X
- 1985
- R
- Columbia Pictures
- 1 h 46 m
- 1985
- R
- Columbia Pictures
- 1 h 46 m
Summary A teenager discovers that the newcomer in his neighborhood is a vampire, so he turns to an actor in a television horror show for help dealing with the undead.
Directed By: Tom Holland
Written By: Tom Holland
- 1985
- R
- Columbia Pictures
- 1 h 46 m
- 1985
- R
- Columbia Pictures
- 1 h 46 m
Fright Night
62
8.2
Where to Watch
Summary A teenager discovers that the newcomer in his neighborhood is a vampire, so he turns to an actor in a television horror show for help dealing with the undead.
Directed By: Tom Holland
Written By: Tom Holland
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
62
69% Positive
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
23% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
8% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 13 Critic Reviews
62
69% Positive
9 Reviews
9 Reviews
23% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
8% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
What makes Fright Night such a hoot to this day, on top of the great performances, is the deft blending of humor and suspense that Holland manages to build in his story.
Fright Night is not a distinguished movie, but it has a lot of fun being undistinguished.
User Score
Universal Acclaim
Based on 140 User Ratings
8.2
81% Positive
113 Ratings
113 Ratings
8% Mixed
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
11% Negative
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
User Score
Universal Acclaim
Based on 140 User Ratings
8.2
81% Positive
113 Ratings
113 Ratings
8% Mixed
11 Ratings
11 Ratings
11% Negative
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
I love movies of all genres, and Fright Night was an example of a movie that I watched many times as a 14 year old and loved every minute of it. At 19 I revisited it once hearing of its remake, and it is every bit as good as I remembered, in fact it is one fangtastic(pardon the pun) movie. The film still looks great, with atmospheric costumes(great authentic fashions!), sets and lighting with skilled cinematography, cool make-up and impressive(even for now) effects. The score gives its film its perfect sense of quirkiness and creepiness. The story is straightforward admittedly, but also very well paced and compelling, and the script has the odd scary moment but is very wickedly funny. The acting is great, William Ragsdale and Amanda Bearse appeal, and Roddy McDowell is magnificent but it is Chris Sarandon's funny, creepy and very sexy performance that makes Fright Night such a delight. All in all, a true delight. 10/10 Bethany Cox
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Directed by Tom Holland, who serves up the oldest horror-yarn clich'es with a straight face, keeping the action good-natured and even humorous until the gory climax.
Director Tom Holland keeps the picture wonderfully simple and entirely believable (once the existence of vampires is accepted, of course).
The movie is bloody and gruesome and quite harmless, just the way they made them "in the good old days." [02 Aug 1985, p.C7]
Fright Night is really "Fright Lite," a film promising more than it delivers, and even that delivery is so late in the game that you may want to arrive fashionably late and skip what passes for plot development and concentrate on Richard Edlund's special effects. [05 Aug 1985, p.B3]
Some of the special effects are chilling, but Fright Night lacks depth, wit and humor, and hence is neither absorbing,
intelligent, nor funny. [08 Aug 1985]
Fright Night is a hilarious spooky horror classic. The actors, dialogue and special effects are perfect. This movie was ahead of its era.
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"Welcome to Fright Night", my favorite horror film that has one scene in it like The Wizard of Oz and Raiders of the Lost Ark: A vampire that melts! Fright Night remains an important piece of my "melt" movies library, as well as a permanent addition to my library of digital purchase streaming content!!!
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An interesting blend of horror and humour fright night has a superb cast and the production value is excellent with some memorable visual effects (for its day!). Sadly the pacing and tone are very scrappy shifting from humour to horror too fast removing the tension from some of the earlier threats.
However as things ramp up towards the end the pacing goes out the window with characters going round and round the same set like an episode of scooby doo. The soundtrack is very good. Some great 80's horror cheese to be found here! Got some strong Buffy the vampire slayer vibes from this one.
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I have a real soft spot in my heart for "Fright Night". When I was a teen I absolutely adored vampire movies, and this one just really surprised me as a teen with its self aware take on the genre. Now a days I can see the flaws with a few long sections where the plot really slows down, but there were some really nice creature effects for the era. If you really like vampire tales, you might find something to enjoy here, but I admit that the movie is not going to be a winner for everyone. I give it a C, if you've already seen the best, but you insist on watching a movie, try this one out.
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It has some amazing setups. The opening shot is a real spectacle; there are also some nice and effective visual gags without the use of unnatural CGI. The sound was not that good at all. The use of rear speakers was occasional and very awkward. One scene in a nightclub had people stamping their feet in the rear speakers but it sounded so disconnected. The music wasn't very good either - way too eighties. I'm not a big fan of vampire movies but this was kinda fun. Not as memorable as The Lost Boys (1987) and not as well acted as The 'Burbs (1989) but similar to both. It is a cute eighties story but really nothing amazing. Some cool effects and reminded me of so many other films but ultimately average.
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Production Company
Columbia Pictures,
Vistar Films,
Columbia Pictures Industries,
Delphi IV Productions
Release Date Aug 2, 1985
Duration 1 h 46 m
Rating R
Genres
Tagline There are some very good reasons to be afraid...of the dark.
Awards
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
• 3 Wins & 6 Nominations
Avoriaz Fantastic Film Festival
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
Fantasporto
• 1 Win & 2 Nominations
