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Sometimes They Come Back

  • TV Movie
  • 1991
  • R
  • 1h 37m
IMDb RATING
5.7/10
13K
YOUR RATING
Sometimes They Come Back (1991)
DramaHorrorThriller

Teens from hell mark school teacher Jim Norman and his family for destruction.Teens from hell mark school teacher Jim Norman and his family for destruction.Teens from hell mark school teacher Jim Norman and his family for destruction.

  • Director
    • Tom McLoughlin
  • Writers
    • Stephen King
    • Lawrence Konner
    • Mark Rosenthal
  • Stars
    • Tim Matheson
    • Brooke Adams
    • Robert Rusler
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.7/10
    13K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Tom McLoughlin
    • Writers
      • Stephen King
      • Lawrence Konner
      • Mark Rosenthal
    • Stars
      • Tim Matheson
      • Brooke Adams
      • Robert Rusler
    • 91User reviews
    • 59Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Photos674

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    Top cast22

    Edit
    Tim Matheson
    Tim Matheson
    • Jim Norman
    Brooke Adams
    Brooke Adams
    • Sally Norman
    Robert Rusler
    Robert Rusler
    • Richard Lawson
    Chris Demetral
    Chris Demetral
    • Wayne Norman
    Robert Hy Gorman
    Robert Hy Gorman
    • Scott Norman
    William Sanderson
    William Sanderson
    • Mueller
    Nicholas Sadler
    Nicholas Sadler
    • Vinnie
    Bentley Mitchum
    Bentley Mitchum
    • North
    Matt Nolan
    Matt Nolan
    • Billy Sterns
    Tasia Valenza
    Tasia Valenza
    • Kate
    Chadd Nyerges
    Chadd Nyerges
    • Chip Conway
    T. Max Graham
    • Chief Pappas
    William Kuhlke
    William Kuhlke
    • Principal Simmons
    Duncan McLeod
    • Old Officer Nell
    Nancy McLoughlin
    Nancy McLoughlin
    • Dr. Bernardi
    Zachary Ball
    • Jimmy Norman
    Dick Solowicz
    • Desk Sergeant
    Rodney McKay
    • Police Officer
    • Director
      • Tom McLoughlin
    • Writers
      • Stephen King
      • Lawrence Konner
      • Mark Rosenthal
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews91

    5.712.9K
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    Featured reviews

    6Tera-Jones

    Revenge of the Ghosts

    An interesting ghost story about Jim Norman and his older brother Wayne. Both of the young boys were touted by a group of older boys, greasers if you will. These greasers ended up stabbing Wayne in a train track tunnel one day, a train came and during the madness all were killed except Jim and one of the greasers - both got away safely. Years later Jim ended up married with a young boy of his own and became a school teacher. They moved back to Jim's hometown where his older brother and the greasers were killed. Now the the vengeful greaser ghosts are wanting Jim dead - they will stop at nothing.

    Not a bad film. These are a gang of evil vengeful spirits, just as nasty and no good as they were when they were alive. They can manifest themselves, materialize, into solid matter. They seem to be seen by others only when they want to be seen and they seem to have the ability to chose who sees them.

    6/10
    6b_kite

    Only recommended for dedicated King completionists.

    I wasn't a huge fan of Sometimes They Come Back the first time I saw it about 4 years ago. Returning to it now I definitely appreciated it more. It's not one of King's best adaptations, and the fact that it's made-for-tv does hold it back when it comes to the really good stuff you like to see in horror movies, particularly gore. However, the film looks great and its performances and budget lift it into the quality of any normal theatrical movie, and being a car guy I absolutely loved the 1955 Chevrolet 150 that spits fire from the exhaust pipes. It sadly changes some things from King's original short story including adding on a sentimental happy ending which the short story didn't have. Despite this if your a fan of King's work or adaptations then its definitely worth a look.
    7bkoganbing

    Transferred From Milford, The Hoods From Hell

    The film Sometimes They Come Back explores the proposition that if you got a big enough grudge against someone, especially if they helped aid your leaving this mortal coil rather abruptly, you can come back for payback. Doesn't matter if you've been good or if you've been bad and these three were definitely bad.

    Tim Matheson comes back to his hometown with wife Brooke Adams and their son Robert Hy Gorman for a teaching job at the local high school. Tim's got some anger management issues which is why he left the last school he taught at in Chicago. He's got no great attachments to his hometown with his parents gone and his older brother killed back in 1963.

    That's what this story is all about. He and his brother were stopped by some hoods in a train tunnel and the brother killed, but so were three of the hoods when young Matheson played by Zachary Ball stole their car keys as he ran. It's these three who kill three of Matheson's students with him having some peripheral involvement even if its premonitions and take their place. The three hoods from hell are malevolently played by Robert Rusler, Bentley Mitchum, and Nicholas Sadler. All transfered from Milford, Milford Cemetery that is.

    Tim Matheson and the rest of the cast give good performances in this film adapted from a Stephen King short story. Fans of Stephen King and the horror genre should really like this one.
    9pepekwa

    underrated quality horror flick

    90's character actor tim matheson stars in a surprisingly scary adaptation of a stephen king short story about a guy returning to the town he lived in when he was a child which brought back nightmares of the incident that led to the deaths of his brother and the three hoodlums who tried to mug them. It takes a lot to spook me but the 3 main villains in this really played their part and played their bad guys role to the extreme. I was surprised to see this was merely a TV movie, there's always a diamond in the rough and this is one of them. While there are some glaring plot holes and some questions that are not answered, it doesn't detract from being a chillingly entertaining tale about past indisgressions in small town America.
    8HumanoidOfFlesh

    Pretty chilling.

    "Sometimes They Come Back" by Tom McLoughlin("Friday the 13th Part 6-Jason Lives","One Dark Night")is an adaptation of the short story written by Stephen King.The plot is simple:a school teacher(Tim Matheson)is chased by the dead punks who killed his brother when he was a kid.The film is well-made and has some creepy moments.The direction is solid,the acting is pretty good,unfortunately I found climax to be the weakest part of the film.Still if you like horror movies give this one a look.Followed by two sequels!

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    Related interests

    Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby (1968)
    Horror
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Officer Nell is the same officer Nell from Stephen King's IT!
    • Goofs
      When they return the greasers are able to drive their car without the keys which Jim took from the crash scene in 1963. So why do they need them to drive out of the tunnel during the finale?
    • Quotes

      Vinnie Vincent: You always wanted to be like your brother, didn't you Jimmy?

      Richard Lawson: Dead.

      David North: VERY dead.

    • Connections
      Featured in Minty Comedic Arts: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Sometimes They Come Back (2018)

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • May 7, 1991 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Geri Döndüler
    • Filming locations
      • Liberty, Missouri, USA
    • Production companies
      • Come Back Productions
      • Dino de Laurentiis Communications
      • Paradise Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 37m(97 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Stereo

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