Phantoms
Dimension Films | Release Date: January 23, 1998 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
26
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 19 Critic Reviews
Positive:
2
Mixed:
7
Negative:
10
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
VarietyGodfrey Cheshire
Pic's virtues all stem from taking its genre imperatives absolutely seriously rather than condescending to them or playing cute. Even venerable O'Toole resists what must have been an obvious temptation to wink at his role, and delivers a solid, enjoyable turn. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
Well-crafted in most aspects, Phantoms is finally more ambitious than satisfying. It also could have used more humor. But it can't be accused of insulting the intelligence of its audiences. Read full review
50
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
Until it coughs up a ridiculously convoluted explanation of why an isolated town in Colorado suddenly goes deader than a weekday matinee of "The Postman," Phantoms delivers the shivers. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
Phantoms is fear-less.
50
Film ThreatRon Wells
Hot Damn! A full-on gory (relatively) unpretensious horror movie!... Far better than it has any right to be. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
Director Joe Chapelle knows how to stage a spooky scene, and Going and McGowan supply a refreshing alternative to the shrieking bimbos so familiar to horror fans. Read full review
50
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
A horror film that starts out creepy but ends up disjointed and borderline- incoherent. It's a shame that the final product isn't a little better packaged because, unlike many lame entries into the genre, this one actually contains a few interesting, philosophically titillating ideas. Read full review
40
Washington PostStephen Hunter
The effects are murky and the giant worm looks more like a smear on the lens than anything else. Most of the intensity is generated by sudden sound effects like ringing phones, alarm clocks or oven timers. Read full review
40
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
All the movie's free-form horror phenomena might have been more interesting if the plot didn't keep insisting on a systematic explanation for them. Read full review
38
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
For about 20 minutes, Phantoms, based on Dean Koontz's bestseller, keeps you guessing. After that, it barely keeps you awake. Read full review
30
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Sometimes in horror movies, bad acting is effective, its very woodenness contributing to the sense of robotic horror. That ain't happening here. These guys are just bad actors. Read full review
30
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
Director Chappelle lays on the spook factor heavy in the first 30 minutes or so, but the film quickly devolves into a simplistic slash 'n' bash shoot-'em-up which goes nowhere fast. Read full review
25
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
A movie, based on the popular Dean Koontz novel, that seems to have been made by grinding up other films and feeding them to this one. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleRuthe Stein
A horror movie that has the distinction of not even being scary... Although Koontz wrote the screenplay, the suspense for which he is supposed to be famous doesn't translate to the screen. Read full review
16
Entertainment WeeklyTy Burr
It's nearly unwatchable, a farrago of confusing direction, stupid plot coincidences, and banal dialogue. Read full review
12
San Francisco ExaminerWalter Addiego
Godawful. Read full review
12
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Phantoms may have sold like hotcakes as a book. But this movie version is a grotesque fiasco, a confoundingly senseless story told with unexciting visuals, cliched dialogue and ear-bashing sounds... Watching it is a truly hellish experience. [23 Jan 1998]
10
L.A. WeeklyHazel-Dawn Dumpert
Since neither (Chapelle nor Koontz) seems to have any idea as to how to make an actual movie, they abandon form and reason and throw every stock trick in the book at the screen to see what sticks. And what sticks is the murky goo of storytelling gone bad. Read full review
10
The New York TimesStephen Holden
The movie's computer animation is so cut-rate and its direction (by Joe Chappelle) so slack that the attacks are virtually terror-free. Read full review
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