RELEASE DATE: 1987
RATED: PG 13
REVIEWED BY: The DarkSider - A Rogue's Roundtable Review
As mentioned, most of the ghosts are shed in a negative light. However, some movies go with the Casper route featuring a lovable and friendly ghost. That is what Ghost Chase did and man did it have potential. Lewis is a cute little ghost with a cute little voice and a cute little manner to him. His face could have been all over talking dolls and bed sheets that glowed in the dark. Unfortunately for our friendly ghost Lewis, staying in the voids between worlds was probably a far better fate than suffering through this movie's script.
This tale of ghostly "fun" starts off like most 80s films do; a five minute song rolling over credits which feature some kind of dumb ass animation. In this case two sets of cartoon eyes chasing each other around. After all this the movie opens to...well...a movie. Warren and Fred are working on an independent horror film with their main star Laurie. After Warren slips Laurie the tongue during the scene she storms off leaving the two guys alone.
We find out right away the boys are poor...go f*cking figure...but low and behold Warren receives notice that his rich grandfather named Frederick left him something in his will. Once again...go f*cking figure. It is easy to see that both Fred and especially Warren are completely unlikable as characters. Fred is a chronic shoplifter who blows money on useless inventions and Warren is a complete prick to everyone around him. Guess what folks, these guys get to be your heroes for the next hour and a half.
Warren goes to collect the item his grandfather left him which happens to be a miniature clock. While heading home, the briefcase holding the clock almost gets stolen by film guru Stan Gorden. Gorden is played by Paul Gleason, best known to many as Principal Vernon from The Breakfast Club. Gorden doesn't get hold of the briefcase but hires a guy named Karl to follow the boys around.
When the two idiots finally make it home, Warren and Fred look at a picture of Frederick which has a small guy in the background. This happens to be Lewis, Frederick's old butler. When the two go off to bed, Karl breaks into their home. During the night, the clock chimes and lets loose a white mist. Karl gets startled by this and runs out. Meanwhile, Fred starts having a wet dream about Frederick killing himself and Lewis. Lewis was forced to build a wall around Frederick so no one could ever take his money away even in death. Fred wakes up to see the spirit of Lewis which quickly disappears. Lewis...how to describe him...hmmmmm.
Imagine Yoda had a one night stand with E.T. and one of them gave birth to Lewis. Lewis gets adopted by Dobby the House Elf from Harry Potter and learns to speak in his manner...well minus talking in the third person. That would be the best way to describe him. Well anyhow, from this dream Fred draws up a script and puts together a special effects doll in Lewis's likeness. Meanwhile, Warren heads out to woo Laurie back so she may star in their new film endeavor. She takes a look at the script and agrees to come over. I forgot to mention that Warren is played by one of the 20 people who played Rusty in the National Lampoon Vacation Movies.
While she is visiting, the spirit of Lewis leaves the clock and inhabits Fred's special effects doll. The polite Lewis comes to life which freaks out Fred, Warren, and Laurie. In an amusing scene, Lewis starts watching Night Of The Living Dead which is also refreshing for anyone wanting to see an actual good movie at this point in the film. The guys and Laurie come out to talk to Lewis who mentions something about Frederick's fortune. It is in some white, Amityville Horror looking house in the Hollywood area.
They all head out to look for this one house. Lewis gets them to where he remembers the house to be which oddly is home to Gorden's film studio. Lewis instructs them that the treasure is in the basement. I'm assuming it is with Pee Wee's stolen bike. Apparently Lewis's spirit is on a time share somewhere in the afterlife and departs the animatronic's body. The next day Laurie leaves the guys behind because Warren pisses her off again.
This is where the film goes way downhill. If the film continued on with Lewis, I'm sure it could have gone many great places. However we are left with two incompetent d*ckheads trying to solve a mystery. Warren and Fred do some investigating and find out Gorden is behind a plot to find Frederick's old fortune. He bought the movie studio under an assumed name so his team could search for the money. The next 30 minutes consists of Warren and Fred confronting Gorden about his plot, Laurie finding out Frederick's house still exists via a movie, Laurie running back to Warren, and Karl holding them up at gunpoint. Nothing you really need to know more than that. Well maybe except the guy who played Porky making a brief cameo as Laurie's boss.
Karl pressures the two for information on where the money is located in the house. However Lewis returns to help Fred topple Karl saving Warren and Laurie in the process. They all head out to the movie studio and break in to the joint. They rush to Frederick's old house which Gorden orders to be demolished in five minutes. Unfortunately that so called "five minutes" leaves us with a twenty minute, ultra goofy climax.
Lewis points them to the wall where Frederick's fortune is sealed in. While digging it out, Frederick's spirit inhabits a suit of armor and attacks. Only after all three folks are subdued, Lewis takes the bull by the horns with a big old "TALLY HO". He stabs the suit of armor however Frederick doesn't really meet his demise until Lewis tells Fred to destroy the clock. Well with Frederick gone, Lewis passes on to eternal rest...um...again. The three folks do not get out of the house on time which gets demolished. Fred and Laurie get to safety and Warren almost dies in the shrapnel. The piece of sh*t makes it out alive and they all find Frederick's fortune thus exposing Gorden's bad reputation in the process.
While on a limo ride with his new rich friends, Fred talks about how he misses Lewis. We find out that Lewis is indeed driving the limo. He then does famous 1980s Turn And Wink; a trademark of many magical or lab created characters of the 1980s. It is when the magical person looks into the camera, usually at the end of the film, and winks. This is less common in blockbusters like ET but seen rather frequently in crappy movies just like this one. I think they use this method in the hope for a sequel...yeah thats funny sh*t.
This film truly alienates itself when it comes to a target audience. On one side you have the adults and high school kids; if they wanted to see a ghost movie, it certainly wasn't going to be this one. Then on the other side you have the little kids; I doubt any parent would appreciate the barrage of vulgarities in this flick. Also there is no way any child can get into the ridiculous money chasing sub plot. They'd more than likely keep asking their parents when Lewis is coming back. Once again the potential for something huge in Hollywood gets completely dumped into the toilet. As for Lewis; I think the lame humor and choppy script frightened this ghost away for good.
Not to much of that here although Lewis does nail Karl in the balls with a baseball bat...having your eye level at people's crotches apparently gives you an advantage in some form...
1.) Warren - If you want to wash away your asshole image try a mullet and a denim jacket. Nothing turns chicks on more than that.
2.) Karl - He doesn't do much of anything in the film although he does let out Lewis's white mist. Hey if minature alien looking butlers is your thing why should I argue?
3.) Stan Gorden - Now, a special excerpt from Ghost Chase, the deleted scenes;
Lewis: May I kindly ask that you eat my shorts sir.
Gorden: You just bought yourself another Saturday.
Lewis: I do say I am crushed sir.
Gorden: You just bought yourself one more.
4.) Frederick - According to this movie, ghosts like him park themselves in inanimate objects for centuries. I know many of you may be thinking of better objects to park your ghostly body in than a mini clock or a suit of armor. However I can think of five worse things you could be stuck in...such as:
5.) One of Rosie O'Donnell's tampons
4.) A port-a-potty in 95 degree weather
3.) Tom Cruise's diary
2.) A display television stuck on Lifetime
and most of all...
1.) A copy of this movie
The "I'm Better Know For" Trick: This trick is often found on DVD re-releases. It is where more recent and sucessful work from a director is listed to make you think that the film your renting will follow those film's standards. However, this is often just a desperate ploy to make you rent one of their earlier more crappier films. The suspects in this movie cover:
From The Director Of The Patriot, Godzilla, Independence Day, Stargate, Universal Soldier
Better known as Roland Emmerich
Verdict: Guilty although I'm not sure why anyone would want to be known for several of those films
Remember bad movie covers...we'll be watching you.
