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The Frighteners
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The Frighteners (1996) More at IMDbPro »

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The Frighteners (1996) -- After a car accident in which his wife, Debra, was killed and he was injured, Frank Bannister develops psychic abilities allowing him to see...
The Frighteners (1996) -- Post

Overview

User Rating:
7.0/10   25,005 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 3% in popularity this week. See rank & trends on IMDbPro.
Director:
Peter Jackson
Writers (WGA):
Fran Walsh (written by) &
Peter Jackson (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Frighteners on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
19 July 1996 (USA) more
Tagline:
No Rest for the Wicked. more
Plot:
After a car accident in which his wife, Debra, was killed and he was injured, Frank Bannister develops psychic abilities allowing him to see... more | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
1 win & 10 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(8 articles)
Re-Animator
 (From LateFilmFull. 13 May 2009, 4:22 AM, PDT)

Lists of Doom V: Starring Janet Leigh
 (From Fangoria. 27 March 2009, 6:11 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
Expertly Crafter more

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

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 (as Dee Wallace-Stone)

Jake Busey ... Johnny Charles Bartlett

Chi McBride ... Cyrus
Jim Fyfe ... Stuart, Bannister's Ghostly Assistant
Troy Evans ... Sheriff Walt Perry
Julianna McCarthy ... Old Lady Bradley

R. Lee Ermey ... Sgt. Hiles
Elizabeth Hawthorne ... Magda Rees-Jones
Angela Bloomfield ... Debra Bannister
Desmond Kelly ... Harry Sinclair
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Robert Zemeckis Presents: The Frighteners (USA) (complete title)
more
MPAA:
Rated R for terror/violence.
Runtime:
110 min | USA:122 min (director's cut)
Country:
New Zealand | USA
Language:
English
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
DTS | Dolby Digital
Certification:
Finland:K-16 (2000) (DVD) (cut) | Finland:K-16 (1997) (video) (uncut) | Netherlands:12 | Germany:16 (director's cut) | Germany:18 (nf) | Singapore:NC-16 | Finland:K-15 (2005) (uncut) (DVD) (director's cut) | UK:15 (re-rating) (2005) (uncut) | UK:15 (uncut director's edition) | Iceland:14 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | USA:R (certificate #34656) | New Zealand:M | South Korea:15 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Italy:VM14 | Norway:11 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (cut)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Director Cameo: [Peter Jackson]The bearded and pierced man who Frank bumps into a minute before the ghost of Ray knocks him down. more
Goofs:
Continuity: When Lucy is freezing Frank down, the dial she turns is color-coded light blue to dark blue (cold to colder). Moments later, when Dammers turns up, the dial is on a previously non-existent red setting. more
Quotes:
Milton Dammers: [interrogating Lucy] Did he use excessive amounts of table salt during his meal?
Dr. Lucy Lynskey: What?
Milton Dammers: *Answer*... the question!
Dr. Lucy Lynskey: [shouting] FOR CHRIST'S SAKE, IT'S REALLY LATE. I DON'T KNOW, OK?
more
Movie Connections:
Featured in The Making of 'The Frighteners' (1998) (V) more
Soundtrack:
Don't Fear The Reaper more

FAQ

Why was this film rated R in the USA?
more
35 out of 39 people found the following comment useful:-
Expertly Crafter, 27 December 1998
10/10
Author: David Kerr from Meols, England

The Frighteners is an excellent horror-comedy-drama in which Michael J. Fox plays ex-architect and now psychic scamster Frank Bannister. The film revolves around the premise that Frank, after being involved in an accident which resulted in the death of his wife, can now see disembodied spirits and runs a scam in which the ghouls haunt houses under the order of Frank and then he 'exorcises' them for a fee. However, a series of murders begin in Frank's town and it becomes achingly clear that these murders have something to do with his wife's death. The romantic involvement comes in the form of Trini Alvarado (Little Women) who plays a doctor who's husband was killed by the evil forces at work. This film achieves many things, it manages to create a comic atmosphere at times whilst being able to make us feel real sympathy for the character of Frank and his tragic circumstances. This is a truly under-rated film and it is well worth watching.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Frighteners (1996)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
I think Jeffrey Combs is a great actor BUT sevenhillz
***Don't Fear The Reaper*** grungeyjesse
Body count??? chadhiz
Jim carey??? skoglio
Dir. Cut. Boomstickman
SPOILERY: The Beginning and the End? ankharra
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