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Tower of Terror
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment // Unrated // August 5, 2003
List Price: $19.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Movie
Much has been made of the fact that the summertime hit Pirates of the Carribean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was inspired by a ride at a Disney theme park. And, I'm sure that we'll hear similar comments when The Haunted Mansion opens this fall. But, few realize that these two movies aren't the first to be based on a ride, at the 1997 Disney made-for-TV film Tower of Terror holds that distinction. (Unless I'm completing overlooking another ride-inspired film.)
In Tower of Terror, we meet Buzzy Crocker (Steve Guttenberg), a once highly respected reporter who now creates fake supernatural stories for a tabloide called "The National Inquisitor". Buzzy is approached by an elderly woman named Abigail (Amzie Strickland), who claims that she knows the story behind the mystery of the Hollywood Tower Hotel. According to the story, five people, including young movie star Sally Shine (Lindsay Ridgeway) disappeared from the hotel's elevator on October 31, 1939, and the hotel has been vacant ever since. Being a con-artist of sorts himself, Buzzy is wary of Abigail's story, but decides to investigate the hotel for himself.
When parts of Abigails's story check out, Buzzy enlists his niece Anna (Kirsten Dunst) to assist him in photographing the hotel. Once they enter the old building, Buzzy and Anna find that the hotel is indeed haunted and that the spirits of those who disappeared that night are still roaming the hallways. Working together, Buzzy and Anna learn that there is a way to free those tortured souls. Sensing a legitimate news-story that could get his career back on track, Buzzy turns to his ex-girlfriend, newspaper editor Jill Perry (Nia Peeples) for help. But, the seemingly easy task of helping the ghosts turns out to be a more dangerous challenge than Buzzy had anticipated, putting he and Anna at risk of becoming ghosts themselves!
Tower of Terror originally aired as part of "The Wonderful World of Disney", and, as such, truly feels like a Disney TV-movie. Despite the long-winded synopsis above, the story is fairly simple and easy-to-follow. Writer/director D.J. MacHale (a veteran of Nickelodeon's "Are You Afraid of the Dark?") gives the film a great deal of style (especially for a made-for-TV movie) and keeps the movie moving at a nice pace. Much ot my surprise, the story contains some good twists and will keep some viewers guessing. Love him or hate him, Guttenberg is good as Buzzy, and as usual, Kirsten Dunst shines in all of her scenes. In fact, the entire cast of this film does a good job.
The problem with Tower of Terror is that aside from being a commercial for a ride at Disneyland (in which riders plummet in a runaway elevator), the movie has no idea what it wants to be. It's not really a horror film, although there are some moments which could certainly scares younger viewers. Also, it's not really a comedy or a drama. For all of its good points, Tower of Terror comes off as quite bland. The real kiler here is that the story ends about 10 minutes before the movie does. Fans of "Goosebumps" may enjoy Tower of Terror, but it will bore older fans of horror. In other words, this ride is safe for those with heart conditions...
Video
Tower of Terror comes to us from Disney DVD (!). The film is presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio, just as it was originally broadcast. The image is sharp and clear, although there is a fine sheen of grain on the image throughout the film. The colors are good, and the picture is well-balanced. Small indicators of artifacting are visible from time to time, but this doesn't create any real problems.
Audio
The disc features a Dolby 2-channel Surround audio track. This track provides clear dialogue, but otherwise is quite unremarkable. The only time that that rear speakers are active is during musical cues or thunder sound effects. There are a few examples of stereo sound design, but otherwise the track is bland.
Extras
There are no special features on this DVD.
Tower of Terror is a competently made, yet instantly forgettable made-for-TV movie. But, if you're searching for a fright film that children under 10 can watch, this may be a good choice.
Much has been made of the fact that the summertime hit Pirates of the Carribean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was inspired by a ride at a Disney theme park. And, I'm sure that we'll hear similar comments when The Haunted Mansion opens this fall. But, few realize that these two movies aren't the first to be based on a ride, at the 1997 Disney made-for-TV film Tower of Terror holds that distinction. (Unless I'm completing overlooking another ride-inspired film.)
In Tower of Terror, we meet Buzzy Crocker (Steve Guttenberg), a once highly respected reporter who now creates fake supernatural stories for a tabloide called "The National Inquisitor". Buzzy is approached by an elderly woman named Abigail (Amzie Strickland), who claims that she knows the story behind the mystery of the Hollywood Tower Hotel. According to the story, five people, including young movie star Sally Shine (Lindsay Ridgeway) disappeared from the hotel's elevator on October 31, 1939, and the hotel has been vacant ever since. Being a con-artist of sorts himself, Buzzy is wary of Abigail's story, but decides to investigate the hotel for himself.
When parts of Abigails's story check out, Buzzy enlists his niece Anna (Kirsten Dunst) to assist him in photographing the hotel. Once they enter the old building, Buzzy and Anna find that the hotel is indeed haunted and that the spirits of those who disappeared that night are still roaming the hallways. Working together, Buzzy and Anna learn that there is a way to free those tortured souls. Sensing a legitimate news-story that could get his career back on track, Buzzy turns to his ex-girlfriend, newspaper editor Jill Perry (Nia Peeples) for help. But, the seemingly easy task of helping the ghosts turns out to be a more dangerous challenge than Buzzy had anticipated, putting he and Anna at risk of becoming ghosts themselves!
Tower of Terror originally aired as part of "The Wonderful World of Disney", and, as such, truly feels like a Disney TV-movie. Despite the long-winded synopsis above, the story is fairly simple and easy-to-follow. Writer/director D.J. MacHale (a veteran of Nickelodeon's "Are You Afraid of the Dark?") gives the film a great deal of style (especially for a made-for-TV movie) and keeps the movie moving at a nice pace. Much ot my surprise, the story contains some good twists and will keep some viewers guessing. Love him or hate him, Guttenberg is good as Buzzy, and as usual, Kirsten Dunst shines in all of her scenes. In fact, the entire cast of this film does a good job.
The problem with Tower of Terror is that aside from being a commercial for a ride at Disneyland (in which riders plummet in a runaway elevator), the movie has no idea what it wants to be. It's not really a horror film, although there are some moments which could certainly scares younger viewers. Also, it's not really a comedy or a drama. For all of its good points, Tower of Terror comes off as quite bland. The real kiler here is that the story ends about 10 minutes before the movie does. Fans of "Goosebumps" may enjoy Tower of Terror, but it will bore older fans of horror. In other words, this ride is safe for those with heart conditions...
Video
Tower of Terror comes to us from Disney DVD (!). The film is presented in its original 1.33:1 aspect ratio, just as it was originally broadcast. The image is sharp and clear, although there is a fine sheen of grain on the image throughout the film. The colors are good, and the picture is well-balanced. Small indicators of artifacting are visible from time to time, but this doesn't create any real problems.
Audio
The disc features a Dolby 2-channel Surround audio track. This track provides clear dialogue, but otherwise is quite unremarkable. The only time that that rear speakers are active is during musical cues or thunder sound effects. There are a few examples of stereo sound design, but otherwise the track is bland.
Extras
There are no special features on this DVD.
Tower of Terror is a competently made, yet instantly forgettable made-for-TV movie. But, if you're searching for a fright film that children under 10 can watch, this may be a good choice.
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