Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

The Ghost Ship

Play trailer Poster for The Ghost Ship 1943 1h 9m Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
82% Tomatometer 11 Reviews 54% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Tom Merriam (Russell Wade) boards the freighter Altair in San Pedro, where he meets Capt. Will Stone (Richard Dix). During that first voyage, Tom begins to suspect that Stone is crazy, but he also learns that the crew is fiercely protective of him. When fellow sailor Louie (Lawrence Tierney) is killed in a freak accident, Merriam suspects Stone. However, he has no proof. As the killings continue, Tom decides to leave the ship, but the captain has other plans.
Watch on Fandango at Home Stream Now

Where to Watch

The Ghost Ship

Critics Reviews

View More
Time Out 06/24/2006
This Val Lewton production may not scale the heights of Cat People or I Walked with a Zombie, but it has its impressive moments. Go to Full Review
Bosley Crowther New York Times 03/25/2006
2/5
A nice little package of morbidity all wrapped around in gloom. Go to Full Review
Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader 08/08/2002
The least known, though far from least interesting, of producer Val Lewton's exemplary, poetic B-films. Go to Full Review
Mattie Lucas From the Front Row 11/29/2021
3/4
It may end a bit too abruptly, but it's 69 minutes of slowly mounting terror that constantly puts the audience's perception of reality in question - and Dix's brilliantly modulated performance keeps us guessing right to the end. Go to Full Review
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy 10/29/2021
3/4
Cross Mutiny On the Bounty with The Sea Wolf and add a dash of Moby Dick, and that's pretty much what you have here. Go to Full Review
Eddie Harrison film-authority.com 02/20/2021
4/5
…some found it a disappointment because it’s not a strict horror genre piece, but that fault is on the part of audience expectations rather than the film-maker; The Ghost Ship riffs on some familiar horror tropes, but plays them out in a original way… Go to Full Review
Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
Elvis D Feb 13 The Ghost Ship es un intento de thriller psicológico con un título bastante engañoso. No es una película sobre un barco embrujado como se podría esperar y solo la tripulación cree que eso le sucede al barco. Al principio se podría pensar que hay algo sobrenatural que causa los infortunios abordo del barco, pero esa sospecha es descartada inmediatamente cuando el capitán Will del barco revela su comportamiento sospechoso. El capitán Will es un hombre que está dispuesto a mantener la autoridad a cualquier costo, aun si tiene que provocar bajas. Tom es el único que sospecha que algo no está bien y lo que la película pretende es que nos pongamos en su lugar. Aunque lo que la película tiene es una buena idea, el guion es bastante inestable. La película actúa de una manera bastante incoherente porque no hay la suficiente profundización o el suspenso suficiente para que la historia sea bastante interesante. Por momentos es una película de suspenso, después cambia al drama, no hay una buena estabilidad. Tampoco se sabe muy bien quién es el capitán Will y no hay un trasfondo para que el personaje sea bastante creíble. Por momentos actúa de forma sospechosa y por otros actúa de forma normal, haciendo quedar a Tom como si estuviera delirando. El personaje de Ellen tampoco aporta lo suficiente. La historia termina siendo pretenciosa sin tener claro hacia donde quería llegar. Lo único que se puede apreciar bastante de esta película es la producción, el ambiente, el montaje y algunas actuaciones. Hay momentos de suspenso que están bien llevados y la atmosfera es algo que también supieron ejecutar correctamente en algunas escenas, pero la narrativa no logra convencer. The Ghost Ship termina siendo una película tediosa y sin mucho sentido que en vez de intrigar, acaba aburriendo o confundiendo al espectador. Mi calificación final para esta película es un 6/10. See more Aldo G 10/14/2023 Another Val Lewton minor-masterpiece. This one has a singular theme: authoritarianism. This title is misleading. This isn't a movie containing supernatural activities, but a warning against subjugation. See more 07/20/2019 The Ghost Ship is a short and simple film that shows the battle between a newly-appointed third officer on a ship and the captain who has gone a bit mad with power. The ideas in the film are great, and I think it could make for a strong film if it was explored a little more carefully and with a bit more skill. The fact that it becomes obvious early on that the captain is indeed going crazy, and that the third officer is right the entire time, there is less intrigue in the film. It still had some tense moments, because they created an atmosphere reminiscent of a slasher film. Several times you became tense and worried who would die next and if the protagonist would survive. I still think the plot would have been better if we weren’t sure if it was the captain or the third officer who was going crazy, but at least they maintained some tension to keep me interested. One other thing worth mentioning is the horrendous voiceover for a mute officer. That was a ridiculous choice that did not work at all. The Ghost Ship has some potential, but as it stands, I found it a bit lacking. See more 11/02/2018 One of the five collaborations between director Mark Robson and producer Val Lewton (best known for his low-budget RKO horror films which included Cat People and I Walked with a Zombie, both directed by Jacques Tourneur). Although Robsonâ(TM)s best Lewton film is certainly The Seventh Victim (also 1943) about a nihilistic Satanic cult, The Ghost Ship manages to summon up a similar sense of dread in places. Russell Wade plays Tom Merriam who has just signed on to be the Third Officer on the ship Altair, captained by Richard Dixâ(TM)s Will Stone. Stone is a sombre character, weighted down by his âauthorityâ? which we wields with a heavy hand, although alternating with moments of fatherly warmth. When Merriam begins to think the captain is deranged and suspects foul play, he calls the shipping company to turn him in. After that, the forces of doom seem aligned against him and shadows lurk in every corner of the ship. His former friends turn against him. Will there be any escape from the sullen and brooding captain? As in other Lewton pictures, a real sense of menace and dread is created here using very subtle means: darkness, a camera shot fixed on a slowly opening door, noises from offscreen. A creepy mute sailor adds a further spooky touch. See more 11/29/2013 A moody maritime mystery with murder and mutiny! See more 05/10/2013 not entirely a horror movie in 21st century terms but an interesting use of sound effects and a catchy singing motif "ho ho blow the man down..." See more Read all reviews
The Ghost Ship

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW
Experiment Perilous 100% 45% Experiment Perilous Watchlist The Window 100% 78% The Window Watchlist Suspicion 97% 77% Suspicion Watchlist Notorious 96% 91% Notorious Watchlist The Hitch-Hiker 94% 63% The Hitch-Hiker Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Tom Merriam (Russell Wade) boards the freighter Altair in San Pedro, where he meets Capt. Will Stone (Richard Dix). During that first voyage, Tom begins to suspect that Stone is crazy, but he also learns that the crew is fiercely protective of him. When fellow sailor Louie (Lawrence Tierney) is killed in a freak accident, Merriam suspects Stone. However, he has no proof. As the killings continue, Tom decides to leave the ship, but the captain has other plans.
Director
Mark Robson
Producer
Val Lewton
Production Co
RKO Radio Pictures Inc.
Genre
Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 16, 1943, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 1, 2009
Runtime
1h 9m
Most Popular at Home Now