Phantasm
A grieving teenager uncovers a mausoleum's impossible machinery and battles the towering undertaker behind it.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- eerie
- surreal
- foreboding
- late night horror marathon
- cult film night
What critics said
Critics broadly recognized Phantasm as an inventive, visually distinctive independent horror film whose originality and eerie effects outweigh its uneven acting and loose plotting.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The Tall Man, funeral parlor, flying spheres, shrinking corpses, and reanimated slaves form an intentionally bizarre universe where conventional explanations are withheld.
Angus Scrimm's Tall Man is the central force behind the mausoleum's horrors and became the film's defining horror icon.
The metallic spheres pursue victims through corridors and deliver some of the film's signature visual shocks.
Mike's recent loss of his parents motivates his fear for Jody and drives his investigation of the funeral home.
Films like Phantasm, and why
The Evil Dead
surreal supernatural horror, youthful protagonists, and an iconic otherworldly antagonist
Eraserhead
independent horror filmmaking, dreamlike menace, dark humor, and inventive practical effects
The Gate
coming-of-age horror, small-scale supernatural investigation, and escalating cemetery dread
Movie Details
- Director
- Don Coscarelli
- Release Date
- 1979-03-28
- Runtime
- 89 min
- Rating
- 6.5 / 10 (814)
Cast
- A. Michael Baldwin
- Bill Thornbury
- Reggie Bannister
- Kathy Lester
- Angus Scrimm
- Terrie Kalbus
- Kenneth V. Jones
- Susan Harper
- Lynn Eastman-Rossi
- David Arntzen
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, Shudder Amazon Channel, Shudder Apple TV channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus, Bloodstream
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Phantasm about?
- A grieving teenager uncovers a mausoleum's impossible machinery and battles the towering undertaker behind it.
- What is Phantasm like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Phantasm as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Phantasm violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Phantasm as graphic.
- What did critics think of Phantasm?
- Critics broadly recognized Phantasm as an inventive, visually distinctive independent horror film whose originality and eerie effects outweigh its uneven acting and loose plotting.
- Which films are like Phantasm?
- Films with a similar feel include The Evil Dead, Eraserhead, and The Gate.
- How long is Phantasm?
- Phantasm runs 89 minutes.
- Where can I watch Phantasm?
- In United States, Phantasm streams on Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, Shudder Amazon Channel, Shudder Apple TV channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Peacock Premium Plus, Bloodstream.
