The Wraith

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For other uses of the term Wraith and The Wraith, see Wraith (disambiguation).
The Wraith

The Wraith DVD cover
Directed by Mike Marvin
Produced by John Kemeny
Written by Mike Marvin
Starring Charlie Sheen
Sherilyn Fenn
Nick Cassavetes
Randy Quaid
Music by Michael Hoenig
J. Peter Robinson
Cinematography Reed Smoot
Editing by Scott Conrad
Gary Rocklen
Distributed by New Century Vista Film Company
Release date(s) November 21, 1986
Running time 93 min.
Country  United States
Language English
Box office $3,500,000

The Wraith is a 1986 action/science fiction film, directed and written by Mike Marvin.[1] The film was later featured in an episode of Cinema Insomnia.[2]

The movie is dedicated to the memory of Bruce Ingram, a camera operator who died during the filming of one of the car chases.[1]

Contents

[edit] Plot summary

Packard Walsh (Nick Cassavetes) and his gang steal the cars of people they threaten into intimidation races. As a result, the entire town is scared of him, including his girlfriend Keri Johnson (Sherilyn Fenn), whom he sees as his property, but who stays with him out of fear rather than love.

Packard's tyrannical control of the highways is suddenly targeted by the driver of a black Dodge-PPG[1] known as the Turbo Interceptor, who arrives in town and begins killing members of Packard's gang one by one in elimination races. The driver of this car is covered from head to toe in a racing helmet and black body armor, which conceals his identity, and is adorned with metal braces that resemble those worn by those recovering from severe physical trauma. As the driver kills each member of the gang, a piece of his braces disappears. Sheriff Loomis (Randy Quaid) tries to investigate the Turbo Interceptor, but the unknown driver is unstoppable.

At the same time that this racer appears in town, so does a visitor named Jake Kesey (Charlie Sheen), who bears a number of mysterious slash scars across his back and neck. Jake befriends Billy Hankins (Matthew Barry), and Keri, who dated Billy's older brother Jamie before he was murdered. Keri notices that Jake reminds her of her late boyfriend, Jamie (Christopher Bradley), whose murder by Packard and his gang is shown in flashback, and she spends more time with Jake, they fall in love.

As Packard's gang grows smaller with each death, Rughead (Clint Howard), who did not participate in Jamie's murder, realizes that the gang is being targeted because of Jamie's murder, and quits the gang. Keri herself is suspicious of who Jake is, and when she confronts him over this, he tells her to ask Packard, explaining that Packard knows why Jake is here. Jake says that he has come a long way for Keri, and his time is just about over.

Packard, now the last member of his gang, confronts Keri at Big Kay's, the burger joint where she and Billy both work over her association with Jake, and forces her to leave with him. When Billy attempts to intervene, Packard beats him in front of everyone and kidnaps Keri, telling him that they're going to flee to California. When she confronts him with the knowledge that it was he who murdered Jamie, he becomes physically abusive, and tells her that she belongs to him. As he stops the car and pulls a switchblade on her, they are confronted by the Turbo Interceptor, who challenges Packard to a race. As with the others, Packard dies in a fiery explosion. With no members of Packard's gang left alive, Sheriff Loomis ends both the investigation and the pursuit of the Turbo Interceptor.

As Keri arrives home that night, the Turbo Interceptor pulls up to the curb, and a driver emerges who reveals himself to be Jake. Jake tells an incredulous Keri that his new body was the closest he could get to being Jamie again, and tells her that they were destined to be together. He then asks her to wait for him because he has one last thing to take care of.

Jake goes to the Big Kay's, and gives Billy the keys to the Turbo Interceptor, the only one of its kind, telling him that his work here is finished. When Billy asks, "Who are you, bro?", Jake replies, "You said it, Billy." As Jake rides off on his dirt bike, Billy shouts after Jake, and comes to the realization that Jake is in fact Jamie.

Jake picks up Keri, who was being watched by Sheriff Loomis, and they ride off into the night.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Soundtrack

[edit] Release

The movie was released on VHS by Lightning Video and on laserdisc by Image Entertainment in 1987. In 2003, the movie was released on DVD by Platinum Disc Corporation (now Echo Bridge Home Entertainment). In spite of having no special features and only being shown in pan and scan, there is some footage that was missing from the original VHS and laserdisc releases. Lionsgate released a special edition DVD on March 2, 2010.[3]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c "After All These Years ... Mike Marvin Talks The Wraith". Dread Central. March 17, 2010. http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/36462/after-all-these-years-mike-marvin-talks-the-wraith. 
  2. ^ "Cinema Insomnia, with your Horror Host, Mister Lobo! - SHOW INFORMATION". http://www.cinemainsomnia.com/show.php. Retrieved 20 November 2010. 
  3. ^ "The Wraith Roars Back to DVD Courtesy of Lionsgate!". Dread Central. December 8, 2009. http://www.dreadcentral.com/news/34871/the-wraith-roars-back-dvd-courtesy-lionsgate. 

[edit] External links

[edit] Notes

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