    Matt Zoller Seitz
    Matt Zoller Seitz
    New York Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The Messengers isn't a particularly frightening or gory horror movie, but directors Danny and Oxide Pang do have a special talent for torturing the reputations of their actors.

    Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
    02/05/07
    Peter Hartlaub
    Peter Hartlaub
    San Francisco Chronicle
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The most frightening aspect of the film is that it will soon be haunting the bargain bins of shoddy video stores.

    Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
    02/02/07
    Colin Covert
    Colin Covert
    Minneapolis Star Tribune
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The objective view gives the audience too much room to unravel its schematic plot, which is far less inspired than its creepy visuals.

    Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
    02/02/07
    Sam Adams
    Sam Adams
    Los Angeles Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    This first American horror effort by the Pang Bros. doesn't deliver.

    Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
    02/02/07
    Michael Rechtshaffen
    Michael Rechtshaffen
    Hollywood Reporter
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    It isn't until the end that things spin out of control. No one says 'Gimme the bat, Wendy' or 'Here's Johnny!' But they come close.

    Full Review Source: Associated Press | comment Comment
    02/02/07
    Christy Lemire
    Christy Lemire
    Associated Press
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The Pangs painfully hew to a vision of an idealized Americana with the 'happy ending' coming off as especially egregious.

    Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
    02/02/07
    Ronnie Scheib
    Ronnie Scheib
    Variety
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The Messengers borrows so heavily from The Amityville Horror, The Birds, The Grudge, Poltergeist, and others that it has no room left for anything of its own.

    Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
    02/02/07
    James Berardinelli
    James Berardinelli
    ReelViews
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    The grown-ups fare worse: They speak . . . very . . . slowly . . . as if to pad the running time out. This may in fact be the most ridiculous performance John Corbett has ever given.

    Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
    02/02/07
    Ty Burr
    Ty Burr
    Boston Globe
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
     
     
    1 - 16 (sorted by date)
    Text View
    all

    Latest News for The Messengers

    February 07, 2008: Box Office Guru Preview: Fool's Gold Hopes to Shine in Battle of New Comedies
    Hollywood plays the race card this weekend opening a pair of star-driven comedies, one for white moviegoers and the other for black audiences. Matthew McConaughey and Kate... More...

    January 31, 2008: Box Office Guru Preview: Montana Hopes to Win Super Bowl Trophy
    While Brady and Manning duke it out in Phoenix, the $15 movie ticket aims to conquer the multiplexes over Super Bowl weekend. That's the admission price that theaters are... More...

    April 28, 2007: Trailer & Poster review Opens in new window
    More...

    February 26, 2007: Box Office Guru Wrapup: "Ghost Rides" High Again at #1
    Academy Award winner Nicolas Cage ruled Oscar weekend with his skull-on-fire motorcycle actioner "Ghost Rider," which held steady at number one in North America for... More...

    See All

    More DVDs

    Close
    Top Rentals
    Tomatometer Percentage Movie
    66% 66% Public Enemies
    83% 83% Harry Potter and the H…
    44% 44% Night at the Museum: B…
    75% 75% Julie & Julia
    32% 32% Terminator Salvation

    More Rentals…

    New On DVD This Week
    Tomatometer Percentage Movie
    90% 90% District 9
    86% 86% 500 Days of Summer
    63% 63% Extract
    06% 06% All About Steve
    78% 78% It Might Get Loud

    More New Releases…

    See All

    RT On Current TV

    The Rotten Tomatoes Show on Current TV

    DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196 | More...

    Learn how you can be part of the show

    More...

    What’s Hot On RT

    Sherlock Holmes

    Sherlock Holmes

    New clips from the detective reboot!

    Iron Man 2

    Iron Man 2

    Watch the brand new trailer now!

    Clash of the Titans

    Clash of the Titans

    Prepare to Clash with Titans in this trailer!

    Total Recall

    Total Recall

    RT looks back on Jude Law's best movies!

    Other News

    Close
    • Top Stories
    • Popular
    • Interviews
     
     

    Comments

     
     
    Top Stories
    Headlines Comments
      
    • Danny Trejo Talks Machete, Possible Sequels Source: Collider.com
    13
    • It's Official: Jackass 3-D Coming in 2010 Source: Collider.com
    16
    • Bryan Singer Returning to X-Men for First Class Source: Superhero Hype
    102
    • Mark Strong Talks Kick-Ass, John Carter, and Robin Hood Source: Collider.com
    1
    • How Avatar Happened: The Path to Innovation Source: CinemaBlend.com
    19
    • Rob Marshall Says Pirates 4 Is Still a Maybe Source: ComingSoon.net
    32
    • ET Teases Iron Man 2 Teaser Source: Collider.com
    28
    • Tobey Maguire Refutes Hobbit Rumors Source: Hollywood Reporter
    9
    • Prince of Persia Featurette Posted Source: Yahoo! Movies
    4
    • Trailer Bulletin: Robin Hood Source: ComingSoon.net
    61
    Popular
    Headlines Comments
      
    • Critics Consensus: Avatar Is Certified Fresh
    311
    • Box Office Guru Wrapup: Avatar Soars to #1 Spot
    257
    • Brittany Murphy: 1977-2009
    111
    • Total Recall: James Cameron Movies
    90
    • Five Favorite Films With Peter Jackson
    52
    • Weekly Ketchup: Bryan Singer Teaches X-Men: First Class
    44
    • Awards Tour 2009: SAG Nominations Are In!
    43
    • RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: District 9 and (500) Days of Summer
    26
    • Friday Harvest: Alice in Wonderland, Sherlock Holmes, and more!
    14
    • What We're Watching on Blu-ray from Disney!
    8
    Interviews
    Headlines Comments
      
    • Five Favorite Films With Peter Jackson
    52
    • Robert Downey Jr. talks Sherlock Holmes & Iron Man 2 - RT Interview
    21
    • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
    2
    • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
    17
    • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
    12
    • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
    23
    • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
    8
    • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
    15
    • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
    24
    • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
    9
     
     

    Sponsored Links

    Around The Network

    • The Messengers at Rotten Tomatoes
    • The Messengers at IGN
    • The Messengers at AskMen

    Fresh Links

    Featured
    MSN's Year in Review
    MSN's Year in Review External Link

    Take a look at MSN's choices for the Top 10 films of 2009.

    Moviefone's Year End Poll
    Moviefone's Year End Poll External Link

    What were your favorites? Least favorites? The funniest and scariest? Moviefone wants to know!

    Tarantino's Characters
    Tarantino's Characters External Link

    Hollywood.com explores why QT's characters resonate so well with audiences.

    Top 10 Movies of 2009
    Top 10 Movies of 2009 External Link

    TIME chimes in with their own list of the best films released this year.

    Top 20 of the Decade
    Top 20 of the Decade External Link

    Click through to see which movies BuzzSugar placed in their Best-of-Decade list!

    Promos
    Follow RT on Twitter
    Follow RT on Twitter External Link

    Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!

     
     
    About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Games| Celebs List| Newsletter
    IGN Logo
    About Us | Advertise | Contact Us | Press | Careers
    IGN | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | Direct2Drive | GameSpy Technology
    TeamXbox | Game Sites | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
    AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | GIGA.DE | What They Play | Battlefield Heroes
    By continuing past this page, and by your continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
    Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. | Support | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! RSS Feeds
    IGN’s enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA.
    Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.