Genre:
Horror
Theatrical Release: 10/26/2001(USA)
Release Date: 01/01/2001
Sound: DD5.1
Run Time:
Flags: Graphic Violence, Nudity, Not For Children, Profanity, Watch With Your Teen
Distributor/Studio: Warner Home Video
This haunted house chiller is the second feature from
Dark Castle Entertainment, the mid-budget outfit put together in 1999 to remake the cheesy
horror genre pictures of
William Castle by his daughter,
Terry Castle, and producers
Gilbert Adler,
Robert Zemeckis, and
Joel Silver. Financially ravaged and widowed by a fire that is consuming him with guilt,
Arthur Kriticos (
Tony Shalhoub) is left to raise two kids on his own: beautiful teenager
Kathy (
Shannon Elizabeth) and grade school student
Bobby (
Alec Roberts). Good news suddenly drops into their lives when a lawyer visits and reveals that they have inherited a lavish home from a late uncle,
Cyrus (
F. Murray Abraham), an eccentric ghost hunter. The
Kriticos family moves into the remote house only to discover its odd secret: the dwelling contains a state-of-the-art, elaborate system of moving glass walls that trap spirits inside. Soon the ghosts, which can only be seen through the use of special high-tech spectacles, are loose in the elaborate contraption and are none too thrilled about their predicament. With the exits sealed, the family members try to learn the secret of
Uncle Cyrus' bizarre mansion and survive supernatural assaults with the help of sassy housekeeper
Maggie (
Rah Digga), neurotic psychic
Rafkin (
Matthew Lillard), and
Kalina (
Embeth Davidtz), an activist championing the civil rights of ghosts. The eyeglasses through which the spirits can be viewed in
Thirteen Ghosts (2001) were part of a ballyhoo gimmick involving pairs of spectacles handed out to audiences for screenings of the 1960 original, which was presented in "Illusion-O." ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
;)
