The Frighteners
The Frighteners

The Frighteners

1996Movie110 minEnglish

Once an architect, Frank Bannister 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 of one of the victims and deals with a crazy FBI agent.

Read Reviews

Insights

IMDb6.5/10
Rotten Tomatoes63%
Metacritic63/100
Google Users76%
Director: Peter JacksonGenres: Comedy, Horror, Fantasy

Plot Summary

A con man with the ability to commune with ghosts uses his 'talent' to charge people for spectral visitations, which he orchestrates with his ghostly friends. However, when a number of murders occur, he becomes the prime suspect, and must team up with a living woman and her deceased husband to uncover the truth.

Critical Reception

The Frighteners was met with mixed to positive reviews from critics, who often praised its unique blend of horror and comedy, visual effects, and Michael J. Fox's performance. However, some found the plot to be convoluted.

What Reviewers Say

  • Praised for its inventive blend of scares and laughs.
  • Applauded for its impressive visual effects and creative ghost designs.
  • Michael J. Fox's performance was a standout, bringing charm to a complex character.

Google audience: Audiences generally enjoyed the film's humor and creative approach to the supernatural, appreciating its unique visual style and the performances of its cast.

Awards & Accolades

Nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Horror Film.

Fun Fact

The distinctive look of the ghosts in the film was achieved through a combination of CGI and practical effects, with many of the ghosts being motion-captured performances from actors.

AI-generated overview · Verify ratings on official sources

My Review

TMDB Reviews

3 reviews
misubisu

misubisu

### **Review: *The Frighteners (1996)*** **Score: 7/10** *The Frighteners* is a fascinating, energetic, and gloriously uneven goulash of a film—a horror-comedy-ghost-mystery that showcases Peter Jackson's wild imagination in full bloo...
Gimly

Gimly

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....
John Chard

John Chard

When a man's jawbone drops off it's time to reassess the situation. Peter Jackson's The Frighteners is an odd blend of outright comedy and supernatural thriller, if able to get onside with that then there's a whole lot to enjoy. Plot ess...