My Review Of “Ghostlight”

“Ghostlight” is a paranormal thriller directed by Jeff Ferrell and follows a man who wins a chance at big money. Before he can collect though he must spend 24 hours in a haunted theatre. “Ghostlight” stars Brian Sutherland, Lisa Coronado, Dennis Kleinsmith, Russell Hodgkinson, and Ramona Freeborn.

The story of “Ghostlight” is your traditional, ghost story set-up, with a contest winner getting the opportunity to win some money, by staying in a haunted location. In this film that place is a haunted theatre, where the performance with bloody murder. This is a mature, somber thriller with a slow build to a terrifying and some what depressing ending. The arc is a proper string of suspense, with constant melodramatic, emotional connectivity, although the first half of the film is a bit of a sleeper with minimal thrills. Normally this would have me checked out permanently, however the strong story, decent acting and hints to a nice, tense ending held me to the film right until the bitter end.

The special effects in “Ghostlight” is a standard foray of gimmicks that one would expect in a paranormal thriller such as this. Most of the moments pay-off with some real suspense and creepy scenes taking place (most of which take place in the last half of the film). Now even though there isn’t much new brought to the table with chilling effects in this one, “Ghostlight” manages to execute, a decent, steady ghost story that creates a haunting atmosphere with a nice finish. The sound effects and soundtrack does help build some suspense but it didn’t really stand out as anything manager for me personally.

Overall “Ghostlight” is a well thought out little chiller. The first 45 minutes are bit slow and demand dedication when watching the film, but stick with it, the end is the big seller. The story is a mature tale that is worth a once over by paranormal fans. It is a classic tribute to both the theatrical and the ghost story that takes the genre serious. I enjoyed this film, it could have been a bit scarier, and the ending is a little more depressing than thrilling but still, it is a cool one that plays out nicely.