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| Sam discovers that Carl was involved in a money laundering scheme at the bank and that the attack was an attempt by Carl to acquire Sam's security codes so that he could transfer the money from the many accounts to one at another bank. Sam learns how to interact with solid matter by willpower from an aggressive ] (]) he meets in the New York City subway who claims to have been murdered when somebody pushed him onto the subway tracks (it is implied he actually committed suicide). Afterward, Sam persuades Oda Mae to thwart Carl's money laundering scheme. Following Sam's instructions, Oda Mae impersonates the owner of Carl's fake bank account, closes the account, and reluctantly gives its $4 million contents to a church related homeless shelter. | Sam discovers that Carl was involved in a money laundering scheme at the bank and that the attack was an attempt by Carl to acquire Sam's security codes so that he could transfer the money from the many accounts to one at another bank. Sam learns how to interact with solid matter by willpower from an aggressive ] (]) he meets in the New York City subway who claims to have been murdered when somebody pushed him onto the subway tracks (it is implied he actually committed suicide). Afterward, Sam persuades Oda Mae to thwart Carl's money laundering scheme. Following Sam's instructions, Oda Mae impersonates the owner of Carl's fake bank account, closes the account, and reluctantly gives its $4 million contents to a church related homeless shelter. | ||
| Carl, due to transfer the money to a correspondent bank overseas, becomes desperate when he finds the account closed and empty. Sam taunts him in the deserted office by moving objects and making accusations appear on his computer screen, repeatedly typing "MURDERER" and "SAM". Carl visits Molly and declares to Sam that he will kill Molly unless the money is returned that evening. He and Willie then go to Oda Mae's apartment to find her. Sam manages to get there first and warns Oda Mae and her two sisters, who quickly escape and take refuge in a neighbor's apartment. Sam uses his powers to separate and distract Carl and Willie, who are ransacking Oda Mae's apartment in search of the money. Horrified by the experience, Willie flees and is |
Carl, due to transfer the money to a correspondent bank overseas, becomes desperate when he finds the account closed and empty. Sam taunts him in the deserted office by moving objects and making accusations appear on his computer screen, repeatedly typing "MURDERER" and "SAM". Carl visits Molly and declares to Sam that he will kill Molly unless the money is returned that evening. He and Willie then go to Oda Mae's apartment to find her. Sam manages to get there first and warns Oda Mae and her two sisters, who quickly escape and take refuge in a neighbor's apartment. Sam uses his powers to separate and distract Carl and Willie, who are ransacking Oda Mae's apartment in search of the money. Horrified by the experience, Willie flees and is run over by a car. Willie rises as a ghost and is dragged into the darkness by a gang of shadowy demons, presumably to ]. | ||
| Afterwards, Sam and Oda Mae return to Molly's apartment to warn her about Carl, but she refuses to let her in and breaks down in grief. Sam finally convinces her that Oda Mae is genuine and he is truly present as a ghost by having her push a penny underneath the front door and Sam levitating it in front of Molly. Astonished, Molly lets Ode Mae inside and while waiting for the police, Sam uses Oda Mae's body to share a final dance with Molly. | Afterwards, Sam and Oda Mae return to Molly's apartment to warn her about Carl, but she refuses to let her in and breaks down in grief. Sam finally convinces her that Oda Mae is genuine and he is truly present as a ghost by having her push a penny underneath the front door and Sam levitating it in front of Molly. Astonished, Molly lets Ode Mae inside and while waiting for the police, Sam uses Oda Mae's body to share a final dance with Molly. | ||
Revision as of 00:26, 30 April 2014
1990 American film| Ghost | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Jerry Zucker |
| Written by | Bruce Joel Rubin |
| Produced by | Lisa Weinstein |
| Starring | Patrick Swayze Demi Moore Whoopi Goldberg Tony Goldwyn Rick Aviles Vincent Schiavelli Gail Boggs Armelia McQueen |
| Cinematography | Adam Greenberg, ASC |
| Edited by | Walter Murch |
| Music by | Maurice Jarre (score) Alex North (Unchained Melody) |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date |
|
| Running time | 126 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $22 million |
| Box office | $505,702,588 |
Ghost is a 1990 American romantic fantasy-thriller film starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Tony Goldwyn, and Whoopi Goldberg. It was written by Bruce Joel Rubin and directed by Jerry Zucker. The plot centers on a young woman in jeopardy (Moore) and the ghost of her murdered lover (Swayze), who tries to save her with the help of a reluctant psychic (Goldberg).
The film was an outstanding commercial success, grossing over $505.7 million at the box office on a budget of $22 million. It was the highest-grossing film of 1990. Adjusted for inflation, Ghost is currently the 91st-highest-grossing film of all time.
The film was nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Score and Best Film Editing. It won the awards for Best Supporting Actress for Goldberg and Best Original Screenplay. Swayze and Moore both received Golden Globe Award nominations for their performances, while Goldberg won the BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Saturn Awards in addition to the Oscar.
Plot
Sam Wheat (Patrick Swayze), a banker, and Molly Jensen (Demi Moore), a potter, are a loving couple who move into a New York City apartment. At work, Sam discovers a major discrepancy in multiple bank accounts and confides in his good friend and colleague Carl Bruner (Tony Goldwyn). Carl offers to investigate the matter, but Sam decides to investigate himself. Later that night, Sam and Molly are attacked by armed thug Willie Lopez (Rick Aviles) and Sam is killed by a gunshot during a struggle with Willie. Sam's ghost arises from his dead body, which lies next to the distraught Molly. He gradually realizes that he is a ghost whose presence cannot be seen or heard.
Sam stays close to Molly, who remains distraught at losing him. Carl stops by to see Molly and persuades her to get some fresh air. Sam can't bring himself to walk through the door after them, but Willie comes in, looking for something. When Molly returns, the killer hides until Sam spooks Molly's cat, causing Willie to get scratched and flee. Sam steps through the door, and follows the killer to his place in Brooklyn, where he hears that he will return to Molly's house. Before he returns to the city, Sam chances on the parlor of Oda Mae Brown (Whoopi Goldberg), a charlatan medium who discovers to her shock that she has actual psychic powers when she meets Sam, her first real ghost. Sam persuades Oda Mae to warn Molly about Willie, but Molly does not believe her, especially after she learns of Oda Mae's extensive criminal record as a forger and con artist.
Sam discovers that Carl was involved in a money laundering scheme at the bank and that the attack was an attempt by Carl to acquire Sam's security codes so that he could transfer the money from the many accounts to one at another bank. Sam learns how to interact with solid matter by willpower from an aggressive poltergeist (Vincent Schiavelli) he meets in the New York City subway who claims to have been murdered when somebody pushed him onto the subway tracks (it is implied he actually committed suicide). Afterward, Sam persuades Oda Mae to thwart Carl's money laundering scheme. Following Sam's instructions, Oda Mae impersonates the owner of Carl's fake bank account, closes the account, and reluctantly gives its $4 million contents to a church related homeless shelter.
Carl, due to transfer the money to a correspondent bank overseas, becomes desperate when he finds the account closed and empty. Sam taunts him in the deserted office by moving objects and making accusations appear on his computer screen, repeatedly typing "MURDERER" and "SAM". Carl visits Molly and declares to Sam that he will kill Molly unless the money is returned that evening. He and Willie then go to Oda Mae's apartment to find her. Sam manages to get there first and warns Oda Mae and her two sisters, who quickly escape and take refuge in a neighbor's apartment. Sam uses his powers to separate and distract Carl and Willie, who are ransacking Oda Mae's apartment in search of the money. Horrified by the experience, Willie flees and is run over by a car. Willie rises as a ghost and is dragged into the darkness by a gang of shadowy demons, presumably to Hell.
Afterwards, Sam and Oda Mae return to Molly's apartment to warn her about Carl, but she refuses to let her in and breaks down in grief. Sam finally convinces her that Oda Mae is genuine and he is truly present as a ghost by having her push a penny underneath the front door and Sam levitating it in front of Molly. Astonished, Molly lets Ode Mae inside and while waiting for the police, Sam uses Oda Mae's body to share a final dance with Molly.
Carl arrives, prepared to murder Molly and Oda Mae, but they flee. Sam is left momentarily weakened, as possession of a human body is extremely taxing to a ghost. In the storage room, Carl manages to get a hold of Oda Mae and threatens to kill her, but Molly comes to her aid and holds Carl off long enough for Oda Mae to escape his grasp. Carl grabs Molly and holds her at gunpoint, but Sam recovers and disarms him. Carl tries to escape by swinging a giant metal hook at Sam and climbing through a window. However, the hook hits the window and causes the plate glass to break into several jagged shards, one of which pierces Carl's stomach and kills him. His ghost is then carried away by the same shadowy demons that took Willie earlier.
As Sam goes to Oda Mae and Molly and asks if they are all right, Molly suddenly realizes that she can hear him. A heavenly light fills the room and Sam becomes fully visible to both Molly and Oda Mae. Sam looks behind him and sees hundreds of people, presumably angels, in a gateway to Heaven. With his task completed, Sam says an emotional farewell to Molly, thanks Oda Mae for her help, turns and walks into the light.
Cast
- Patrick Swayze as Sam Wheat
- Demi Moore as Molly Jensen
- Whoopi Goldberg as Oda Mae Brown
- Tony Goldwyn as Carl Bruner
- Rick Aviles as Willie Lopez
- Vincent Schiavelli as Subway Ghost
- Gail Boggs as Oda Mae's Sister
- Armelia McQueen as Oda Mae's Sister
- Phil Leeds as Hospital Ghost
- Augie Blunt as a ghost named Orlando
Soundtrack
See also: Ghost (soundtrack)The music for Ghost was written by veteran composer Maurice Jarre. The soundtrack also contained use of the 1955 song "Unchained Melody", composed by Alex North with lyrics by Hy Zaret, which appears in both instrumental form and the 1965 recording by The Righteous Brothers. Jarre's score was nominated for the 1990 Academy Award for Best Original Score, though it lost to John Barry's work for Dances with Wolves.
The soundtrack album was issued on Milan Records (and licenced to Varèse Sarabande for North American release); it was subsequently reissued in 1995 with two extra tracks, and later as part of Milan's Silver Screen Edition series with the extra tracks and an interview with Maurice Jarre.
Reception
Ghost has received generally favorable reviews and has a "Certified Fresh" rating of 74% on Rotten Tomatoes based on reviews from 65 critics. It has a score of 53 on the review site Metacritic, indicating mixed or average reviews. The film has been criticized for featuring the Magical Negro stereotype with Oda Mae Brown. However, in spite of this, Goldberg's performance was highly praised. Janet Maslin in her review for The New York Times comments, "Ms. Goldberg plays the character's amazement, irritation and great gift for back talk to the hilt. This is one of those rare occasions on which the uncategorizable Ms. Goldberg has found a film role that really suits her, and she makes the most of it." Goldberg went on to win the Academy Award, BAFTA, and Golden Globe for her performance.
Box office
The film was a huge box-office success, grossing $505,702,588 on a budget of $22,000,000. It was the highest-grossing film of 1990.
Accolades
- American Film Institute lists
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions – #19
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Songs:
- "Unchained Melody" – #27
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes:
- "It's amazing, Molly. The love inside, you take it with you." – Nominated
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers – Nominated
- AFI's 10 Top 10 – Nominated Fantasy Film
| Award | Category | Subject | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Academy Award | Best Picture | Lisa Weinstein | Nominated |
| Supporting Actress | Whoopi Goldberg | Won | |
| Best Film Editing | Walter Murch | Nominated | |
| Best Original Score | Maurice Jarre | Nominated | |
| Best Original Screenplay | Bruce Joel Rubin | Won | |
| BAFTA Award | Best Original Screenplay | Nominated | |
| Best Supporting Actress | Whoopi Goldberg | Won | |
| Golden Globe Award | Best Supporting Actress – Motion Picture | Won | |
| Best Actor – Musical or Comedy | Patrick Swayze | Nominated | |
| Best Actress – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy | Demi Moore | Nominated | |
| Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy | Lisa Weinstein | Nominated |
Musical adaptation and parodies
The film has inspired a musical stage version, Ghost the Musical. The show had its world premiere in Manchester, England, in March 2011 before transferring to London from June 2011 and having its premiere on July 19, 2011. Richard Fleeshman created the role of Sam, with Caissie Levy as Molly and Sharon D. Clarke as Oda Mae Brown. The success of the West End production led to a Broadway transfer in March 2012. This run was short-lived however, closing August 2012. Subsequently, the original production closed on October 6, 2012. A national tour of United Kingdom will launch in April 2013, with a tour of the United States also announced.
The pottery wheel scene is very well known and often parodied, most notably in Saturday Night Live, Family Guy ("The Story on Page One" and "Baby Not on Board"), All's Well, Ends Well, Naked Gun 2½ (directed by David Zucker, brother of director Jerry Zucker), Loaded Weapon 1, The Penguins of Madagascar, Futurama ("Bendless Love" and "Bender's Game"), Community ("Beginner Pottery"), Victorious ("Survival of the Hottest"), Wallace & Gromit ("A Matter of Loaf and Death"), 6teen ("Unhappy Anniversary"), Ellen ("Alone Again... Naturally"), Glee ("Girls (and Boys) On Film"), Bobs Burgers, and 30 Rock ("Governor Dunston").
Distribution
DVD
Region 1 - 24 April 2001
Region 2 - 11 December 2001
Blu-ray
30 December 2008
Japanese remake
Main article: Ghost: Mouichido DakishimetaiIn November 13, 2010, Paramount and Shochiku released a Japanese remake of Ghost, titled Ghost: In Your Arms Again (ゴースト もういちど抱きしめたい, Gōsuto Mouichido Dakishimetai). The remake stars Nanako Matsushima and South Korean actor Song Seung-heon, along with veteran actress Kirin Kiki. This time, the woman plays the ghost.
TV series
In November 2013, it was announced that Paramount Television is developing a television series adaptation of Ghost, with Akiva Goldsman and Jeff Pinkner writing the pilot.
References
- Cieply, Michael; Easton, Nina J. (1990-09-11). "Paramount Reels in Power Struggle After Hits, Misses". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- Honeycutt, Kirk (1990-07-13). "Director Leaves Laughs Behind to Capture Spirit of 'Ghost' : Movies: A suspense drama about the afterlife is the last film you'd expect from Jerry Zucker, one of the crazy guys who dreamed up 'Airplane!'". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- "Ghost (1990) - Box Office Mojo". Boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
- ^ "1990 Worldwide Grosses". Boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
- "All Time Box Office Adjusted for Ticket Price Inflation". Boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
- Clemmensen, Christian. "Ghost soundtrack review". Filmtracks.com. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
- "Ghost". Variety. 1989-12-31. Retrieved 2010-10-04.
- "Ghost". Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 2010-10-04.
- "Immaterial Affections". Newsweek. Retrieved 2010-10-04.
- http://www.metacritic.com/movie/ghost
- Gabbard, Krin (2004). Black Magic: White Hollywood and African American Culture. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. p. 154. ISBN 0-8135-3383-X. OCLC 53215708.
- "Ghost(1990)". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-03-19.
- Broeske, Pat H. (1990-07-17). "'Ghost' Performing Solidly at the Box Office". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- Broeske, Pat H. (1990-07-25). "'Ghost': Sentimental Choice as Summer Hit". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- Broeske, Pat H. (1990-08-07). "'Ghost' Tops Box Office Again". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- Easton, Nina J. (1990-09-05). "Hollywood's Summer of Love : Romantic 'Ghost' Outguns Macho Movies to Become Season's Biggest Hit". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Cheers Nominees
- AFI's 10 Top 10 Ballot
- "GHOST The Musical – About - Opening in Manchester 28 March 2011". www.ghostthemusical.com. Retrieved 2011-01-09.
- "Ghost The Musical announces Manchester dates pre-West End". The Stage. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- ^ Cox, Gordon (2009-03-06). "'Ghost' getting musical treatment". Variety. Retrieved 2010-11-08.
- Shiso (2010-11-14). "Japanese Remake of Ghost to Be Released in 5 Different Countries". Tokyohive. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- Fischer, Russ (2010-06-09). "Paramount to Remake Ghost in Japan". Slashfilm. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
External links
- Ghost at IMDb
- Ghost at the TCM Movie Database
- Template:Allmovie title
- Ghost at Rotten Tomatoes
- Ghost at Box Office Mojo
| Zucker, Abrahams and Zucker | |||||||
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- 1990 films
- American films
- English-language films
- 1990s fantasy films
- American romantic fantasy films
- Films directed by Jerry Zucker
- Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award winning performance
- Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe winning performance
- Films set in New York City
- Films whose writer won the Best Original Screenplay Academy Award
- Ghost films
- Business films
- Paramount Pictures films
- Films about life after death
- Films about revenge