Thinner (1996)

17% of critics liked it
(18 reviews)
39% of users liked it
(19,142 ratings)

The plot of Thinner concerns massively overweight lawyer Billy Halleck (Robert John Burke), who is receiving an oral gift from his wife (Lucinda Jenney) while driving down the street one night, when he becomes so carried away that he runs over an old Gypsy woman (Irma St. Paule), killing her. Nobody… More The plot of Thinner concerns massively overweight lawyer Billy Halleck (Robert John Burke), who is receiving an oral gift from his wife (Lucinda Jenney) while driving down the street one night, when he becomes so carried away that he runs over an old Gypsy woman (Irma St. Paule), killing her. Nobody in town likes the traveling Gypsies much, so Halleck's pals -- a judge and a cop -- cover up the incident. After the cover-up, the dead woman's father, Tadzu Lempke (Michael Constantine), touches Halleck's face and whispers "thinner." Pretty soon, Halleck is losing weight at an incredible rate of more than 40 pounds a week. He tries everything, but learns that Lempke is the only man who can remove the curse. In the meantime, the judge dies of a mysterious skin ailment, and the cop commits suicide. When begging and pleading with Lempke doesn't work, Halleck turns to more drastic methods of persuasion. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 32 min.
Directed By: Tom Holland
Written By: Tom Holland, Michael McDowell
Genres: Horror

In Theaters: Oct 25, 1996 Wide
On DVD: Oct 7, 1997
Studio: Republic Pictures Home Video

Critic Reviews

Chuck O'Leary, Fantastica Daily
A constantly absorbing little chiller directed by the underrated Tom Holland (Fright Night, Child's Play).
Clint Morris, Moviehole
Stephen King's freakiest film in eons
Fred Topel, About.com
Mediocre Steven King adaptation. Interesting horror idea in light of society's obsession with dieting, but really just another horror movie.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

Conner R

Another terrible made for TV adaption of one of Stephen King's more psychologically disturbing stories. This is not scary, inaccurate and plain stupid. The acting is terrible, the special effects are laughable and it has zero effect. It's better forgotten, hopefully one day… More
Another terrible made for TV adaption of one of Stephen King's more psychologically disturbing stories. This is not scary, inaccurate and plain stupid. The acting is terrible, the special effects are laughable and it has zero effect. It's better forgotten, hopefully one day it will be remade with a little respect and a decent screenwriter and director.
Martin S

I think it lived up to the book....even though it felt lite they just tried to sum up every scene in the fastest way possible...the movie could have been longer. But they shure found the perfect guy to play Billy.
Wahida K

Stephen Kings Thinner is a great example to take those gypsy serious. I enjoyed this Movie.
Cassandra M

When i saw the cover of the video jacket, i knew i was in for a cheesy but probably enjoyable flick. It is a watchable film, and follows the plot of the novel pretty well all told. The actors were adequate, but not noteworthy. Some people have commented on the fact that William… More
When i saw the cover of the video jacket, i knew i was in for a cheesy but probably enjoyable flick. It is a watchable film, and follows the plot of the novel pretty well all told. The actors were adequate, but not noteworthy. Some people have commented on the fact that William Halleck does not seem like a likeable character, and this is true of the film, but the novel delves more into his relationship with his daughter, and gives us a far more rounded character who isn't just motivated by hatred and revenge; we see that this is a man who loves his daughter deeply, and is terrified by what is happening to him. All in all, forgetable but worth watching just to see King in a cameo as the pharmacist. All the boys love mandy lane This film really distinguishes itself within the slasher genre. It's that rare occurrence of a horror film that doesn't feel like a horror film, just a story. The characters are all carefully portrayed by a mostly unknown cast who were allowed to improvise much of their dialogue. The characters are all well defined and form a totally believable and generally likable group of friends, despite their human weaknesses. It's nearly a surprise when people start being killed off because the film feels so real and doesn't bear any of the tired trademarks usually associated with the genre. The grainy film stock and hand-held camera-work also help to further differentiate this film which is essentially a cross between an Indie movie and a slasher film. Very original treatment of some well worn themes. Great to see this type of story taken seriously for once. Just what the horror industry needs.
Lewis C

I think that Thinner really does work better as a story than as a film. Your imagination makes the Gypsy curse even more horrible when you read than how the film presents it. Stephen King's stories are usually hit or miss when it comes to a film or TV adaptation, but Thinner lies… More
I think that Thinner really does work better as a story than as a film. Your imagination makes the Gypsy curse even more horrible when you read than how the film presents it. Stephen King's stories are usually hit or miss when it comes to a film or TV adaptation, but Thinner lies somewhere in the middle. It kept my attention, but it definitely wasn't as good as The Mist or The Shining. I would compare it in quality to Secret Window. Secret Window was pretty good up until the end, while Thinner starts off slow and builds to a reasonably satisfying conclusion. I don't know if I would watch it again, but I can definitely see that it has some merit.
Luke B

A film that is mostly a laugh riot. A fat lawyer is cursed by a Gypsy. Gypsy curses are more at home in Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episodes. The whole Gypsy curse thing is both insulting to actual Gypsy's, and hilarious to the reat of us. It doesn't help that the… More
A film that is mostly a laugh riot. A fat lawyer is cursed by a Gypsy. Gypsy curses are more at home in Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episodes. The whole Gypsy curse thing is both insulting to actual Gypsy's, and hilarious to the reat of us. It doesn't help that the Gypsy's acting is atrociously camp, making them comedic interludes rather than the figures of fear. The film deals with responsibility and revenge, but everybody is such an arse that it's hard to really care. Mantegna can't help but be funny as he basically plays Fat Tony from The Simpsons. He plays a crazy gangster type that is willing to go all commando to pay back a debt. The ending is rather good though, even if the whole idea of pie eating was just bizarre.
David L

This creepy, unsettling thriller is one of the more under-rated movies that have been adapted from Stephen King's stories (Lord knows there have been plenty of absolutely horrid ones). There are some gruesome scenes, but credit director Tom Holland (who also wrote and helmed the… More
This creepy, unsettling thriller is one of the more under-rated movies that have been adapted from Stephen King's stories (Lord knows there have been plenty of absolutely horrid ones). There are some gruesome scenes, but credit director Tom Holland (who also wrote and helmed the classic horror-comedy "Fright Night") for lending what could have been hoary B-Movie material a heaping helping of style....there are moments where what is suggested is far more dreadful than what could have been shown. And I appreciate Holland's fight to keep the book's bleak ending after the studio supposedly tried to bully him into shooting a happier, more upbeat one. Robert John Burke is very good as the afflicted man, but Joe Mantegna almost steals the film as a gangster (once successfully defended in court by Burke's lawyer character) who tries to repay the favor by helping Burke get payback from the gypsies who cursed him. Like the book, the movie has scenes which will stay with you long after it's all over. Recommended
Lafe F

Bad Stephen King movie. The fat makeup looked fake. The bad gypsy was unfair to put such a curse on the lawyer.
Dr Blood

This interesting and original little tale has some great makeup effects and a compelling plot which is matched by some even better acting.
Dean M

Chilling Stephen King's novel tale that looks freak to me about someone who got cursed by a mysterious ugly old gypsy guy for the justice.
Jason S

This wasn't a very good King movie.
Jacob P

Not what I expected...I thought it was ok. There really wans't much excitement in this film, until the end, which was probably the best part of the whole film. Over all, It was a fun little thriller, but not Stephen King's best.
Deb S

One night, a very nasty lawyer who is also grossly overweight is driving home but gets otherwise distracted by his lovely blonde wife and hits a gypsy woman killing her. He gets off scot-free by his lawyer cronies but later her father who happens to be the leader of the gypsy's… More
One night, a very nasty lawyer who is also grossly overweight is driving home but gets otherwise distracted by his lovely blonde wife and hits a gypsy woman killing her. He gets off scot-free by his lawyer cronies but later her father who happens to be the leader of the gypsy's angrily come up to him after his acquittal, touches his face, and puts a curse on him. The lawyer doesn't know what that means until he begins to lose weight rapidly. This is a great concept, as the viewer slowly watches the fat man, become anorexic but the weak ending hampered a film that had a lot of potential making it just a passable flick instead.
Mike T

The make-up effects are spectacular, but the performances are awful and the screenplay is weak.
m h

Very cheesy, bad acting and bad special effects. I could totally tell that he was wearing a fat suit, and his skinny make-up was horrible. He wouldn't have survived that long anyway. Plus why didn't they give him a curse, that would have killed him sooner, like some skin… More
Very cheesy, bad acting and bad special effects. I could totally tell that he was wearing a fat suit, and his skinny make-up was horrible. He wouldn't have survived that long anyway. Plus why didn't they give him a curse, that would have killed him sooner, like some skin disorder, or when he lost all that weight so rapidly, where did all his excess skin go? So many questions, so little time. Don't waste your time on this!