Why was this not a hit ?

It's a great film. Unfortunately the odds were stacked against it been a box office hit. For one thing it was released in the summer and went up against Independence Day. As far as I'm concerned this is alot better than that but the story and tone is definetly not that of a summer blockbuster, unlike ID4. Even worse it was released on the exact same day the Olympics started, which Peter Jackson tried to convince Universal not to do but they did anyway and then they they released it with the publicity poster that you see on all the DVDs - the white face projecting through the wall which doesn't tell you anything about the film at all. A shame really. But with Jackson's mega success with Lord Of The Rings and King Kong, and the fact that it turned out to be Michael J.Fox's last movie role, it seems to have built up a cult following now.

Love this film!!! It's one of my all time favorites!!!

I don't get how you guys can think the story is that good.

The slapstick of it all is very PG with cheesy moments galore but it still got an R rating. If they maybe toned down the death scenes, this would be a good family film. To me it was reminiscent of Casper, Addams Family and Hocus Pocus and is at par with them except for the rating.

Then the rules of what the ghosts can or can't do change through out the film. It almost seems that Johnny, Frank and That General had special powers that other ghosts didn't. How can Johnny morph walls like that? How is he able to write numbers on peoples heads, without Frank seeing him? Where did he get his special cloak? How did he escape Hell? Why was Patricia scared he was going to kill her in the first scene? And Why did her mom try to protect her and ramble about the sins of flesh and her being too young? How did Frank know the heaven light portal was for a victim of Johnny and not just some random person dying? Why does ghost Dammers just give Frank a dirty look instead of trying to rip out his soul or otherwise hurt him? What's with Dammers chest-- how is he able to be an FBI agent with so many crazy issues? What does Johnny crushing a ghost soul actually do? The soul still goes to heaven, so is that for show? What's with the magic ghost Sithe? Why didn't Johnny's victims try to stop him when they were having the cemetery altercation? Why do the ghosts keep falling into walls? Seems like one second floors and walls mean something and the next they mean nothing? Like getting stuck in a door? Why do some spirits seem to be trapped at the cemetery and others can leave whenever they want? Why can the general shift into different outfits and create guns, and Cyrus can't even change outfits? Why are some of the ghosts greasy and dead looking? and some of them look more normal? So that dog chose not to go into the light too? why don't we see more ghosts walking around? Where are the ghost cats and birds?

I could go on and on with questions, But I am tired.

This movie wasn't a big success because it was undeserving and the MPAA gave it an R when it would appeal most to 12 year olds. I know 12 year olds wouldn't over think it like me and would just think every ghost moment is hilarious and bad ass.

Not saying it sucked, because there are other movies with just as many unanswered questions like Prometheus, and it had memorable moments, and MJF, but it wasn't that good. I give it a 6/10

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Poor marketing, bad release date and the fact that horror was a dead genre in 1996. Teen horror made a comeback in late 1996 with Scream and then in 1997 with I Know What You Did Last Summer. But From Dusk Till Dawn came out in early 1996 and only made 25 million and the marketing people didn't even want Tarantino saying it was a horror movie.

I remember seeing it in the theater when it first came out and leaving mad and disappointed.

What I honestly cannot remember is whether I was expecting a fun spooky story with light comedy actor Michael J. Fox and wise-cracking ghosts or whether I thought I was going to an R-rated horror mystery about serial killers back from the grave slicing numbers into victim foreheads with a razor blade.

Watching it today, I think adding a serious thread to be resolved at the end of the 'fake exorcist assisted by ghost partners' storyline would have been a hit. Or the whole 'mental institution lovers who continue to maim and kill even after they're separated by death' storyline was creepy enough to support a entire movie. (Although in that case, Michael J. Fox would probably not be your guy.)

Imagine The Rocky Horror Picture Show including a few serious scenes of the doctor stalking people and amputating their limbs "so in just seven days he could make you a man." No bueno.

Agree, but I console myself with the knowledge that its a sleeper hit now. Personally, I watch it every Halloween, which is when it should've been released. But as the "Did you know" section talks about, it was the production company who decided for a summer release. I guess people aren't as welcoming for a scare (no matter how slight) during the summer as they are around Halloween.

"Good times, noodle salad"

There really is no reason why this was not a hit. I think a lot just comes down to timing. This movie is awesome.