Hangman's Curse (2003)

User Rating:

4.7/10   

Director:

Rafal Zielinski

Writers (WGA):

Frank Peretti (novel)
Kathy Mackel (screenplay) ...

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

Watch your locker. Watch your back. Watch your soul.

Plot:

Bullying students are becoming deathly ill after screaming the name of a legendary ghost. What's to blame...

Plot Keywords:

Undercover | High School | Bullying | Hallucinogen | Bully

Cast

David Keith	...	Nate Springfield
Mel Harris	...	Sarah Springfield
Leighton Meester	...	Elisha Springfield
Douglas Smith	...	Elijah Springfield
Jake Richardson	...	Ian Snyder
Bobby Brewer	...	Leonard Baynes
Daniel Farber	...	Norman Bloom
Edwin Hodge	...	Blake Hornsby
Andrea Morris	...	Crystal Sparks
William R. Moses	...	Coach Marquardt
Margaret Travolta	...	Debi Wyrthen
Tom Wright	...	Dan Carillo
Frank Peretti	...	Dr. Algernon Wheeling
Liz Schilling	...	Shawna Miller
Teresa Suter	...	Julie

Also Known As:

The Veritas Project: Hangman's Curse (USA)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for elements of violence/terror and for brief drug material.

Runtime:

USA:106 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Hungary:16 | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-15 | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | USA:PG-13 | UK:12

Filming Locations:

Riverside State Park - 9711 W. Charles Road, Nine Mile Falls, Washington, USA

Company:

Namesake Entertainment

Goofs:

Continuity: When Sarah picks up the disk to the digital recorder in the RV, she is wearing white gloves. But when Elijah immediately takes the disk from her, the gloves are gone.

Quotes:

Elisha Springfield: Okay, even if I did have the slightest hint of fondness for someone-and I'm not saying that I do-but if I did, what could ever happen? We move around more than gypsies. I know, I love our lives, but sometimes I wonder what the other half lives like. Going on dates, goofing off, getting grounded.
Elijah Springfield: Well, I'll talk to mom and dad - see if I can get them to ground you.

Movie Connections:

References Ghost Busters (1984)

Good for teens, so-so for adults.

Well, Frank Peretti is making movies, and even appearing in them.

Just finished watching his new video, "Hangman's Curse". Now, it has the usual characteristics of Christian films: Forced and/or extraneous dialogue, cheezy over-acting (Peretti), overdrawn stereotypes and a too-inclusive ending.

It also has Mel Harris (Thirtysomething), David Keith (Firestarter), Billy Moses (Mystic Pizza) and some rather talented teen actors -- Meester and Smith.

HC is intended for a teen audience, and if they are not overly discriminating they should enjoy it. It isn't terribly preachy, like many Christian movies, and the plot is actually interesting (before it becomes obvious who the villain is).

The Christianity is sort of sprung on us at the end. There are hints of it during the film, and there are some insightful digs at the naturalistic worldview, but there could have been more obvious examples during the first hour, graduating into the expressions of faith later on.

At nearly two hours HC is also a bit too long, and it could have been shaved during editing to pick up the (leisurely) pace.

I got my copy at Wal-Mart for $10. It is also available at Christian book stores. It's worth seeing and it's a start -- hopefully if they do another one they'll be able to excise the annoying bits.

Someone should write them.