Too much of everything

Don't listen to the negative reviews

It's hard to see any effort in the film. There's no comedy to speak of, no real drama and, worst of all.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

For fans in the know, it isn't exactly too much of a statement to say that Italian horror is far from where it used to be. Between the 60's and mid 90's, there was a plethora of excellent horrors and gialli coming regularly out of pasta land. Sadly, this situation has long ceased to be the case and we now simply have to make do with pretty slim pickings. The director of Ghost Son, Lamberto Bava, was very much an 80's man, delivering several very enjoyable movies in this decade, probably the best of which being the cult classic Demons (1985). But since those halcyon days, like many of his contemporaries, he seems to have got swallowed up by television productions and only rarely delivers any feature films. I guess his comeback movie in this area was The Torturer (2005), a film which I can't say I thought too much of. It did provide a few sleazy thrills but overall it could not escape its bargain basement origins. With Ghost Son, Bava is clearly operating with a much improved budget, allowing him to hire name actors like Laura Harring, John Hannah and Pete Postlethwaite, while also allowing for on location shooting in South Africa and a team behind the lens who have ensured that the movie does look good enough. Set in South Africa, a woman loses her husband in a car accident and then his ghost returns and impregnates her from beyond the grave. Once her son is born she is convinced he is convinced by a malevolent spirit.While it was good to see Bava tackle something with a bit more to it that The Torturer, the main gripe with this one is that it is overall a bit dull. You have to think that a film involving ghosts and voodoo occult has the potential for a few interesting ideas and set-pieces, the truth is that the movie is very by-the-numbers. Nevertheless, it was good to see Harring - one of the stars of my favourite film ever, Mulholland Drive (2001) - get a starring role and it was also good to see Bava getting to helm something with a bit of money behind it. It was a bit so-so, however, and once more showcases the glaring gulf between Italian horror movies of the last twenty years compared to even the lesser ones they produced almost without thinking about it from the golden era.

After watching the first 2 seasons of the excellent Spartacus,I took a look at John Hannah's IMDb page,and discovered that he starred in what is currently Lamberto Bava's last film,which led to me getting ready to catch a glimpse of the ghost son.The plot:Recently getting married,Stacey & Mark go to live on Mark's farm in South Africa.Whilst driving down to town one day,Mark gets involved in a car crash that kills him. Experiencing a deep sense of grief,Stacey starts to close herself off from the rest of the world,as she begins to see Mark's "ghost." Noticing that she has not had her period,Stacey goes to the doctor,and discovers that she is pregnant.Returning home with her new son Martin,Stacey finds the ghost of Mark to become increasingly aggressive,as Martin starts to act in a rather strange manner. View on the film:Filmed on location in South Africa,co-writer/(along with Silvia Ranfagni)director Lamberto Bava reveals an unexpected,restrained elegance for what is currently his final film.Largely taking place in one building,Bava and cinematographer Giovanni Canevari grip the title in a tightly coiled terror atmosphere,as long,elegant tracking shots close in on Stacey (played by a terrific Laura Harring,who also appears naked in the film)as Mark (played by a great,burning with rage John Hannah) makes his presence felt.Along with the classy chiller mood,Bava also uses the movie to sum up his career,as the house location and eye-catching in-camera trick shots allows Bava to revisit the lurking in shadows Giallo mystery of A Blade In The Dark,whilst Mark's possession of his son lets Bava return to the gory delights of his Demons series.Focusing on Stacey having to raise Martin on her own,the screenplay by Bava & Silvia Ranfagni pushes parental fear to the extreme,as the writers smartly take an even-handed approach for the first half,with the first sighting of Mark strongly hinting at Stacey suffering from parental stress.After spending the first half hitting the ghostly chills with a real precision,the writers push the tension to the side lines in order to turn Martin into a Bava "mini-Demons",which whilst allow the practical effects makers to cover the screen in outrageous gore,leads to the relationship between Stacey & Mark being seriously damaged,thanks to Mark's psychopathic side completely coming out of left-field,with there not being the slightest hint of the ghostly son that awaits Stacey.

I was strolling through a flea market and found this DVD in a bin for 5 bucks. It looked interesting. I wasn't quite sure what the film had in store for me and I didn't pay attention to the cast, director etc as I would for most horror films. I just liked the cover art, which has gotten me into trouble in the past with notable bombs such as Brotherhood of Blood, ReVamped and other bad ones. I fall for the artwork.This film, although slow and dragging in some spots, delivered some full fledged--top to bottom, spine chills. The "creep factor" in this movie scored with a bullet and had me squirming on my couch.Admittedly, I knew little about the director of this film, but I knew that it had an Italian crew behind it and in my humble opinion, they did a nice job. It was just an unusual story and a well made film. My wife got up and walked out on it because it upset her and believe me, it will upset and scare you at the same time. A well shot, acted and produced film. Plus, the star of this movie was someone I had never seen before and my first impression was that she was a talentless hot bod. Wrong on the talentless aspect, right on the hot bod. She was convincing and a capable actor.I give this film "7 hail Mary's."

First of all, I personally adore Demons and Demons 2, I saw them although it was hard to find good horrors without good official movie distributing here in Russia when I was a kid, and that is an unchangeable part of my boyhood. Then I heard nothing about Mr Bava. Then I saw his Ghost Son. Well, it is certainly not a good coming back! Why was the leading character, whom we never really knew to at least like him, in accident in the middle of an empty road? Why do African servants say so dumb and stupid things about human soul? Why is the plot so primitive? Haven't we seen enough ghosts for 100 years of movie production? It is clear that Lamberto Bava has nothing to show us so far. It is a shame.