Sometimes They Come Back (film)
Encyclopedia
Sometimes They Come Back is a 1991
made-for-TV horror film
based on the short story by the same title
by Stephen King
. It was filmed partially in Liberty, Missouri
.
The short story itself was going to be part of the stories featured in Stephen King's Cat's Eye, but producer Dino De Laurentiis felt that the story would make it on its own.
He has nightmares about his brother's murder as he starts teaching in the town. Students close to him start to be involved in various accidents that look like suicides. One by one enough students are slain so the greasers, disguised as living teens, can return to class.
They plan to kill Jim in the same way they murdered Wayne in order to keep themselves out of Hell. They intend to have a child witness the event, leading them to try to kidnap Jim's son Scott. Jim finds out that there is a way to let his own brother come back. The gang also needs the remaining living member of their gang, Carl Mueller, who left before the train struck. Jim finds Carl, who panics, thinking Jim wants revenge. He runs back to town, fulfilling the gang's plan for a reunion.
The gang harasses Jim's family at their home to ensure Jim's compliance in reenacting the murder. After the gang releases the family, Jim hides them inside a church, which the demonic gang cannot enter. Jim tries to bring his brother back in the church's graveyard as the gang lures his wife and son outside and hold them hostage. Jim finds that something is blocking Wayne's return, and must cooperate with the thugs in reenacting the murder. He returns to the train tunnel in which the first murder took place, though both he and Carl change their dialogue and actions from those taken 27 years before. Frustrated, the gang leader stabs Carl, which allows Wayne to come back. Wayne distracts the gang members while Jim gets his family out of the gang's car. As the family runs, the gang tries to escape in their car, only to have it stuck by a ghost train which sends them back to Hell.
Wayne offers to have Jim come with him to the afterlife, which Jim refuses. Wayne says he can move on to heaven and see his parents because the greasers are no longer a threat. Wayne goes back to the afterlife as Jim's family heads home.
, released in 1996, is the first sequel to this film. Sometimes They Come Back… for More
is the second sequel to this film. It was released in 1999.
1991 in film
The year 1991 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*April 28 - Bonnie Raitt marries actor Michael O'Keefe in New York* Terminator 2: Judgment Day, became one of the landmarks for science fiction action films with its groundbreaking visual effects from Industrial Light & Magic.*November...
made-for-TV horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
based on the short story by the same title
Sometimes They Come Back
"Sometimes They Come Back" is a short story by Stephen King, first published in the March 1974 issue of Cavalier and later collected in King's 1978 collection Night Shift.-Setting:...
by Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
. It was filmed partially in Liberty, Missouri
Liberty, Missouri
Liberty is a city in Clay County, Missouri and is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri. At the 2007 population estimate, the city population was 29,993...
.
The short story itself was going to be part of the stories featured in Stephen King's Cat's Eye, but producer Dino De Laurentiis felt that the story would make it on its own.
Synopsis
Jim Norman, a high school history teacher, moves back to his old hometown to teach after being offered a job there. He moved from the town after he witnessed his brother, Wayne, murdered by a gang of greasers in 1963. The murderers themselves were killed shortly afterward by an oncoming train, having parked on the tracks.He has nightmares about his brother's murder as he starts teaching in the town. Students close to him start to be involved in various accidents that look like suicides. One by one enough students are slain so the greasers, disguised as living teens, can return to class.
They plan to kill Jim in the same way they murdered Wayne in order to keep themselves out of Hell. They intend to have a child witness the event, leading them to try to kidnap Jim's son Scott. Jim finds out that there is a way to let his own brother come back. The gang also needs the remaining living member of their gang, Carl Mueller, who left before the train struck. Jim finds Carl, who panics, thinking Jim wants revenge. He runs back to town, fulfilling the gang's plan for a reunion.
The gang harasses Jim's family at their home to ensure Jim's compliance in reenacting the murder. After the gang releases the family, Jim hides them inside a church, which the demonic gang cannot enter. Jim tries to bring his brother back in the church's graveyard as the gang lures his wife and son outside and hold them hostage. Jim finds that something is blocking Wayne's return, and must cooperate with the thugs in reenacting the murder. He returns to the train tunnel in which the first murder took place, though both he and Carl change their dialogue and actions from those taken 27 years before. Frustrated, the gang leader stabs Carl, which allows Wayne to come back. Wayne distracts the gang members while Jim gets his family out of the gang's car. As the family runs, the gang tries to escape in their car, only to have it stuck by a ghost train which sends them back to Hell.
Wayne offers to have Jim come with him to the afterlife, which Jim refuses. Wayne says he can move on to heaven and see his parents because the greasers are no longer a threat. Wayne goes back to the afterlife as Jim's family heads home.
Sequel
Sometimes They Come Back... AgainSometimes They Come Back... Again
Sometimes They Come Back... Again is the 1996 sequel to the 1991 horror film Sometimes They Come Back. It was directed by Adam Grossman. It stars Michael Gross, Alexis Arquette, and Hilary Swank.- Plot :...
, released in 1996, is the first sequel to this film. Sometimes They Come Back… for More
Sometimes They Come Back… for More
Sometimes They Come Back... for More is the second sequel to Sometimes They Come Back, directed by Daniel Zelik Berk and released in 1998.-Plot:...
is the second sequel to this film. It was released in 1999.