Tawny Kitaen, Stephen Nichols and Todd Allen star in Witchboard, a movie about an upset spirit they come into contact with through a Ouija board. At first they simply think it is the ghost of a little boy who died many years previous, but they could not be more wrong, especially once strange things begin to happen and those they care about start to die. For a horror movie, there is little to be afraid of, nothing that will really make one jump from their seat, but it is compelling enough that despite the lack of fright present, it keeps the audience watching in the hopes that there will be. It is if nothing else, suspenseful and there are a couple of moments where it is slightly creepy, but the horror comes more from the situation the characters find themselves in than anything else. Not a bad thing per se, but a little more punch might have made the film just a little stronger.

Allan plays Jim, a wholly unlikeable character who does not believe in ghosts or spirits or anything of the sort and he scoffs at those who do. While the man is supposed to be the good guy in all of this, it is hard to care for the man in any way whatsoever. He is like the school bully who may or may not have a heart underneath it all, but as he rarely shows any emotion, the movie fails to make a protagonist out of him. Those who come closest are his co-stars in Kitaen and Nichols and even then, they are nearly insufferable at times. The only person to show any sort of real personality is Kathleen Wilhoite as Zarabeth, the medium who is called in to hopefully fix things up after Kitaen messes around with the Ouija board too much.

The music is decent and compliments the movie well and as the film is set solidly in the 1980s, it is slightly dated, most especially the humour which falls short far too often. There are a couple of good standout scenes, one taking place at the lake after one of the many attacks and later on as Allan faces off against Kitaen with the ghost that has taken over her body, but for the most part, there is nothing that has not been seen before in other movies of its ilk. There is a bit of nudity courtesy of Kitaen later in the picture and a bit of action and of course, a happy ending to wrap it all up when all is said and done.  There is even a bit of a cliché twist to finish it all off, a promise that it is definitely not the end of the story.

Kevin Tenney who wrote and directed Witchboard, made it a decent excursion to take on a Saturday afternoon, but when it comes to horror and wanting to experience a little terror, there are films that do a better job.

2.5 out of 5