Editorials

‘Ghost in the Machine’ Paved the Way for ‘Final Destination’

March 19th, 2021 | By Bee Turck

In 2000, Final Destination captivated horror fans by turning the premise of death as a villain into a powerhouse franchise. But long before death crept into ill-fated teenagers’ lives through water leaks and faulty fire escapes, Rachel Talalay‘s Ghost in the Machine existed. An underappreciated 1993 movie where a homicidal maniac uses technology as a weapon, Talalay’s film bears an unmistakable likeness to the Final Destination franchise. 

Karl Hopkins (Ted Marcoux) is a computer whiz working at an electronics store. He’s also the “Address Book Killer,” a serial killer who uses the address books of the people he kills to choose his next victim. Shortly after we meet him, Karl is in a fatal car accident. While in an MRI machine during a storm, an electrical outage sends his dead soul into the computer system. Once inside, he continues his killing spree, using the mainframe and its connected systems to satisfy his homicidal tendencies. 

Unlike most cinematic serial killers, the origin of Karl’s persona is never made clear. While many are driven by revenge or lust, Karl seems to kill simply because he can. The presence of traditional American symbols in the opening scene—an apple pie and baseball glove sitting in the kitchen—suggests family values drive him. 

Perhaps he’s the ’90s answer to Terry O’Quinn’s murderous Jerry Blake in The Stepfather series. Maybe he has no real motive. But rather than undermining the film, Karl’s ambiguous motivations only add to his onscreen menace. Even the randomness of his methods—he always chooses a random name from the address book of his most recent victim—makes him feel like a very modern kind of threat.

Not even death can slow Karl down. Ghost in the Machine goes so far as to hint that this fatal accident was all part of his plan. Karl laughs as he plummets to his would-be death; once he becomes a machine, he’s only too happy to continue his rampage, excited by his new position of power. 

And his latest victim. Before the crash, Karl crosses paths with single mother, Terry Munroe (Karen Allen) and her son Josh (Will Horneff). When they come to his store seeking a gift for her boss, they inadvertently capture his attention. And after uploading her address book to their digital system, Terry forgets it there, immediately enticing Karl. Once in the computer, he quickly stalks Terry and her friends by hacking everyday items into killing devices. 

The intent behind Karl and Final Destination’s supernatural entity may be different, but there are parallels in the way mundane objects are brought to life. The 2000 horror franchise depicts the mysterious—and sometimes preposterous—ways someone can die ushered in a new kind of slasher. And while Final Destination will always be the most famous depiction of death as a supernatural force, Ghost in the Machine deserves credit for getting to many of these ideas first.

Ghost in the Machine is wholly inventive in the way it orchestrates its death scenes, building suspense through typically overlooked appliances. Microwaves, dishwashers, restroom hand dryers—even traffic lights and pool covers—become weapons in the care of the omnipresent Karl. One notable scene uses crash test dummies and a significant number of red herrings to toy with the viewer’s attention. 

We are led to believe death will happen one particular way—during a crash test dummies simulation—only to have it unfold in a direction we couldn’t have expected. This approach is reminiscent of later horror movies that would indulge in this same degree of cinematic sleight of hand. Almost every death in the Final Destination films uses it to a varying degree to draw out each kill’s suspense. 

Another way Ghost in the Machine toys with the viewers is by foreshadowing the method of their death. Early in the film, Terry meets Elliott (Jack Laufer) for a date at a local jazz club. Elliott seems oblivious to Terry’s distracted state of mind—and his own wellbeing. While lost in the music, Elliott attempts to light his cigarette, only to watch the lighter ignite and almost blow up in his face. 

At first, this seems like a forgettable moment of comic relief. But once Karl turns his attention to Elliott, the subtle foreshadowing of his fate is suddenly more significant. Final Destination would later perfect this approach, but Ghost in the Machine is a glimpse at how future horror films would use seemingly minute details to draw out their story. 

Another moment creatively uses a pool cover as Karl tries to kill Josh. Ropes are depicted as tentacles, holding him down as tension mounts through manipulated levers and buttons. Water gets weaponized in a similar feel to Tod’s shower scene in the original Final Destination (one of the most effective deaths in that film).

Later, through a baby’s eyes, we see everyday kitchen items become potential ways to kill. In a sequence that feels inspired by Who Framed Roger Rabbit’s opening scene, screenwriters William Davies and William Osborne again draw on red herrings to build suspense. We wonder which typically uninteresting device will spark the next murder. Eventually, a dishwasher becomes the tool of choice. 

And even by the generous standards of early ’90s science fiction, Ghost in the Machine is a film vastly ahead of its time. Much like other internet-focused horror films, Talalay’s film predicts our reliance on technology. Remember, this is a film that predates cell phones and social media; we couldn’t change our house’s temperature from our bed, let alone ask Alexa what the weather is outside. 

Karl’s use of connectivity to create chaos has a predictive accuracy with modern culture today and our obsession with being connected to all our devices. The movie is most memorable when telling its story through the use of these electronics. When Karl spies on Terry through an ATM, it feels like an especially devious nod to modern Big Brother voyeurism. 

Ultimately, Ghost in the Machine may not be as enduring as the Final Destination franchise, but its supernatural killer does make for a captivating villain. Electricity rules the day; the executions of each murder are more than enough to satisfy any horror fan. The film also offers a take on modern technology that remains evergreen in its paranoia, one that makes us question our reliance on networks in our daily lives. We owe it to Rachel Talalay and Ghost in the Machine to acknowledge the road this film paved for the movies that followed.

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