THIR13EN GHOSTS
Cast
Tony Shalhoub Arthur Kriticos
Matthew Lillard Dennis Rafkin
Shannon Elizabeth Kathy Kriticos
Rah Digga Maggie Bess
Embeth Davidtz Kalina Oretzia
F. Murray Abraham Cyrus Kriticos
Alec Roberts Robert 'Bobby' Kriticos
JR Bourne Benjamin Moss
Matthew Harrison Damon
Jacob Rupp Cyrus' Assistant

Plot
When the Kriticos family inherits a spectacular old house from an eccentric uncle they know nothing of its own dangerous agenda. Trapped in their new home by shifting walls, a father and daughter encounter powerful and vengeful ghosts that threaten to destroy anyone in their path. Soon the family is joined by an offbeat ghost hunter who is determined to free the spirits imprisoned in the house.

Analysis
At the helm for this stylish horror yarn is first time director Steve Beck who, for saying he has little movie making experience, has certainly made a marked impact for his creative visuals. The movie is essentially a 21st century revamp of the 1960 William Castle film 13 Ghosts, but instead of the audience having to wear kooky looking 'Illusion-O' glasses in order to see the ghostly apparition, the cast now have to don their spectacles in order to reveal the spooks.

Genre favorite Tony Shalhoub plays Arthur the protective father who inherits the mysterious glass mansion from his recently deceased brother Cyrus. Joining him on set is the gorgeous Shannon Elizabeth as his daughter Kathy and the real life 'Shaggy', Mathew Lillard. Capable performances all round but no one really stands out as a strong character which in most parts is due to a rather weak script.

By far the most entertaining part of the film has to be the ghosts themselves. The makeup effects are exemplary and, when combined with the correct mood lighting and sound effects, are certainly effective enough to put the fear of god up anyone watching. The first ghost to be seen in the house is the 'Angry Princess' who appears as a naked apparition complete with self mutilation gashes across her entire body. Then there is the 'The Jackal' who was so dangerous during his living years that his head had to be enclosed in a cage to stop him chomping down on unsuspecting victims. The pictures below give a brief incite into the look of some of the hideous creatures on offer but cannot do true justice until viewed in action. If you catch this movie on DVD you will be treated to a great introduction to each ghost with the history of their supernatural predicament. In fact this section was so good that it really should have been worked into the film somehow.

But for all this ocular panache comes a down side. The content of the plot just didn't justify the 87 minutes running time and I felt that they had over used the scenes which saw the cast members escaping from the ghosts. This however is a double edged sword in so much as the best monster effects were seen during these very same scenes. As far as the story goes it's hardly a justification and creates a very repetitive experience with very little substance other than a little ectoplasm.

Key Area Rating (out of 5)  Comment
Action
Plenty of ghost busting to increase the heart rate.
Tension
The corridor scenes that involve the cast running for their lives around the mansion builds a good amount of tension. The use of the spectral glasses worn to see the ghosts leads to a few moments of sudden fright. The stand out scene would have to be the first time 'The Jackal' is seen by Shannon Elizabeth's character.
Violence/
Gore
The physical violence is not all that elaborate but the red stuff does run in places and the ghosts take no prisoners when they are set free to do their thing.
Bare Flesh
The 'Angry Princess' fills this section nicely with her on-screen presence being solely dominated by the fact that she is completely and utterly butt-naked. The wounds that cover her body along with her cold black eye's are a real turn off but the boobs are there all the same.
Plot
An OK story ruined slightly by the repetitive us of the same premise: -
There's a ghost run down a corridor, there's another ghost run down another corridor. Soon gets very tired.

Verdict
Overall 'Thir13en Ghosts' is an enjoyable film for one reason only and that's the great monster makeup and special effects. The overall presentation is excellent and the visual flair that accompanies the film is very high. The story is pretty generic and has a tendency to repeat itself which unfortunately plunges the whole production into nothing other than intriguing eye candy.
 

Facts, figures and boobs

1. The original 13 Ghosts (1960) is playing on the television in the apartment during the first scene following the credits.
2. Of all the creature makeup's created for the film, "The Angry Princess" required the longest time to apply makeup, at five hours.
3. Shawna Loyer attracted a small cult following thanks to her brief role as the Angry Princess. A rumor circulated that the role was actually played by porn actress Aria Giovanni using a pseudonym, but this is incorrect.

Movie Pictures
(Click picture to enlarge)

What other people thought of this film: -
Rhiannon
Yesh, thirteen ghosts indeed rocked, my favourites were: The angry princess, The Jackal and the Bound Woman. The bound woman scares the flying bejeezers outta me!
IconOfSelfIndulgence The Angry Princess is all about suicide and death and how she feels about herself.
Val Kerner
This is one of my fave horror movies!I love horror movies- only problem is I don't get scared! My fear sort of went onto 'off' mode a few years ago and I don't know why. Ashley-'The Ring' is a good one too. I loved all the ghosts and The Jackal was my fave, then The Juggernaut, The Bound Woman,etc
Bonedaddy
The plot of this movie was pretty 'blah'. Tony Shalhoub is kool though so I thought I'd check it out. The ghost make-up and house effects kicked arse. I think that those two factors saved this film. Plus some of the characters had some snappy one liners.
Holly
Man this is movie is off the hook. its got the best make-up ive ever seen adn the jackal is the best!!! it was scary but wut can i say tis a horror movie duh?? but hte jackal was by far the best!!!!!!!!
Wonderfulllife
OK...this is simply the best...i mean, what other movie do u see a man SPLIT IN HALF..ok that part really needed some special affects work, but the plot was awesome, and the way the characters were so well doveloped was the greatest. plus, mathew lillard is the sexiest man ever, AND this movie made me watch my back for weeks..XOXO
Me
This movie blew hard. That's why it bombed in the box office. There was nothing scary about it at all. If you want to see a scary horror moive, watch The Exorcist.
Phill This is one of the best horror flicks i have sceen.
Sam
I thought the movie kicked ass! I'm not a big horror movie person but this one is definitely my favorite. The angry princess is my favorite ghost! The others are good, too. The visual effects and costume/make up were great!
Mandy Sifford

I thought this film was awesome! My favorite part was when Arthur wanted to go down in to the basement and Dennid (MathewLillard)said:"What!NO,NO,No,No, what did I just say,that there's a petting zoo downstairs!Nooo...There are ghosts down stairs Arthur." So that's my fav. part. Oh and I think Mathew Lillard is HOTT!!!!

kRiStEn
this is now officially my FAVORITE MOVIE!! the Angry Princess (Shawna Loyer) was awsome, as well as the other characters too!!
Spazzzz
The Jackal I say stole the Damn show! He and The Exorcist should get their groove on and have some lil jackal's and Lil Exorcists!
AnGrY_pRiNcEsS2
HI Y'ALL! THIS MOVIE WAS AWESOME! THE ANGRY PRINCESS KICKED ASS! THE BATHROOM SCNENE WAS REALLY CREEPY- EVERY TIME I TAKE A BATH I AM NOW ON THE LOOKOUT FOR INTRUDING SPIRITS...LOL....L8TAZ!
Carlos
Hey dont diss shes hot Angry princess is called that cuz she was beautiful (cuz princess' are meant 2 be yeah?) and she hated her self (angy, so put em 2gether and u have the angry princess) lol I love her she's great also 1st born son was cool
Anomus
I loved the movie its not that scary but its still ass kicking.
Nikki
This is probably one of the best horror films I've ever seen. It's very well put together and the fact that none of the ghosts were computer images made it all the more better.
The first born son
Its an interesting movie, could have been better though, but it is unique and has exelent graphics and make-up.
AnGrY_pRiNcEsS
What can i say? the Angry Princess a.k.a Shawna Loyer rocked! Her performance in the bathtub was so eerie and captivating even though she doesn't have a speaking role. I hope she continues her acting career because she would make a kick-ass actress. The rumors that she is Aria Giovanni is FALSE! They are two different people. Aria is Italian and Shawna was born in Miami, Florida for pete's sake!
Erica
I loved this movie so much, its now my favorite. Usually I frizz out on horror movies, even the cheezy ones, but the movie's so kick-ass, how can I be scared? I'm actually working on my own Thir13en Ghosts fanfic. I am nothing short than in love with the character Dennis Rafkin.*coughs* This movie is by far one of the best I've ever seen. I can hardly begin to describe how I feel about this movie and what I think of it.
JoJo
The movie is Kick ass. I haven't seen a horror movie with such good make-up & costume as this one. And Shawna was awsome....she is going to make one amazing actress!!!
Hirehire It is bad sad lad mad tad fad had cad vad rad uad pad
Ashley
When i first was gonna watch this movie it was midnite in my living room, i didn't wanna watch it, but after seeing the back (VHS) and reading it, i decided," Why not?" So i watching it with my aunt and my dog. the Jackal and the angry princess were my 2 favourites, I HAVE A NEW FAVOURITE HORROR MOVIE!!! (first The Ring, then this)
Naomi
The angry princess ? what the hell is a name about
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