The Frighteners

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For the Matt Helm spy novel by Donald Hamilton, see The Frighteners (novel).
The Frighteners
Directed by Peter Jackson
Produced by Peter Jackson
Jamie Selkirk
Executive producer:
Robert Zemeckis
Written by Fran Walsh
Peter Jackson
Starring Michael J. Fox
Trini Alvarado
John Astin
Jeffrey Combs
Dee Wallace-Stone
Jake Busey
Chi McBride
Music by Danny Elfman
Cinematography John Blick
Alun Bollinger
Editing by Jamie Selkirk
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date(s) United States:
July 19, 1996
New Zealand:
December 26, 1996
United Kingdom:
January 24, 1997
Australia:
March 13, 1997
Running time Theatrical:
110 minutes
Director's Cut:
122 minutes
Country United States
New Zealand
Language English
Budget $30 million[1]
Gross revenue $29.36 million

The Frighteners is a 1996 comedy horror film directed by Peter Jackson and co-written with his wife, Fran Walsh. The film's cast includes Michael J. Fox, Trini Alvarado, John Astin, Jeffrey Combs, Dee Wallace-Stone, Jake Busey and Chi McBride. The Frighteners tells the story of Frank Bannister (Fox), an architect who develops psychic abilities allowing him to see, hear, and communicate with ghosts. After losing his wife, he uses his new abilities by cheating money out of customers for his "ghosthunting" business. However, a mass murderer comes back from Hell, prompting Frank to investigate the supernatural presence.

Jackson and Walsh conceived the idea for The Frighteners during the scriptwriting phase of Heavenly Creatures. Robert Zemeckis hired the duo to write the script, with the original intention of Zemeckis directing The Frighteners as a spin-off film of the television series, Tales from the Crypt. With Jackson and Walsh's first draft submitted in January 1994, Zemeckis believed the film would be better off directed by Jackson, produced by Zemeckis and funded/distributed by Universal Pictures. The visual effects were created by Jackson's Weta Digital, who had only been in existence for three years. This, plus the fact that The Frighteners required more digital effects shots than almost any movie made up until that time, resulted in the eighteen-month period for effects work by Weta Digital being largely stressed.

Despite a rushed post-production schedule, Universal Pictures was so impressed with Jackson's rough cut on The Frighteners, the studio moved the theatrical release date closer by four months. The film was not a box office success, but Frighteners received generally positive reviews from critics.

The Frighteners is also Michael J. Fox's last lead role in a live-action movie, he semi-retired from movies due to the worsening effects of Parkinson's disease.

Contents

[edit] Plot

In 1995, a panicked woman named Patricia Bradley (Dee Wallace-Stone) runs from a Grim Reaper-like ghost seen through the shape of walls. She is saved when her elderly mother (Julianna McCarthy) shoots at the ghost.

Meanwhile, in 1990, once successful, but selfish and alcoholic, architect Frank Bannister (Michael J. Fox) loses his wife, Debra (Angela Bloomfield), in a car accident and gives up his profession, letting his unfinished "dream house" sit incomplete for years. Following his wife's death, in which Bannister was suspected, but never convicted for, Bannister gains the power to see ghosts and puts this skill to use by befriending three ghosts named Cyrus (Chi McBride) (a 1970s black gangster), Stuart (Jim Fyfe) (a nerd, presumably from the 1950s) and The Judge (John Astin) (an Old West gunslinger). Cyrus, Stuart and Judge help Bannister by haunting houses in the area to accumulate work for Bannister's ghostbusting business; Frank then proceeds to "exorcise" the houses for a fee (one of these houses is that of Dr. Lucy Lynskey (Trini Alvarado) and her husband, Ray (Peter Dobson)). However, Bannister is depicted by locals as a conman. He discovers that Lynskey's husband has been killed and an encounter with his ghost leads him to discover that an entity resembling the Grim Reaper is killing people, and marking numbers on their foreheads.

Bannister tries to help the people whom the Reaper is after with his motivation being that his wife was found dead after the car crash with a similar (lower) number carved into her forehead. Because Bannister can see the numbers ahead of time, he can foretell the murders, but this puts him under suspicion by the police and Milton Dammers (Jeffrey Combs), an eccentric FBI agent who is convinced that Bannister is merely delusional. Bannister is eventually arrested for the death of a person he was trying to save. Lynskey visits Bannister while in prison, and realizing that Lynskey is the reaper's next target, Bannister attempts to prevent her death and escapes from prison with the help of Cyrus and Stuart. Frustrated by his inability to fight the reaper, Bannister attempts to commit temporary suicide so he can stop the reaper's killing spree, with Lynskey helping Bannister to go into suspended animation by using specialized drugs to temporarily stop his heart. Bannister confronts the Reaper and discovers that the killer is the ghost of Johnny Charles Bartlett (Jake Busey).

In 1963, Bartlett was crazy about being a prolific serial killer and murdered twelve people in a Sanatorium with the assistance of 15 year old Patricia Bradley, Bartlett's underaged girlfriend and daughter of the Director of the Hospital. The two were arrested and tried: Patricia- due to her status as a minor- was sent to prison as an accessory despite maintaining her innocence, but released (on the same year when Frank's car accident occurred) to live with her overbearing mother under careful observation, while Bartlett received the electric chair. Using Barlett's scythe against him, Bannister rids Bartlett of his Reaper form, but before he can do anything else, he is forced back into his body.

After learning the identity of the Reaper, Lynskey worries that Bradley will become one of Bartlett's targets. She enters the house and makes a terrifying discovery: Bradley is still communicating with Bartlett's ghost. Patricia then kills her mother and tries to kill Lynskey, but Bannister saves her and the two flee, stealing Bartlett's ashes from Bradley's room. Hoping to take the ashes to holy ground, they run for the chapel of the now abandoned psychiatric hospital to send Bartlett back to Hell. Frank soon realizes that this was the hospital where the original crimes were committed, but the ashes are thrown away by the dismissive Dammers (who is subsequently blasted with a shotgun in the face by Bradley). Bartlett and Bradley hunt down Bannister and Lynskey. It is then that Bannister makes sense of his repressed memories about the car crash that killed his wife. Bartlett, it seems, drove the two off the road and killed Bannister's wife, Debra, then Bradley, who at that time was just released from prison a short while ago, used Bannister's utility knife to cut the number into her forehead. The two kill Bannister by strangling him, however, Bannister's ghost shows up and kills Bradley by taking her spirit and dragging her up towards Heaven with him, with Bartlett in hot pursuit. When they arrive, Bannister ends up staying in Heaven while both Bartlett and Bradley are sent down to Hell for eternity. Bannister, after meeting Debra's spirit (as well as Cyrus and Stuart), is told it is not yet his time and is sent back to earth. Bannister and Lynskey fall in love, and due to the traumatic experience the two went through, Lynskey can see the ghosts too. Frank goes back to being an architect, demolishing the dream house that he never finished for his wife and building a new life with Lynskey. As for Dammers (who is now a ghost), he is last seen taken away by the sheriff in his car (whether or not the sheriff is able to see ghosts as well).

[edit] Cast

Left to right: Stuart (Jim Fyfe), Frank (Michael J. Fox) and Cyrus (Chi McBride)
  • Michael J. Fox as Frank Bannister: Although Jackson and Walsh envisioned The Frighteners as a low budget film with unknown actors, Zemeckis suggested casting his Back to the Future star Michael J. Fox in the lead role. Fox became enthusiastic about working with Jackson when he saw Heavenly Creatures at the Toronto International Film Festival.[2] Fox read the script and was impressed by its "weirdness and macabre" nature.[3]
  • Trini Alvarado as Dr. Lucy Lynskey: The character is named after Heavenly Creatures star Melanie Lynskey, who also cameos in The Frighteners.[2]
  • Peter Dobson as Ray Lynskey: Lucy's health-obsessed and comically hot-headed husband who dislikes Frank's tactics.
  • John Astin as The Judge: Jackson went on to cast John's son Sean Astin as Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings.[2]
  • Jeffrey Combs as Special Agent Milton Dammers: Eccentric FBI agent who has a vendetta against Bannister. He is a former undercover agent known for his work with cultists, which caused him to sustain multiple massive mutilations and driven to the brink of insanity. Jackson opted to cast Combs as Dammers because he was a fan of the actor's work in Re-Animator.[3]
  • Dee Wallace-Stone as Patricia Ann Bradley: Barlett's mentally ill lover who is under strict observance from her elderly mother.
  • Jake Busey as Johnny Charles Bartlett: Mass murderer who continues his work in the afterlife, focusing on increasing his body count as a form of competition with other famous murderers. He is also revealed to be a sadomasochist, as it was shown during the film of him enjoying getting stabbed by Patricia.
  • Chi McBride and Jim Fyfe as Cyrus and Stuart: Frank's deceased associates for his ghosthunting business.
  • Troy Evans as Sheriff Walt Perry: Local law enforcement officer and ally to Frank.
  • Julianna McCarthy as Old Lady Bradley: Patricia's elderly and obsessed mother and former director of the psychiatric hospital.
  • Elizabeth Hawthorne as Magda Rees-Jones: A snooty British local television news anchor whom Frank dislikes, but tries to save. She is killed by the Reaper.
  • Angela Bloomfield as Debra Bannister: Frank's deceased wife. Bartlett's evil spirit and Patricia framed Bannister for her death during the car accident. He visits her in heaven during the climactic encounter with Bartlett.

Cameo appearances are provided by Peter Jackson, Melanie Lynskey and R. Lee Ermey.

[edit] Production

Peter Jackson and wife/co-writer Fran Walsh conceived the idea for The Frighteners in 1992, during the scriptwriting phase of Heavenly Creatures.[4] Together, they wrote a three-page film treatment and sent it to their talent agent in Hollywood. Robert Zemeckis viewed their treatment with the intention of directing The Frighteners as a spin-off film of the television series, Tales from the Crypt (which he helped produce).[5][6] Zemeckis hired Jackson and Walsh to turn their treatment into a full-length screenplay in January 1993.[2] The husband and wife duo completed their first draft for The Frighteners in early-January 1994. Zemeckis was so impressed with their script, he decided The Frighteners would work better directed by Jackson, executive produced by Zemeckis and funded/distributed by Universal Pictures.[6] Universal greenlighted the film to commence pre-production on a $26 million budget in April 1994.[4][7] The studio also granted Jackson and Zemeckis total artistic control and the right of final cut privilege.[5]

The decision to film The Frighteners entirely in New Zealand was Jackson's idea.[8] Zemeckis and Universal agreed on the condition that Jackson made New Zealand look similar to the Midwestern United States.[3] Principal photography began on May 14, 1995 and lasted until November 16, which is one of the longest shooting schedules Universal Pictures ever approved of. Six weeks into the shoot, cinematographer Alun Bollinger had a serious car accident. His replacement, John Blick, later alternated duties with Bollinger for much of the rest of the shoot.[9] Location shooting primarily included Wellington and three weeks spent in Lyttelton. Interior scenes were compiled at Camperdown Studios in Miramar.[3]

[edit] Visual effects

Jackson's Weta Digital created the visual effects, which included computer-generated imagery, as well as scale models (which were necessary to make Wellington look American),[2] prosthetic makeup and practical effects with help from Weta Workshop. Visual effects supervisor Richard Taylor explained that effects work on The Frighteners was complex due to Weta's inexperience with computer technology in the mid-1990s. Prior to this film, Weta worked largely with physical effects. With so many ghosts among its main cast, The Frighteners required more digital effects shots than almost any movie made up till that time. For a special effects company that had been in existence less than three years, the eighteen-month period for completing The Frighteners was largely stressful.[9] Some shots were handled by a small New Zealand company called Pixel Perfect, many of whose employees would eventually join Weta Digital.[2] Rick Baker was hired to design the prosthetic makeup for The Judge, portrayed by John Astin (the detachable jawbone was later added digitally). However, Baker was not able to apply Astin's five hours of makeup himself due to his commitment on The Nutty Professor.[9] Makeup artist Brian Penikas (Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) fulfilled Baker's duties.[10]

The extended shooting schedule for The Frighteners owed much to the fact that scenes where ghosts and human characters interacted had to be filmed twice; once with human characters acting on set, and then with the ghost characters acting against a blue screen. The two elements would later be digitally composited into one shot with the use of split screen photography. Such sequences required precise timing from the cast as they traded dialogue with characters who were merely blank air.[9] The hardest challenge for the digital animators at Weta was creating the Grim Reaper, which went through many transformations before finding physical form.[10] "We set out with the intention of doing the Reaper as a rod puppet, maybe shooting it in a water tank," Jackson commented. "We even thought of filming someone, dressed in costume, at different camera speeds."[9] Test footage was shot with puppets and a man in a Reaper suit, but in the end, it was decided that using computer animation would be the easiest task. Another entirely computerized character called "the Gatekeeper", a winged cherub who helps guard the cemetery, was deleted from the final cut.[11]

With digital effects work running behind schedule, producer Robert Zemeckis convinced Wes Takahashi (from George Lucas' Industrial Light & Magic) to help work on The Frighteners.[11] "The shots Zemeckis showed me were pretty remarkable," Takahashi reflected, "but there were still about 400 shots to do, and everyone was kind of worried."[1] Takahashi was quickly drafted as a visual effects supervisor, and began looking at the schedule, trying to work out whether The Frighteners could be finished in time. "There was no way we'd make the deadline. I figured out a concerted plan involving Jackson and Zemeckis to convince Universal it was worthy of asking for more money."[1] The executives at Universal proposed splitting some of the shots to visual effects companies in the United States, but Jackson, for whom the film was a chance to show New Zealand filmmaking could stand alongside Hollywood, convinced Universal otherwise.[1] Instead, The Frighteners received an accelerated release date, four months earlier than planned, and an additional $6 million in financing, with fifteen digital animators and computer workstations (some were borrowed from Universal and other effects companies in the US). Andrew Adamson was hired as a digital effects supervisor.[12]

[edit] Soundtrack

The Frighteners
Soundtrack by Danny Elfman
Released July 19, 1996
Genre Film score
Length 41:14
Label Universal
Professional reviews
Danny Elfman chronology
Black Beauty
(1994)		 The Frighteners
(1996)		 Men in Black
(1997)

The film score was written and composed by Danny Elfman. It was released in 1996 on cassette and compact disc by Universal Records.[13] The closing credits play "(Don't Fear) The Reaper", written by Buck Dharma and performed by New Zealand alternative rock band The Mutton Birds.[14][15] The Mutton Birds version of the song had been previously released as a b-side to their single "She's Been Talking" released in 1996.[16]

Critical reception of the soundtrack was average. Jason Ankeny of album database Allmusic described the soundtrack as "imaginative" giving it three stars out of five.[13] This was a lower rating on the site then Elfman's other scores of the era, such as Mission: Impossible, Mars Attacks! and Flubber.[17] The soundtrack review website Filmtracks referred to the album as "lacking much cohesion or singular creativity".[18]


[edit] Release

The original release date was October 31, 1996, but after Universal studio executives viewed a rough cut of The Frighteners, they were impressed enough to move the release date to their "summer blockbuster slot" on July 19, 1996.[19] In addition, Universal offered the filmmaker the opportunity to make King Kong, which was not released until 2005.[20] Jackson often disputed over the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) over the film's rating. Aware that he was meant to be delivering Universal a PG-13 rating, Jackson tried his best to omit the amount of graphic violence as much as possible, but the MPAA still believed The Frighteners deserved an R-rating.[21]

[edit] Box office performance

The Frighteners was released in the United States in 1,675 theaters, earning $5,565,495 during its opening weekend. The film eventually grossed $16.76 million in the United States and $12.6 million internationally, coming to a worldwide total of $29.36 million.[22] The Frighteners was not declared a financial success, although it faced competition from Independence Day, Romeo + Juliet and Ransom.[23] In later interviews taken years after The Frighteners' release, Jackson commented he was disappointed by Universal's ubiquitous marketing campaign, including a poster which "didn't tell you anything about the picture",[2] which he believed was the primary reason the film was not a financial success.[7] Additionally, the film opened on the same day the Atlanta Summer Olympics began; when Jackson realized this and told the studio, they answered "'We don't think so; our research indicates that's not the case...' And I just thought how the hell do they know? There had only ever been three Olympic Games held in the United States in one hundred years!'" Jackson acknowledged The Frighteners' tone made it hard to piegonhole and sell, and his experience on the film made him understand the importance of marketing a film.[2]

[edit] Critical reception

Jackson received two Saturn Award nominations.

Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times stated "Director Peter Jackson, at home with all kinds of excess in New Zealand, keeps everything spinning nicely, not even losing a step when the mood turns increasingly disturbing."[24] Janet Maslin from The New York Times enjoyed The Frighteners, but "walked out the theater with mixed emotions," she commented that "Peter Jackson deserves more enthusiasm for expert, imaginative effects than for his live actors anyhow. These lively touches would leave The Frighteners looking more like a more frantic Beetlejuice if Jackson's film weren't so wearyingly overcrowded. The Frighteners is not immune to overkill, even though most of its characters are already dead."[25] Jeff Vice of Deseret News praised the acting in the film, with the performances of Fox and Alvarado in particulair, but said that there were also "bits that push the taste barrier too far and which grind things to a screeching halt", and that if "Jackson had used the restraint he showed in Heavenly Creatures, the movie could have "been the best of its kind".[26] Critic Christopher Null praised the film, as he described it as a mixture between Ghostbusters and Twin Peaks.[27] Michael Drucker of IGN said that although the film wouldn't make Jackson's top five of movies, it "is a harmless and fun dark comedy that you'll enjoy casually watching from time to time".[28] The Frighteners received mixed reviews from critics from Jackson's native country, New Zealand.[21]

Although reviews were mostly positive, The Frighteners also received negative reviews. Todd McCarthy of Variety thought that the movie should have remained an episode of Tales from the Crypt.[29] Critic James Berardinelli believed that although The Frighteners wasn't "a bad film", it was "a disappointment, following Jackson's powerful, true-life matricide tale, Heavenly Creatures", and because of that "The Frighteners fell short of expectations by being just one of many in the long line of 1996 summer movies."[30] Chicago Sun-Times' Roger Ebert, felt that Jackson was more interested in prosthetic makeup designs, computer animation and special effects than writing a cohesive storyline.[31] Ebert and critic Gene Siskel gave it a "two thumbs down" rating on their tv show At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert.[32] Chicago Reader critic Jonathan Rosenbaum, described the film's special effects as "ugly, aggressive" and "proliferating", saying that "trying to keep interested in [the special effects] was like trying to remain interested in a loudmouth shouting in [his] ear".[33] Edward Guthmann of the San Francisco Chronicle stated that "instead of moving the horror genre in new directions, The Frighteners simply falls apart from its barrage of visual effects and the overmixed onslaught of Danny Elfman's music score".[34] The Austin Chronicle's Joey O'Brien, said that although the screenplay was "practically loaded with wild ideas, knowingly campy dialogue and offbeat characterizations", it "switched gears" too fast and too frequently that "the audience is left struggling to catch up as [The Frighteners] twists and turns its way unmercifully towards a literally out-of-its-words finale".[35]

At the 23rd Saturn Awards, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films honored Jackson with nominations for Best Direction and Best Writing, the latter he shared with wife Fran Walsh. The Frighteners also was nominated the Saturn Award for Best Horror Film, and for its Special Effects, Make-up (Rick Baker) and Music (Danny Elfman). Michael J. Fox and Jeffrey Combs were also nominated for their work.[36]

[edit] DVD

The Frighteners was first released on DVD in August 1998, but included no special features.[37] To coincide with the release of Jackson's King Kong,[28] Universal Studios Home Entertainment issued the two-disc director's cut of the film in November 2005,[38] which featured a version of The Frighteners that was 14 minutes longer.[27] The second disc includes a documentary prepared by Jackson and Wing Nut Films originally for the Laserdisc release.[38] The director's cut was also made available in HD DVD format.[39]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d Pryor, Ian (2003). Peter Jackson: From Prince of Splatter to Lord of the Rings. New York City: Thomas Dunne Books. pp. 204-205. ISBN 0-312-32294-1. 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Sibley, Brian (2006). Peter Jackson: A Film-maker's Journey. London: HarperCollins. pp. 261, 303 - 322, 331 - 333. ISBN 0-00-717558-2. 
  3. ^ a b c d Pryor, p.196-200
  4. ^ a b Pryor, p.191-195
  5. ^ a b Helms, Michael (July 1996). "The Frighteners". Fangoria: pp. 35-41. 
  6. ^ a b Sibley, p.273-279
  7. ^ a b Sibley, p.330-339
  8. ^ Archerd, Amy (1995-02-15). "Cates thinks diverse noms make for good TV". Variety. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117862643. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  9. ^ a b c d e Pryor, p.201-203
  10. ^ a b Vaz, Mark Cota (June 1996). "The Frighteners: The Thrill of the Haunt". Cinefex: pp. 67-71. 
  11. ^ a b Sibley, p.320-329
  12. ^ Pryor, pp. 300-309
  13. ^ a b "The Frighteners overview". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:0zfexquhld6e. Retrieved 2009-02-20. 
  14. ^ "The Mutton Birds: overview". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:dvfpxqrgld0e. Retrieved 2009-02-20. 
  15. ^ "The Frighteners: Music From The Motion Picture [SOUNDTRACK]". Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Frighteners-Music-Motion-Picture/dp/B000002P1W. Retrieved 2009-02-14. 
  16. ^ "She's Been Talking". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:jvfixqrjld6e. Retrieved 2009-02-20. 
  17. ^ "Danny Elfman discography". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&searchlink=DANNY. Retrieved 2009-02-20. 
  18. ^ "Filmtracks: The Frighteners". Filmtracks.com. http://www.filmtracks.com/titles/frighteners.html. Retrieved 2009-02-20. 
  19. ^ Thompson, Anne (1996-08-02). "Little Shop of Horror". Entertainment Weekly. http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,293602,00.html. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  20. ^ Sibley, p.210-319
  21. ^ a b Pryor, p.206-211
  22. ^ "The Frighteners". Box Office Mojo. http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=frighteners.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  23. ^ Woods, Mark (1996-12-31). ""Daylight" in Money O'Seas". Variety. http://www.variety.com/vstory/VR1117436171. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  24. ^ Turan, Kenneth (1996-07-19). "Frighteners Jolts Both Nerves and Funny Bone". Los Angeles Times. http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/reviews/cl-movie960719-3,0,6464899.story. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  25. ^ Maslin, Janet (1996-07-19). "Ghosts All Over the Place". The New York Times. 
  26. ^ Vice, Jeff (1996-07-23). "Frighteners, The". Deseret News. http://deseretnews.com/movies/review/1,5208,653,00.html. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  27. ^ a b Null, Christopher (1996). "The Frighteners". Filmcritic.com. http://www.filmcritic.com/misc/emporium.nsf/reviews/The-Frighteners. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  28. ^ a b Drucker, Michael (2005-12-14). "I Can't Believe It's Not Burton". IGN. http://dvd.ign.com/articles/675/675620p1.html. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  29. ^ McCarthy, Todd (July 15, 1996). "The Frighteners". Variety. http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117905416.html?categoryid=31&cs=1. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  30. ^ Berardinelli, James (1996). "The Frighteners". ReelViews. http://www.reelviews.net/php_review_template.php?identifier=391. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  31. ^ Ebert, Roger (1996-07-19). "The Frighteners". Chicago Sun-Times. http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19960719/REVIEWS/607190303/1023. Retrieved 2008-12-24. 
  32. ^ Ebert, Roger; Siskel, Gene (1996-07-19). "The Frighteners". At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert. http://bventertainment.go.com/tv/buenavista/ebertandroeper/index2.html?sec=6&subsec=Frighteners. Retrieved 2009-02-11. 
  33. ^ Rosenbaum, Jonathan (1996). "Quick Change Artists". Chicago Reader. http://www.chicagoreader.com/movies/archives/0796/07196.html. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  34. ^ Guthmann, Edward (1996-07-19). "Film Review – "Frighteners" Busted by Special Effects". San Francisco Chronicle: p. D13. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1996/07/19/DD61313.DTL. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  35. ^ O'Brien, Joey (1996-07-19). "The Frighteners". Austin Chronicle. http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Calendar/Film?Film=oid%3A138104. Retrieved 2009-02-10. 
  36. ^ "Past Saturn Awards". Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films. http://www.saturnawards.org/past.html. Retrieved 2008-12-23. 
  37. ^ "The Frighteners (1996)". Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Frighteners-Trini-Alvarado/dp/078322799X/. Retrieved 2008-12-25. 
  38. ^ a b "The Frighteners (Director's Cut) (1996)". Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Frighteners-Directors-Cut-Trini-Alvarado/dp/B000ASATYO/. Retrieved 2008-12-25. 
  39. ^ "The Frighteners (Peter Jackson's Director's Cut) [HD DVD (1996)]". Amazon.com. http://www.amazon.com/Frighteners-Peter-Jacksons-Directors-Cut/dp/B000O179EA/. Retrieved 2008-12-25. 

[edit] Further reading

[edit] External links


v • d • e
Peter Jackson
1980s
Bad Taste (1987) · Meet the Feebles (1989)
1990s
Braindead (1992) · Heavenly Creatures (1994) · The Frighteners (1996)
2000s
Production credits
Bad Taste (1987) · The Frighteners (1996) · Jack Brown Genius (1997) · The Lord of the Rings film trilogy: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) · The Two Towers (2002) · The Return of the King (2003) · King Kong (2005) · District 9 (2009) · The Lovely Bones (2009) · The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn (2011) · The Hobbit films (2011/2012)
Writer
Bad Taste (1987) · Meet the Feebles (1989) · Braindead (1992) · Heavenly Creatures (1994) · Forgotten Silver (1995) · Jack Brown Genius (1996) · The Frighteners (1996) · The Lord of the Rings film trilogy: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001) · The Two Towers (2002) · The Return of the King (2003) · King Kong (2005) · The Lovely Bones (2009) · The Hobbit films (2011/2012)
Other
The Valley (1976)
Companies
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