The Frighteners

The Frighteners Videos

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Back from Hell

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - African American Apparition Coalition

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Psycho Killers

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Death in the Restroom

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Sergeant Spook

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Fleeing the Reaper

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Frank Bannister in Action

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Death Comes for Lucy

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

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The Frighteners: Official Clip - Fighting Death

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The Frighteners Photos

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Cast & Crew

Michael J. Fox
Frank Bannister

Trini Alvarado
Dr. Lucy Lynskey

Peter Dobson
Ray Lynskey

John Astin
The Judge

Jeffrey Combs
Milton Dammers

Dee Wallace
Patricia Ann Bradley

Jake Busey
Johnny Charles Bartlett

Chi McBride
Cyrus

Jim Fyfe
Stuart, Bannister's Ghostly Assistant

Troy Evans
Sheriff Walt Perry

Peter Jackson
Director

Fran Walsh
Writer

Peter Jackson
Writer

Robert Zemeckis
Executive Producer

Jamie Selkirk
Producer

Peter Jackson
Producer

Danny Elfman
Original Music

Alun Bollinger
Cinematographer

Jamie Selkirk
Film Editor

Victoria Burrows
Casting

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News & Interviews for The Frighteners

Critic Reviews for The Frighteners

Audience Reviews for The Frighteners

• Jun 18, 2020

  Has maybe not aged flawlessly, but it's very silly and very involved in a good kind of way. Kind of feels like a spoof but I'm honestly not sure what of, so I think that it's maybe just a light toned take on some pretty dark subject matter. It's been about 20 years since I last watched The Frighteners and I think I could probably go about that long before I watch it again, but I still do think it's worthwhile.
  Gimly M Super Reviewer
• May 11, 2016

  Competent filmmaking by professionals (which is to say that the thinness of the plot is neatly covered over by CGI extravagance), despite that it wallows in cartoony humor too often. Eric Stoltz dodged this bullet I think.
  Kevin M. W Super Reviewer
• Oct 25, 2014

  Before he began the masonry on Middle Earth, Peter Jackson was renowned for his edgy New Zealand B-movies like 'Bad Taste' and 'Dead Alive'. His first foray into mainstream was 'The Frighteners' and it is an unsung masterpiece. In a conventional chiller-comedy, Frank Bannister (an utterly charismatic Michael J. Fox) would be a mendacious huckster preying on the superstitions of his clientele. The cunning twist is that Frank is a bilking blowhard but he actually does possess a foothold in the world of the supernatural and his accomplices are the poltergeists haunting his customers. The improvisational banter between Frank and his cohorts (Chi McBride and Jim Fyfe) is mischievous but John Astin a.k.a. Gomez Adams is a firecracker as The Judge (a necrophilia joke with a museum mummy is rowdily pushing-the-envelope). The ectoplasmic special effects by the WETA LIMITED company are state-of-the-art (the scythe-wielding Grim Reaper villain slinks with gangly purpose while he squeezes the hearts of his victims). Eccentric horror movie maven Jeffrey Combs is introduced later in the film as a deranged, prattling detective with swastika-etched scars and his delivery of "what did he do Frank? Piss on your hush puppies?" is gut-bustingly funny. Danny Elfman's score is a gothic accompaniment to the bells-and-whistles. If any late-90's movie can be lovingly compared to 'Ghostbusters' in its pursuit of both guffaws and scares, 'The Frighteners' is a terrifically resplendent successor.
  

  Cory T Super Reviewer
• Oct 26, 2013

  This movie is what would happen if Evil Dead 2 and Ghostbusters had a drunken, passionate night of lovemaking. This would be the result of that lovemaking. This movie certainly has its tonal issues and a lackluster climax, but it's still a lot of fun and it certainly reminds me a lot of the Evil Dead 2 in some of its silly moments, and this movie does have plenty. Unfortunately, I did find the whole experience to be a little disappointing. Like I said, the movie does have it's silly moments, and many funny characters, Dammers for example was a really entertaining character. But it's never really consistently funny or scary. The movie jumps back and forth between serious and funny like it's nothing, and I found that to be problematic because I never knew how to look at the movie. Is it a scary movie with some light comedic touches or is it a comedy with some horror? I think in this movie the horror undercuts the comedy and vice versa. It's not like The Evil Dead 2 where both elements can coexist and actually end up working together to make the movie an incredible experience. I don't think this script is as focused as it could've been, which is why the horror and the comedy don't really coexist that well. But the movie is still quite entertaining with a good cast, and it has some pretty clever use of special effects. Of course, since the movie is almost 20 years old then it means that it looks a bit outdated, but there's still some really cool scenes here. Another problem is that the climax of the film was really unsatisfying. Unsatisfying in the sense that they pretty much rush through it to get to the finale, almost as if they forgot that they had a limited time span to tell their story. It was also unsatisfying to see Frank Bannister, after dying, being sent down back to earth just so they could have the stereotypical happy ending with Frank falling in love with Lucy. I thought that was really lame. It's not like the movie was depressing or anything that Frank dying would've really changed how you felt about the movie. So that liberal use of deus ex machina was pretty lame. Still, the movie's entertaining with some really funny moments and some cool special effects. Even if it's a little disappointing in some regards, I had fun watching this movie. It should've been better than it was, but still good;.
  Jesse O Super Reviewer

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