Recently I had the awesome chance to go to the Cinema Wasteland convention in Cleveland and meet director Lamberto Bava and actress Coralina Cataldi-Tassoni. These two have made a lot of great films in their time, and a few of them they’ve made together. Unfortunately, while Ghost Son is one of those films they made together, it’s not a great one. As is often the case, Coralina is relegated to a supporting role here. The lead actress of the film is Laura Harring. While this may come as a surprise to some, given her popularity after her breakout in Lynch’s Mulholland Drive, it seems Laura has a soft spot for horror pictures. She has appeared in such gene projects as Silent Night Deadly Night III: Better Watch Out!, Willard, and All Souls Day: Dia de los Muertos. Supporting Laura in the film are actos John Hannah (The Mummy Remake Series), Pete Postlewaite (Ususal Suspects, Alien 3), and Laura Harring’s giant breasts.
The film’s plot concerns Stacey (Laura Harring) moving to Africa to be with her boyfriend Mark (John Hannah) against the urging of her best friend Beth (Coralina). Sadly, in what can only be considered really shitty timing, Mark is killed in a car accident not long after Stacey arrives. She then becomes haunted by Mark’s ghost. He tries to get her to commit suicide, and even rapes her one night; Nice. Soon Stacey finds out she’s pregnant and gives birth to a little boy, only to be really creepily freaked out when Mark possesses their baby and tries to mack on her; Icky. Things get even creepier and weirder from there.
Now, this film is not very good. Don’t get me wrong; the cast is excellent and Bava’s cinematic eye is as sharp as always. The big problem here is that nothing really unpredictable or horrifying happens until the fifty minute mark. By then, if it wasn’t for Ms. Harring’s knockers, I’d be fighting to stay awake. Once the baby becomes possessed by Mark’s ghost, things finally kick in and we’re treated to some really weird and creepy shit. Unfortunately, the films climax is also a bit of a letdown, and is simply underwhelming. The film does benefit greatly though by being shot and set in Africa. This adds a really different vibe to the proceedings and, in my opinion, is an underused setting for genre films in general.
So, while this may be one of Bava’s weaker efforts (mostly due to the uneven script), it’s still worth checking out for fans of Bava, Coralina, or the hot Laura Harring. Even considering the problems here, I’m just happy it’s not a fall from grace for Bava of recent Romero proportions. Check it out.
Noah "Annubis" Soudrette
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