Boogeyman (2005)

13% of critics liked it
(86 reviews)
38% of users liked it
(245,882 ratings)

A man learns his past was more truth than imagination in this horror story. Tim (Barry Watson) is a man who is still haunted by traumatic memories of his past, many linked to the death of his father. Desperate to resolve his issues, Tim returns to his old hometown so he can pay a visit to the house… More A man learns his past was more truth than imagination in this horror story. Tim (Barry Watson) is a man who is still haunted by traumatic memories of his past, many linked to the death of his father. Desperate to resolve his issues, Tim returns to his old hometown so he can pay a visit to the house where he grew up. But while Tim wants to convince himself the ghostly memories he carries are just a figment of his imagination, circumstances lead him to believe that there may be a kernel of truth to them. Boogeyman also features Emily Deschanel, Lucy Lawless, and Skye McCole Bartusiak. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 28 min.
Directed By: Stephen T. Kay
Written By: Eric Kripke, Stiles White, Juliet Snowden
Genres: Drama, Horror, Mystery & Suspense

In Theaters: Feb 4, 2005 Wide
On DVD: May 31, 2005
Studio: Screen Gems

Critic Reviews

Kevin Crust, Los Angeles Times
Fright fans expecting anything more than the occasional jolt will be sorely disappointed.
David Hiltbrand, Philadelphia Inquirer
A vaporous and vacuous horror film.
Lou Lumenick, New York Post
None of this makes any sense whatsoever.
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly
This is strictly substandard stuff, with imitative creepy noises, vertiginous camera angles, and long pauses during which Tim considers whether to open doors.
Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
It suffers from a lack of genuine chills or suspense.
Joshua Land, Village Voice
It's difficult to remember a recent movie with less regard for spatial or temporal coherence.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
A bloated 86 minutes of overzealous spookiness.
Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com
A thinly plotted clothesline of shock effects.
Joseph Proimakis, Movies for the Masses
full review in Greek
Heidi Martinuzzi, Film Threat
This film does cause shivers, creeps, scares, and jumps.
Dragan Antulov, Draxblog Movie Reviews
Few films benefited that much from being so short.
Michael Szymanski, Zap2it.com
For a good, healthy PG-13 scare, Boogeyman is fun for the whole family -- just don't bring kids who are too young.
Jonathan R. Perry, Tyler Morning Telegraph (Texas)
So boring, derivative and patently inane that hate is entirely too strong an emotion to attribute to it. You're either in the target demographic or you're not.

Read all 13 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Jeff "

Boogeyman is one of those horror films that every critic hated and you end up realizing it's not as bad as what everyone has said it was. This is an average film with a pretty good story, and shouldn't be viewed as the worst horror film. The film is flawed, but there are far… More
Boogeyman is one of those horror films that every critic hated and you end up realizing it's not as bad as what everyone has said it was. This is an average film with a pretty good story, and shouldn't be viewed as the worst horror film. The film is flawed, but there are far worst flicks in the genre than this one. Yes, the film is weak at times, but for the most part, it succeeds at being a mindless horror film, which is what it is. Boogeyman is not to be taken so seriously. There's a decent cast of actors that grace this film but the film does suffer from a somewhat lacking script and relies too much on special effects, which if toned down slightly would have a better scar factor on the viewer. There is tension found within this film, but it never really is truly scary. On a production design standpoint, the film looks excellent and has incredible sets, especially the main characters house. Overall Boogeyman is a pleasant time waster not to be taken seriously, if you do that you may just have a mindless fun viewing experience. Boogeyman is lots of fun from start to finish, and is the perfect film for you to simply shut your brain and have a mindless film night. I really don't see the hatred towards this film, sure it's not the best, but it definitely is better than a lot of films that are currently being put out nowadays. Never truly scary, Boogeyman has plenty of tense moments to keep you interested. A much underrated film, one that should not be quickly dismissed.
Dead A

Well I always check under my bed. There are far worst creatures than boogeyman. This was scary indeed. There were some moments that made me jumped literally. Though I would say my scare level wasn't high enough as I could go to sleep peacefully after watching this at mid night. I… More
Well I always check under my bed. There are far worst creatures than boogeyman. This was scary indeed. There were some moments that made me jumped literally. Though I would say my scare level wasn't high enough as I could go to sleep peacefully after watching this at mid night. I would say this was decent. Mysterious. Confusing. Frightening. Everything I could think of (except humor). Can't wait to see the second part. Hope that will be better than this.
MisterYoda ?

2 stars
Leigh R

Not scary. It was just a semi-okay film. I like Barry though...
Dean !

Oh dear! Be afraid, very afraid...of the closet!?? It had a good opening then went down hill so quick it's unbelievable. Not scary, spooky, creepy at all. Would have been better as an 18/R rating film. I have to mention the cgi was a joke as well.....and this has 2 sequels,… More
Oh dear! Be afraid, very afraid...of the closet!?? It had a good opening then went down hill so quick it's unbelievable. Not scary, spooky, creepy at all. Would have been better as an 18/R rating film. I have to mention the cgi was a joke as well.....and this has 2 sequels, that's something to be afraid of!
KJ P

I was scared out of my mind when I was younger and I watched this, but it is really stupid now!
Lady D

A ridiculously poor Horror movie, captures the bad parts of 80?s Horror, yet updated to recent years. No scary parts, no tense moments, no thought provoking ?play on your mind? moments, just very dull.
Luke B

Seen it all before, repetitive bollocks. I can't really say one good thing about it. I suppose at times the atmosphere in certain scenes was rather impressive, but other than that it's the same old stuff. The fact that it ends with revealing the boogeyman to be a CGI version… More
Seen it all before, repetitive bollocks. I can't really say one good thing about it. I suppose at times the atmosphere in certain scenes was rather impressive, but other than that it's the same old stuff. The fact that it ends with revealing the boogeyman to be a CGI version of someone in blackface is both hilarious and awkward. God knows how this spawned 2 sequels and it's even more perplexing as to why I will watch them.
Bannan i

This was -terribly-, -terribly- predictable. Just. TERRIBLY. Funny, I suppose?
Lewis C

I'll admit, I was impressed...with myself. I can't believe I somehow found the fortitude to endure this travesty of a horror movie.
Film C

crap
Emily A

There are a lot of things about this movie I really liked, but the casting was the main thing that kept me from really getting into this flick. I wish they had gone into more depth of how fear came to manifest itself as a homicidal force, but all in all I liked this one. Could have… More
There are a lot of things about this movie I really liked, but the casting was the main thing that kept me from really getting into this flick. I wish they had gone into more depth of how fear came to manifest itself as a homicidal force, but all in all I liked this one. Could have been better, it is true, but it didn't deserve the slamming it got by critics.
Kylie B

Some good parts totally ruined by the ending.
Megan S

It wasn't even scary.
Drew S

A merciless flogging of every horror cliche in the book. A pedestrian script, awful acting, ham-fisted direction and a lack of anything remotely memorable all mean that this doesn't deserve a minute of your time.
Steve B

Bo-ring!
Dean M

Really shock and scary in the dark vision of pure evil.
Roy G

It suffers from a lack of genuine chills or suspense.
Morgan S

ummmm idk kinda dumb
Jacob P

A MAJOR rip off of "Darkness Falls." It has the same exact storyline and everything, the only differnce is the antagonist. Although, it does have its frightning moments, so I have to give it some credit.