Ghost Story (1981)

I love this movie so much

You won't be disappointed!

A lot of fun.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

This 1981 horror film is based on the novel which tells of a group of men who share ghost stories with each other, but a ghost from their past decides to give it's own story when exacting murderous revenge on them. Craig Wasson (A Nightmare on Elm Street 3), Alice Krige (Sleepwalkers), The late, John Houseman (The Fog) and Fred Astaire (The Towering Inferno) are featured. This isn't bad, it has some dramatic and suspenseful moments, the cast is decent as well as the score and some great make-up effects by the late, Dick Smith. I'd still give this a view if you're into spooky stories.

While my summary above may sound facetious, I am not exaggerating. I don't like ghost films at all (they just don't interest me)--I simply saw it for the elderly actors making their final appearances (Fred Astaire, Melvyn Douglas and Douglas Fairbanks Jr.)! And so, for me, it was worth seeing--even though it did seem odd to have these actors from Hollywood's golden age in a film so atypical of their other films.The film is at times like two different films intertwined. For most of the film, Craig Wasson played a guy who fell hard for a pretty and VERY horny lady (Alice Krige). Wasson and the audience see A LOT of Krige and over time, it becomes clear she ain't no ordinary horny lady. She appears to be, in fact, a ghost--a ghost using him for revenge. As for the revenge, that's where these old-time actors (as well as John Houseman) come into the story. You see, she's REALLY mad at them and has lots of reason to be. But why? What have these men done and what have they been hiding all these years? As I said above, this sort of film isn't really my thing. So keep this in mind as you read. The story was pretty good but the combination of drippy and gooey stuff and a lot of nudity made me feel odd as I thought about Astaire, Douglas and Fairbanks being in the film. They must have been pretty comfortable with this--I just felt it wasn't the way I wanted to remember these guys (though fortunately, they DID keep their clothing on!). A decent film but just my cup of tea.By the way, if Alice Krige seems oddly familiar, among her many roles was the Borg leader in "Star Trek: First Contact" as well as Harold Abrams girlfriend in "Chariots of Fire".

I initially wanted to rate "Ghost Story" a fine 7/10, but I figured since I (voluntarily) had to endure watching such heavy rubbish earlier this week, I'd just chip in an extra point. I feel no shame about this, as the film is actually very good. At the start of the '80s, the horror landscape was changing. Films got a lot crazier, partly due to many great sfx artists rising to the scene and otherwise because of the mindset of that era (fashion, trends, etc). Often filmmakers cared less about telling a coherent story and more about making their films go over-the-top in any way they'd see fit. So in a way "Ghost Story" really feels like if it was one of the last 'classic' horror movies at the time. From the orchestrated soundtrack over the slow pace of the film, relying more on mood, tension and atmosphere to the splendid performances of our veteran foursome Fred Astaire, Melvin Douglas, John Houseman and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. The film is ingeniously structured, with various stories within the main story, nightmarish dream sequences and a great flashback story to the 1930's era. The settings provide some classic horror elements too, like the isolated snowy town, grisly frozen lakes and an old ramshackle haunted mansion. Sporadically, the film is also injected with some amusing scares provided by ghostly rotting appearances and the special visual effects by master matte artist Albert Whitlock are outstanding. Gorgeous actress Alice Krige has that icy cold mysteriousness over her that is fitting for her role. On top of that, she has more scenes with her clothes off then on. There are a couple subplots that could have been altered to make it an even better movie, but these are only minor problems. If you want a decent scary movie double bill with a classy feel to it for a dark & stormy night, I think teaming up John Irvin's "Ghost Story" (1981) with Peter Medak's "The Changeling" (1980) might work wonders.

Four life-long friends share a terrible secret, one which returns to haunt them in their old-age. When one of the elderly men, Edward Charles Wanderley, inexplicably throws himself off a bridge and his eldest son David (Craig Wasson) suffers a fatal fall from his high-rise apartment, Edward's youngest son Don (Craig Wasson again) suspects that his mysterious lover Alma Mobley (Alice Krige) may be the cause of the deaths.Based on the bestselling novel by Peter Straub, this big-budget supernatural tale boasts a great cast, excellent production values, superb cinematography, and impressive 'make-up illusions' from Oscar-winner Dick Smith, and yet even though it's a class act, Ghost Story simply doesn't work as well as it might have: in the process of adapting the book for the screen, the original story has been severely truncated to fit into the 110 minute running time with the result being a very muddled movie. Subplots are left woefully underdeveloped, and the script leaves more than a few questions unanswered (see IMDb's FAQ for more details).That's not to say that Ghost Story is a totally worthless experience: the acting is solid, with Krige in particular making an impression as the alluring yet creepy Alma/Eva (plus she gets her kit off quite a bit); there are some effective jump scares (helped no end by Dick Smith's putrescent Eva corpse); and the whole affair has a wonderful chilling atmosphere, helped considerably by its wintry New England setting.