WHO SAYS THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS GHOSTS?

Paranormal therapist James Harvey (Bill Pullman) and his teenage daughter (Christina Ricci) move into an old house that’s haunted by a very friendly ghost.

Casper, who became popular in animated shorts in the 1940s and ’50s, became the CGI lead in this comedy that’s mostly for kids, but with dark ingredients (including a background story for Casper who turns out to be a dead kid).

Too much bad slapstick combined with an over-reliance on effects turns the movie into a bit of a headache. Too schmaltzy in the end, but Ricci is good and the Hollywood cameos fun.

1995-U.S. 100 min. Color. Directed by Brad Silberling. Cast: Bill Pullman (James Harvey), Christina Ricci (Kathleen ”Kat” Harvey), Cathy Moriarty (Catherine ”Carrigan” Crittenden), Eric Idle, Jessica Wesson, Garette Ratliff Henson, Devon Sawa, Amy Brenneman. Voice of Brad Garrett. Cameos: Dan Aykroyd, Clint Eastwood, Mel Gibson, Rodney Dangerfield.

Trivia: Alex Proyas was first hired as director. Co-executive produced by Steven Spielberg. Followed by two direct-to-video prequels, starting with Casper: A Spirited Beginning (1997), the animated spin-off film Casper’s Haunted Christmas (2000), and an animated TV series, The Spooktacular New Adventures of Casper (1996-1998).