| The Ghost and the Darkness | | Cast : | Michael Douglas, Val Kilmer | | Director : | Stephen Hopkins | | Studio : | Paramount Studio | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen | | Released Date : | October 11, 1996 | | DVD Released Date : | December 29, 2004 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), Spanish (Subtitled), English (Original Language), French (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | May 04, 2005 | | Summary | Suspense light-years beyond Jaws | Content
 | The Ghost and the Darkness is about the two maneating lions that terrorized the crew building a bridge at a desolate, nowhere place called Tsavo, Africa, circa 1890s, a place that had long been known as an area of active maneating lions. The original account written by Col. John H. Patterson, the engineer responsible for building the bridge and killing the lions (and played superbly by Val Kylmer), is one of the greatest Classics of African Hunting Literature ever written and known very well by legions of non-Bambi outdoor enthusiasts around the world. Subsequent accounts, the best of which is the well-researched wrtiing of 20th Century African hunter Peter Hathaway Capstick in his "Death in the Silent Places" and "The Maneaters of Tsavo" have become nearly as popular.
The movie does take some liberties with events but most of the key scenes in the movie actually happened though perhaps in a bit different context. For example, the movie has the den of the maneaters being found prior to the lions' deaths but it was actually found some weeks afterward. But that wasn't the point in 1898. The cave actually contained (as in the movie) the skeletal remains of hundreds of human victims, so many, in fact, the probability is that den had been used by maneaters for centuries. Not too surprising the crews and locals felt Tsavo was a place of Evil. Adding credibility to the longevity of use theory is the fact that four other maneaters who ran up a score of 50 souls in that same area were killed in a single day by hunter Robert Foran - in 1947. But wait. Professional hunter John Kingsley-Heath killed another maneater there too - in 1965. But wait - Peter Capstick's boss was killed and eaten not too far from Tsavo on Labor Day 1974. That's right - 1974. Where were YOU in 1974?
The African and Indian cultures of the 1890s weren't, and aren't, the United States. The liklihood these two lions would quickly be seen as "more than just lions", as some unstoppable Evil is more like a guarantee. The abject Terror of 2000-3000 African and Indian laborers was a real as Death itself. That Terror is amply displayed in the movie, but is still understated.
The movie's lions, even with their ominous role as "more than lions", act very much like real maneaters did, and do. And when they do it in a joust with unarmed humans, they usually win, bigtime, and assorted gore and human body parts are a consistant by-product of such festivities. I've never never read anything at all about a famous lioneater.
The movie's filming and effects are very good. Michael Douglas, as the ficticious hunter Remington, supports Kylmer well, and with a well-done, darkly amusing style. The "shock" scenes are "SHOCK" scenes, especially one in particular. You will FEEL your blood pressure drop to zero only to be red-lining again in a flash. You WILL hold your breath and you may regain it. Seriously, allowing a young child to watch this is probably not the best of ideas, and not because of the gore but because many of the scenes of the primal, nightmarish Horror these maneating lions deliver take place after dark and "after dark" is already an "iffy" proposition for many kids without the fangs of Hades clashing in their minds. Sweet Dreams. |
| Rating | | | Date | April 10, 2005 | | Summary | Among the Best Movies of Our Generation | Content
| Ever since seeing this film at its original release date, I've been awstruck by its ability to capture the attention of the viewer and leave us gripping the edge of our seat and anxiously waiting what will happen next. Val Kilmer's and Michael Douglas' characters are original, moving, and extremely believable. Douglas does an excellent job at making the situation real, with his make-no-mistakes persona and overall character. If you're a fan of movies of which an animal is the villain, then this is definetely one that should be at the top of your list. Easily one of my favorite action/thriller/drama/suspense movies ever, and I'm not kidding... |
| Rating | | | Date | February 14, 2005 | | Summary | Terrifying and Amazing True Story | Content
| The Ghost and the Darkness is one of the best movies I have ever seen. It is on my top five list. The Ghost and the Darkness is such an unusual name for a movie, but the title is perfect because it sets the stage for this strange event, and never lets you go.
Val Kilmer and Michael Douglass give superb performances. Val Kilmer plays an ordinary engineer and bridge-builder who is plucked from his desk job in Ireland, and faced with the starkest terror of his life. At the bridge site, a man-eating lion is picking off the construction workers. The lion drags them from their hospital beds or picks them off in broad daylight. This behaviour is highly unusual for the African lion. The natives soon believe that this is not a lion but the devil - the ghost and the darkness. Douglass plays a brave hunter brought in to bring the lions down.
The blend of African and Irish music is hypnotizing. This is a very violent and powerful film. You can see the real Maneaters of Tsavo on display at the Chicago Field Museum. |
| Rating | | | Date | February 08, 2005 | | Summary | Jaws of Africa! | Content
| This is an underrated classic though I am happy to see here on the amazon that it is rated rather high by this netshops' reviewers. Well earned stars!
You've probably already heard the essential of the story, but let me just add that this movie is perhaps the best Beast-above-water-movies ever made (compared of course to Jaws, Brotherhood of the Wolf and similar movies about beasts out of animals that do exist, unlike Kong and Godzilla and the dinosaurs of Jurrasic Park -yes, well, you get my meaning...).
More than once during The Ghost and The Darkness you'll hold your breath, and sit paralyzed to your chair, because it is so impressive filmed, edited and (of course) directed and acted. Kilmer and Douglas are a great theme! And the movie has quite a lot remembarable scenes, and the story (though perhaps not as true as it claims to be..?) is solid, and well worth making a movie of.
And the film-makers here did well!
The lions look real! |
| Rating | | | Date | January 25, 2005 | | Summary | Interesting story ,but a bit gory for young children.. | Content
| I was interested in seeing this movie because I had heard that it was based on a true story. The story is about Col. John Henry Patterson who is played by Val Kilmer in the film. Patterson was the chief engineer who was tasked with building a railway bridge through Tsavo, Africa. During the course of the construction, over 140 workers were killed by 2 male lions over a 9 month period. Patterson must kill the lions and complete construction or he will lose his job. Michael Douglas makes an appearance in this film as a hunter who helps Patterson with killing the lions. The lions are on exhibit in a Chicago museum to this day. I would not recommed that any children under the age of 12 see this movie because it is a bit gory. There is a fair amount of blood and a heck of a lot of screaming - not to mention chopped up animal parts. Worthwile watching on a rainy day -- supervised of course! |
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