The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)
73%RT Audience Score: 75%
Awards & Nominations: NA
The Ghost and the Darkness hits its target as a suspenseful adventure, but it falls into a trap of its own making whenever it reaches for supernatural profundity
If you’re looking for a movie that’s a mix of adolescent adventure and Heart of Darkness, then The Ghost and the Darkness is the perfect pick for you. While some critics found it too lightweight and self-important, others were hypnotized by the spectacle of it all. And let’s not forget the real Maasai warriors and location shooting in South Africa that added to the authenticity of the production. Just be warned, there’s plenty of gore and violence as lions terrorize a bridge-building crew. But with Anthony Hopkins at the helm, you can trust that the direction is competent and the screenplay serves its purpose. Overall, it’s a solid pick for a movie night in.
Production Company(ies)
Walt Disney Animation Studios, Walt Disney Pictures,
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Tsavo National Park, Kenya
MPAA / Certificate
Rated R for some violence and gore involving animal attacks
Year of Release
1996
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:DTS Dolby Digital SDDS
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Aspect ratio:2.39 : 1
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Runtime:1h 49m
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Language(s):English, Hindi
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Oct 11, 1996 Original
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 1, 1998
Genre(s)
Adventure
Keyword(s)
starring Michael Douglas, Val Kilmer, Tom Wilkinson, John Kani, Bernard Hill, Brian McCardie, Henry Cele, directed by Stephen Hopkins, written by William Goldman, adventure, R rating, box office gross $38.6M, reviewed by Lisa Schwarzbaum, Susan Stark, Mick LaSalle, Liam Lacey, Peter Travers, Kenneth Turan, Wesley Lovell, Don Shanahan, Mike Massie, Barbara Shulgasser, Lions, Africa, railroad, engineer, hunter, supernatural, suspenseful, true story, Paramount Pictures, Paul B Radin, Gale Anne Hurd, A Kitman Ho, sound mix surround
Worldwide gross: $38,619,405
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $73,714,616
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,169
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 8,038,671
US/Canada gross: $38,619,405
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $73,714,616
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 899
US/Canada opening weekend: $9,215,063
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $17,589,210
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 722
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $55,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $104,981,003
Production budget ranking: 380
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $56,532,270
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$87,798,657
ROI to date (est.): -54%
ROI ranking: 1,716
Val Kilmer – Col. John Henry Patterson
Tom Wilkinson – Robert Beaumont
John Kani – Samuel
Bernard Hill – Dr. David Hawthorne
Brian McCardie – Angus Starling
Director – Stephen Hopkins
Producer – Paul B. Radin, Gale Anne Hurd, A. Kitman Ho
Writer – William Goldman
Director(s)
Stephen Hopkins
Writer(s)
William Goldman
Producer(s)
Paul B. Radin, Gale Anne Hurd, A. Kitman Ho
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
NA
Academy Awards
All Critics (51) | Top Critics (12) | Fresh (26) | Rotten (25)
September 7, 2011 | Rating: C
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment Weekly
TOP CRITIC
July 2, 2002 | Rating: 1/4
Susan Stark
Detroit News
TOP CRITIC
The picture is too lightweight, too posturing and too self-important to go in an introspective direction.
June 18, 2002 | Rating: 1/4
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
TOP CRITIC
Ranges in quality from adolescent boys’ adventure stories to Heart of Darkness.
April 12, 2002 | Rating: 2/4
Liam Lacey
Globe and Mail
TOP CRITIC
When the movie sticks to fact, the result is a hypnotic spectacle.
May 12, 2001
Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
TOP CRITIC
Can’t transcend a too-familiar script.
February 14, 2001 | Rating: 2/5
Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
The Ghost in the Darkness tries to give the audience a connection between the desire to finish what one has started with the notion of fatherhood, but some of that salience is lost by the films exciting finale.
February 12, 2022 | Rating: 3.5/4
Wesley Lovell
Cinema Sight
Aurally, the movie sneaks up on you from all directions with maximized terror.
August 11, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Don Shanahan
25YL (25 Years Later)
The use of real Maasai warriors and location shooting in South Africa increases the authenticity of the production.
September 14, 2020 | Rating: 3/10
Mike Massie
Gone With The Twins
Lions terrorize bridge-building crew; gore and violence.
May 21, 2020 | Rating: 2/5
Barbara Shulgasser
Common Sense Media
Hopkins’ direction is competent, and Goldman’s screenplay merely serves its purpose.
June 23, 2019 | Rating: C
Zaki Hasan
Zaki’s Corner
May 6, 2006 | Rating: 6/10
JoBlo
JoBlo’s Movie Network…
Plot
Sir Robert Beaumont is behind schedule on a railroad in Africa. Enlisting noted engineer John Henry Patterson to right the ship, Beaumont expects results. Everything seems great until the crew discovers the mutilated corpse of the project’s foreman, seemingly killed by a lion. After several more attacks, Patterson calls in famed hunter Charles Remington, who has finally met his match in the bloodthirsty lions.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Michael Douglas is “wildly scenery chewing” in his role as Charles Remington.
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