''Phantom Town'' (later released in 2013 as ''Spooky Town'' on DVD) is a 1998 Canadian-American-Romanian

horror fantasy Dark fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy literary, artistic, and cinematic works that incorporate disturbing and frightening themes of fantasy. It often combines fantasy with elements of horror or has a gloomy dark tone or a sense of horror and dr ...

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

film directed by Jeff Burr with the screenplay by Benjamin Carr. The film starred John Patrick White, Taylor Locke, Lauren Summers, Jim Metzler, Belinda Montgomery, and Gabriel Spahiu. The film focuses on Mike, a sixteen-year-old boy, and his two younger siblings as they search for their missing parents in the mysterious town of Long Hand, which according to maps does not exist at all. The film had a runtime of 95 minutes. ''Phantom Town'' had an estimated budget of $800,000. The film was filmed at

Castel Film Studios Castel Film Romania is a Romanian film studio and production company started in 1992 by Romanian film producer Vlad Păunescu and Hollywood producer Charles Band. Many Full Moon films were created at Castel including the Josh Kirby series, Tran ...

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

and was released in theaters in the US on July 1, 1998 and to VHS and DVD on February 16, 1999.

Plot

Three children go on a search to find their parents who mysteriously disappeared after entering a town called Long Hand that isn't found on any map. The children check in at the town's hotel and begin to notice that the residents of Long Hand behave strangely, repeating the same actions over and over. Further exploration of the town leads the children to discover that the town is inhabited by body snatchers, and they could be the next victims. The children eventually find their parents in catacombs located underneath the town, and manage to leave the town with their parents after killing the monster that runs the town. In the end, Mike throws a party and the children discover that their parents had been transformed just like the other residents of Long Hand.

Cast

* John Patrick White as Mike * Taylor Locke as Arnie * Lauren Summers as Cindy *

Jim Metzler Jim Metzler (born June 23, 1951) is an American actor, best known for guest-appearances on popular TV series. In 1983, he received a Golden Globe nomination for his supporting role in the 1982 film ''Tex''. Filmography Films *''Squeeze Play!' ...

as Dad *

Belinda Montgomery Belinda Montgomery is a Canadian-American actress. She initially attracted notice for her starring role in the 1970s science-fiction series ''Man from Atlantis'' as Dr. Elizabeth Merrill and for her recurring role as Caroline Crockett/Ballard ...

as Mom *

Gabriel Spahiu Gabriel Spahiu (; born 21 March 1968) is a Romanian actor. He appeared in more than eighty films since 1998. Spahiu was also chosen by Sony Pictures Animation to dub Wayne in the animated movies ''Hotel Transylvania'', ''Hotel Transylvania 2 ...

as Hotel Clerk *

Jimmy Herman Jimmy Herman (October 25, 1940 - September 13, 2013) was an Indigenous Canadian actor who appeared in several films, including ''Dances with Wolves''. Biography He was born on the Cold Lake Reserve in Alberta, Canada. His descents were Chipe ...

as Attendant *

Jeff Burr Jeff Burr (July 18, 1963) is an American film director, writer, and producer best known for his work in horror sequels, such as ''Stepfather II'', '' The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III'', ''Puppet Master 4'' and '' 5'', and '' Pumpkinhead II''. Ea ...

as Uncle Jack * Iuliana Ciugulea as Aunt Silvia

References

External links

* 1998 films 1990s English-language films Canadian horror films American horror films Romanian horror films English-language Canadian films English-language Romanian films 1998 horror films 1998 fantasy films 1990s Western (genre) horror films American Western (genre) horror films Films shot in Bucharest 1990s American films 1990s Canadian films {{1990s-horror-film-stub