Not a ghost of a chance

GHOST IN THE MACHINE (1993)

Reviewed by Jerry Saravia

Original review from 2003

Back in the day when the Internet was known as the Information Superhighway and nobody knew what an email was, a little film called "Ghost in the Machine" was released in theatres. It focused on the dangers of the Internet, particularly when somebody can have access to anything like bank account numbers, address books, shopping lists, etc. Well, those ideas are at the surface of "Ghost in the Machine," a ludicrous, snail-paced slasher movie that tries to pass itself off as relevant and timely. Not a ghost of a chance.

The opening scenes give the impression that we are about to see an average slasher picture. A young man, who works in an Ohio computer store, steals address books from clients and begins murdering every one of the occupants at these addresses. The latest client is Terry Monroe (Karen Allen), who mistakenly leaves her address book in the store (I suppose the killer will only kill forgetful people who leave their address books in the store? Just a guess). The young man races in his car in the rainy night to give back the book to Terry and presumably kill her. There is a tragic accident where the killer's car careens into a cemetery, and he gives one of those devilish laughs that signifies he was expecting this to happen. He is taken to the hospital for an MRI when an electrical storm causes a malfunction in the circuits. This supercharged electrical storm metamorphoses the killer into a human computer signal where he can access anyone's computer and kill them. His last target is Terry and her wanna-be rapper son.

The only problem with this conceit is that the killer is not just a computer signal beaming down from a satellite or a tech company. He can also travel through electrical wires and zap you through your washer machine, toaster oven, microwave, hair dryer (!), radio, and so on (much like the killer in "Shocker.") In other words, the movie seems to be saying that no electrical appliances are safe in your own home, and for goodness sakes', seal those electrical outlets! Perhaps the message is that we are so dependent on our appliances that we should consider cooking our food at a campfire and speak to people on the street instead of calling them and/or emailing them. After all, a killer could be loose and increase our electric bill.

This movie was a downward trajectory for Karen Allen, who has none of the spit, fire or polish of her more accomplished roles - she is as indifferent as the rest of the cast is. As for the killer, the actor has a certain creepiness but since the writers have given no real apparent motive except the desire to kill anyone within his reach (especially Terry's friends), there is nothing to cling to - he is just a one-dimensional inhuman killer. Delete this ghost of a movie.