The Ghost and the Darkness

1996 109 min ★ 6.8 Adventure, Thriller, History

Sir Robert Beaumont is behind schedule on a railroad in Africa. Enlisting noted engineer John Henry Patterson to right the ship, Beaumont expects results. Everything seems great until the crew discovers the mutilated corpse of the project's foreman, seemingly killed by a lion. After several more attacks, Patterson calls in famed hunter Charles Remington, who has finally met his match in the bloodthirsty lions.

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Cast

Michael Douglas

Charles Remington

Val Kilmer

Col. John Henry Patterson

Tom Wilkinson

Sir Robert Beaumont

John Kani

Samuel

Emily Mortimer

Helena Patterson

Bernard Hill

Dr. David Hawthorne

Brian McCardie

Angus Starling

Om Puri

Abdullah

Jack Devnarain

Nervous Sikh Orderly

Henry Cele

Mahina

Details

Director

Stephen Hopkins

Screenplay

William Goldman

Tagline

"Prey For The Hunters"

Status

Released

Original Language

EN

Budget

$50,000,000

Revenue

$38,619,405

Production

Paramount Pictures, Douglas/Reuther Productions, Bernina Film, Mont Blanc Entertainment GmbH, Constellation Films

Reviews

J

John Chard

January 27, 2019

★ 7/10

Oh, you're right. The devil has come to Tsavo. Look at me, I am the devil. The Ghost and the Darkness is directed by Stephen Hopkins and written by William Goldman. It stars Val Kilmer, Michael Douglas, Tom Wilkinson, John Kani, Bernard Hill, Brian McCardie and Emily Mortimer. Music is by Jerry Goldsmith and cinematography by Vilmos Zsigmond. Tsavo, Kenya and a bridge engineer teams up with ...

S

sykobanana

January 2, 2021

★ 9/10

I loved this movie when I got to see it when it was first released. Based on a true story (in fact the only part that was made up for is the lions' den scene), this movie breathes Africa due to the incredible cinematography of Vilmos Zsigmond. Africa is as bright and as amazing in this film as it is in person. There is no CGI, only real, trained lions and real effects. Set during the Euro...

F

Filipe Manuel Neto

December 26, 2023

★ 7/10

**Overall, a good African adventure film.** Overall, I liked this film. Africa has always held a fascination for Europeans, and anyone who has lived there will certainly recognize that it leaves a mark, a kind of spell or enchantment. Anyone who is there for a while never forgets Africa, and always brings with them a little bit of this magnificent and martyred continent. The film manages to giv...