Ghost Stories is a British horror anthology movie that’s obviously trying to be like the Amicus anthology features of the 1960s. It’s based on a stage play by Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson, both of whom were associated with the League of Gentlemen comedy troupe.
The three stories are connected by the fictional television professor-sceptic Philip Goodman (Nyman), who is investigating the three events. It’s a bit too clever for its own good—the twist is one that you kind of see coming. It’s a bit of a lazy one, too, because it’s been done so many times since all the way back in the silent era.
That said, it’s a decently entertaining 90-minute movie, and was shot in and around Leeds and elsewhere in West Yorkshire most notably Roundhay Park and the City Varieties music hall. It’s got some good performances, including Martin Freeman and Alex Layther, a great young actor that most people will recognise from either the Black Mirror episode Shut Up and Dance or The End of the F***ing World.
All in all, it’s OK but I was not as impressed with it as some others. However, if you like the idea of spooky stories plus the League of Gentleman, it might be your cup of tea, even though it didn’t work for me. It’s perfectly fine, and whether you’ll like it is all subjective anyway. It also has a use of the immortal Monster Mash by Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett & the Crypt-Kickers which is they thought was cute and really doesn’t work at all.
The disc includes commentaries and various featurettes.
★★
Ian Schultz
psychotroniccinema.com 