Casper [Blu-ray]

Director: Brad Silberling Brad Silberling

Overview

Based on the popular cartoon character, this family-oriented "ghost story" is about a not-so-scary spirit who bonds with a little girl (Christina Ricci). The eternally irritable Ms. Carrigan (Cathy Moriarty) discovers that the only thing she's been left in her recently departed father's will is a rickety old house in New England. Naturally, the woman is furious about this, until her "close personal friend" and assistant, Dibbs (Eric Idle of Monty Python fame), discovers a secret message that a treasure may be concealed somewhere in the house. The two take off for Maine, only to learn that the house is haunted by Casper "the friendly ghost" and his three ghostly uncles Stinky, Stretch, and Fatso. After futilely recruiting an exorcist (Don Novello, more or less reviving his Father Guido Sarducci character from Saturday Night Live) and a "professional ghost exterminator" (Dan Aykroyd), she brings in a "ghost psychiatrist" (Bill Pullman) and his daughter Kat (Ricci). Innocently attracted to the young girl, Casper befriends Kat as they try to save the ghosts' home from the evil Carrigan. Eye-popping special effects highlight this magical story that touches (albeit lightly) on the theme of what lies at the heart of human desires. Clint Eastwood, Rodney Dangerfield, Mel Gibson and The Crypt Keeper (of Tales from the Crypt) all make cameos as apparitions in the mirror Bill Pullman looks into in the house.

Product Details

Release Date:	01/19/2021
UPC:	0191329154687
Original Release:	1995
Rating:	PG
Source:	Universal Studios
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo]
Language:	English
Time:	1:41:00
Sales rank:	7,102

Special Features

Revealing Casper": Includes Behind-the-Scenes Interviews, CGI Secrets; Deleted Scene; Feature Commentary with Director Brad Silberling; Bonus Episode of the Animated Series

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Christina Ricci	Kathleen 'Kat' Harvey
Bill Pullman	Dr. James Harvey
Cathy Moriarty	Carrigan Crittenden
Eric Idle	Paul 'Dibbs' Plutzker
Devon Sawa	Casper on Screen
Dan Aykroyd	Dr. Raymond Stantz
Chauncey Leopardi	Nicky
Spencer Vrooman	Andreas
Garette Ratliff Henson	Vic DePhillippi
Jessica Wesson	Amber Whitmire
Amy Brenneman	Amelia Harvey
Benjamin J. Stein	Mr. Rugg
Don Novello	Father Guido Sarducci
Ernestine Mercer	Woman Being Interviewed
Doug Bruckner	Reporter
John Kassir	The Crypt Keeper
Wesley Thompson	Mr. Curtis
Michael Dubrow	Student #1
J.J. Anderson	Student #2
Jess Harnell	Arnold
Michael McCarty	Drunk in Bar
Micah Winkelspecht	Student
Mike Simmrin	Phantom
Rodney Dangerfield	Rodney Dangerfield
¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿	Clint Eastwood
Mel Gibson	Mel Gibson
Tony Stefano	Kid at Party
Janette Andrade	Student
Bill Farmer	Fatso's Burping
Harry Shearer	Radio announcer
James Horner	Composer

Technical Credits

Brad Silberling	Director
Gerald R. Molen	Executive Producer
Steve Spielberg	Executive Producer
Jeffrey A. Montgomery	Executive Producer
Frank E. Eulner	Sound Effects
Teresa Eckton	Sound Effects
Seth Arnett	Stunts
Industrial Light & Magic	Special Effects
Gary Hymes	Stunts

Editorial Reviews

All Casper ever wanted was a friend, and he found a bunch of them in executive producer Steven Spielberg and the special-effects wizards at Industrial Light and Magic. They teamed up to bring the friendly ghost to wondrous, um, life, in this 1995 live-action fantasy. Bill Pullman (Sleepless in Seattle, While You Were Sleeping) stars as Dr. James Harvey, a therapist who ministers to the "living impaired." In search of hidden treasure, Carrigan Crittendon (Cathy Moriarty), a real witch, summons Dr. Harvey to rid the condemned Whipstaff Manor of its mischievous poltergeists. Lonely Casper finds a kindred misfit spirit in Harvey's motherless young daughter, Kat (Christina Ricci). The Ghostly Trio (the aptly named Stretch, Stinkie, and Fatso) supply the supernatural slapstick and rude noises. Monty Python member Eric Idle is a real scream as Crittendon's put-upon accomplice. Clint Eastwood, Rodney Dangerfield, Mel Gibson, the Crypt Keeper, and Dan Aykroyd -- as a ghostbuster who suggests Crittendon call "someone else" -- supply haunting cameos. References to death and the afterlife may be upsetting to younger viewers, but, mild profanity aside, this treat will be just the trick for ‘tweens and teens looking to scare up some frighteningly fun entertainment.