Don't Gamble With Ghosts

It is time for another HOW TO DEAL WITH A HAUNTING movie review.

I just re-watched the 1990 Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore paranormal extravaganza "Ghost."  It was kinda fun to see a young Demi and (dearly departed) Swayze.  No pun intended.  However, I thought I was going to be suffering for almost three hours in the name of blog fodder.  Then, twenty minutes in, Whoopi Goldberg appeared with her uncanny ability to save even the worst movie from itself.  

I hung in there.  Soon, I was surprised to see that this movie had salient points to make about the paranormal (in a loveable, over the top kind of way).  In the course of this movie, we watch the ghost of Sam Wheat (Swayze) develop from a shocked, novice shade to a powerful haunting entity.  Sam Wheat acts in order to protect the love of his life, Molly.  But he inflicts a very different kind of haunting upon his enemies.  It is a classic unfinished business/revenge haunting.  

There are many types of hauntings in this movie, which brings me to the Train Ghost.  I can't believe I forgot all about him.  Probably because he is a little too spookily real.  The Train Ghost is trapped in his death state, but he's been around so long he has grown powerful.  He's a deeply confused and possessive haunting entity.  The first time we see him, he's sucking the breath out of some poor sap reading the paper on the subway.  Sage would do nicely for the Train Ghost.  It would slow him down a bit.

Luckily, nothing could slow down Whoopi Goldberg's portrayal of Oda Mae Brown, fake psychic turned real.  Honestly, I think she liked her life better before her thoughts were crowded by ghosts.  Oda Mae's story arc is fun, but also substantial.  It shows that once she could hear one ghost, she could hear them all.  The same goes for people who can see beyond the physical plane.  That's where most of us are.  We only sense the physical plane.  A few see more and we call it a gift.  But once you see, you cannot unsee.  It makes everything harder.  

There were a few disturbing elements in this movie as well.  While exploring her newfound abilities, Oda Mae Brown opens herself for possession.  The first time it happens, it is an accident.  Afterwards, she feels as if she is covered in sludge.  But later, she purposefully offers herself up to Sam Wheat.  This mistake looms large in my mind.  There are people who do this.  Either as a gag or with the hope of an otherworldly experience.  Never do this.  Guard your body.  Be vigilant with your soul.  Do not gamble with ghosts.  Never offer a haunting entity anything.  Not your Ipod, not your pets, not your body.

Another disturbing element was the fate of Sam's enemies.  The bad guys' transition to the otherworld was not a smooth one.  To say the least.  Violently, they are whisked away by a spectral police force.  These entities can only be described as shadow people.  Usually, I do not like to think, talk, or write about shadow people.  I was just shocked to see them represented as accurately as they were.  

But since I have started down this road, I will explain.  Shadow people are negative energy made manifest.  Black mist entities; they are more powerful than ghosts.  Different from poltergeists, the two entities often co-occur.   

More on poltergeists later...

Shadow people are extremely dangerous.  Over time, they can do very real damage.  They are not demons, but not far off.  Demons can kill, shadow people can slowly strangle the life out of a situation.  If you have problems with this kind of entity in your home, then move.  That is the deal.  Move and pray they don't follow.  Pray that their connection is to the property and not you.  If they do follow, call a priest or a find a shaman.

Anyway, I don't want to end this post with the negative and scary.  I enjoyed watching "Ghost" again.  It was fun and campy.  I was also pleasantly surprised by how they painted the paranomal.  Whimsical, yet sometimes scary.  But only if you believe in that sort of nonsense.