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The Gate

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The Gate

PG-13

Released May 15, 1987

1h 25m

Horror

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

36%

Tomatometer

11 Reviews

45%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

When Al (Christa Denton) and Glenn's (Stephen Dorff) parents (Deborah Grover, Scot Denton) leave town for the weekend, Al uses the opportunity to throw a party while little brother Glenn and his friend Terry (Louis Tripp) decide to explore a hole left by a tree-removal service in the backyard. When unexplainable phenomena begin occurring, Terry -- with the help of his extensive heavy-metal music collection -- comes to the conclusion that he and Glenn have accidentally opened a gateway to hell.

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Allison Rose

FlickDirect

Dorff is the best part of the movie and since he was only about 13 when the movie was filmed he didn't have a lot of experience making his acting hit or miss.

Rated: 2.5

May 14, 2024

Full Review

Grant Watson

Fiction Machine

The poor scripting, the awkward performances, the synth musical score – it all feels so wonderfully, ridiculously ’80s. It is a bad movie, but an oddly fun one too.

Rated: 5/10

Jan 10, 2024

Full Review

Michael Heaton

San Francisco Examiner

Aside from the magic supplied by the smoke and mirror boys, The Gate has little to offer in the way of acting or writing.

Rated: 1.5/4

Mar 29, 2023

Full Review

Ángel Luis Inurria

El Pais (Spain)

The worst aspect is the scarcity of ideas. [Full Review in Spanish]

Apr 22, 2020

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Kat Hughes

THN

Essentially, The Gate is a horror version of Home Alone, and with the addition of Al's bratty friends (one of whom is played by The OC's Kelly Rowan), there's a nice amount of humour to balance out the scares.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 23, 2018

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Robert Martin

Starburst

Given the film's $2.5m budget it's incredible what was achieved here.

Rated: 7/10

Feb 14, 2018

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Nick O

This flick always reminds of when I was a kid and me and my neighbor found a hole in my backyard and read heavy metal lyrics out loud, prompting little demon trolls to explode out and wreck my house. Oh to be young.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/25/25

Full Review

Edward B

Starts of promising but becomes convoluted passed halfway mark ..a poor man's Monster squad only watch if you like that 80s era horror

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

04/15/25

Full Review

Audience Member

Such a great horror movie for kids! I saw it in the movies when I was nine and just watched it again, probably the first time in 30 years, and it still does the job.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/12/25

Full Review

Leo T

Great Fun Movie When the Parents are gone ! All Hell breaks loose The two young men and sister are Fantastic and loved the special effects A Great Adventure Movie without leaving home

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/08/25

Full Review

Erik B

A fun horror geared more towards kids (though with that typical 80's raunch that's no longer kosher) than adults; hadn't seen it in years but it all came flooding back almost immediately. Decent effects and an engaging enough (if not goofy) storyline make this a fun watch.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

12/03/24

Full Review

Jay H

When this movie was released, I loved it - I was 14. Today, I think the script and dialogue are very subpar. That said, the special effects are very well done. The third act is also pretty scary. I have to take exception with the dead dog humor, though. That isn't funny at all.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

10/16/24

Full Review

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Tibor Takacs

Director

Stephen Dorff

Glen

Christa Denton

Al

Louis Tripp

Terrence "Terry" Chandler

Kelly Rowan

Lori Lee

Jennifer Irwin

Linda Lee

The Gate: Official Clip - The Gods Attack

1:14

The Gate: Official Clip - Treehouse of Horror

2:13

The Gate: Official Clip - I Looooove You...

2:19

The Gate: Official Clip - Go Get Dad's Gun!

2:09

The Gate: Official Clip - You've Been Bad!

2:14

The Gate: Official Clip - Destroying the Demon Lord

2:47

The Gate: Official Clip - The Old Gods!

1:55

The Gate: Official Clip - Eye Hand

2:06

The Gate: Official Clip - Levitating Glen

1:30

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Synopsis

When Al (Christa Denton) and Glenn's (Stephen Dorff) parents (Deborah Grover, Scot Denton) leave town for the weekend, Al uses the opportunity to throw a party while little brother Glenn and his friend Terry (Louis Tripp) decide to explore a hole left by a tree-removal service in the backyard. When unexplainable phenomena begin occurring, Terry -- with the help of his extensive heavy-metal music collection -- comes to the conclusion that he and Glenn have accidentally opened a gateway to hell.

Director: Tibor Takacs
Producer: John Kemeny
Screenwriter: Michael Nankin
Distributor: New Century Vista Film Company [us]
Production Co: Alliance Entertainment, New Century Entertainment Corporation, The Vista Organisation
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 15, 1987, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 11, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $11.9M
Runtime: 1h 25m
Sound Mix: Surround, Stereo

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