Casper 1995 American live-action family comedy fantasy feature film

Casper is a 1995 American live-action family comedy fantasy feature film, directed by Brad Silberling. It is based on the original cartoons and Harvey Comics character Casper the Friendly Ghost. The film stars Christina Ricci,Bill Pullman, Cathy Moriarty, Eric Idle, and Amy Brenneman. The film also stars the voices of Malachi Pearson as the titular character as well as Joe Nipote, Joe Alaskey, and Brad Garrett. The film makes extensive use ofcomputer-generated imagery to create the titular character and the other ghosts alongside him. It is much darker in tone in comparison to the sequels/spin offs.

A vindictive woman, Carrigan Crittenden, is upset upon the reading of her late father's will that she was given creepy Whipstaff Manor in Friendship, Maineinstead of his fortune, but she changes her tune when she learns that there is a hidden treasure within the property. She and her assistant Dibs go to the house attempting to investigate, but discover that it is haunted by a friendly ghost named Casper and his obnoxious prankster uncles, the Ghostly Trio(Fatso, Stretch and Stinkie), who immediately frighten them off the property. Carrigan tries multiple methods to rid the house of ghosts, but fails time and time again. Meanwhile, Casper sees a report of a paranormal therapist, James Harvey, and is immediately smitten with his teenaged daughter Kat. He quickly inhabits the television in Carrigan's hotel room in order to convince her to have the Harveys come to the manor to investigate the haunting.

James and Kat's relationship is strained, after the death of her mother and his wife Amelia, he devotes all of his time into finding her, believing her to have unfinished business and having not moved on to the afterlife. As a result, Kat has had no chance to make friends as they are constantly moving across the country. Upon arriving in Maine, Casper's plan to befriend Kat and her father backfires when his chaotic uncles come home and try to force the Harveys out. James stands resolute and manages to successfully move in. Kat tries to fit in at school, inadvertently gaining popularity for staying at the popular Whipstaff manor and winning the students over for a Halloween party there instead of the popular Amber's boat house where it would have been less authentic.

Meanwhile, the trio tries to make peace with James and even say they will find Amelia for him, while Casper and Kat become friends. Kat learns that Casper does not remember the details of his life, so she takes him to remember it; eventually coming across an old abandoned toy room. Casper begins to remember details of his life, and when he comes across a sled he remembers that he died of an illness (likely pneumonia), when he stayed out late in the cold, playing with it, but he chose not to move on, in order to take care of his lonely father. He also remembers a machine his father created called the Lazarus, capable of bringing a ghost back to life. Carrigan and Dibs overhear this and contemplate one of them dying and coming back as a ghost in order to get into the vault supposedly containing the treasure they sought. Carrigan tries to kill Dibs, but accidentally falls from a cliff, killing herself instead.

James and the trio go out to several bars, as James becomes increasingly drunk, the trio decides they could always have fun if they make their trio a "quartet" by killing off James. However, they grow to like him too much and decide they can't kill him, especially after James tells them he's going to tell Carrigan to leave them alone. Instead, a drunken James falls to his death in an open manhole. Back at the manor, Carrigan as a ghost stops the Lazarus machine before it can resurrect Casper (having earlier learning there was only one dose of the potion to bring him to life) and steals the treasure. She also throws Dibs, who finally grows a spine and stands up to her, out the window, but Casper and Kat trick her into admitting that with her treasure and the potion to bring her back to life she has no unfinished business, and she is involuntarily ejected to the afterlife.

The treasure, revealed by Casper, is a Brooklyn Dodgers baseball signed by his favorite player Duke Snider. James returns home, now a ghost and does not recognize Kat until she shows him who she is with a pinky promise. Casper then gives up his chance at a new life in order to bring James back to life. The party starting downstairs, Kat goes down to greet the guests, while the trio scare off Amber and her boyfriend Vic who had arrived to sabotage the party. Amelia appears to Casper and for his sacrifice, she gives him until the stroke of 10 to be human. Casper approaches Kat, who does not recognize him until they start dancing while Amelia, who reveals the Ghostly Trio found her, tells James that she was so well taken care of during life that she has no "unfinished business", and pleads James not to make finding her become his own. At the chime of 10, just as Casper and Kat kiss, the spell breaks and he becomes a ghost again. He says "boo" to the guests, but they scream in terror and flee the manor. Not wanting to let a party go to waste, James leads the trio into starting a Halloween party all their own. Casper, Kat, and James dance as the Ghostly Trio play music for them.

Cast
Live-action actors
Christina Ricci as Kathleen "Kat" Harvey, a teenage girl who lost her mother and wants to make a friend. She is also Casper's love interest.
Bill Pullman as Dr. James Harvey, Kat's father who is a ghost therapist interacting with the living impaired to cross into the next dimension while hoping to find his deceased wife.
Cathy Moriarty as Carrigan Crittenden, a spoiled, greedy woman who was angry about her late father's will to Whipstaff, until she discovers that the house contains treasure, and hires Dr. Harvey to get the ghosts out of the house in order to get it.
Eric Idle as Paul "Dibs" Plutzker, Carrigan's assistant.
Ben Stein as Rugg, Carrigan's lawyer.
Spencer Vrooman as Andreas
Chauncey Leopardi as Nicky
Wesley Thompson as Mr. Curtis
Amy Brenneman as Amelia Harvey, James' deceased wife, as well as Kat's deceased mother whom appears as an angel and came before Casper and gave him his dream of coming back to life only for one night after he saved James' life.
Devon Sawa as Casper McFadden (human form)
Garette Ratliff Henson as Vic DePhillippi, Kat's crush who he along with his girlfriend Amber plans to sabotage Kat's party until they were scared off by the Ghostly Trio.
Jessica Wesson as Amber Whitmire, Kat's rival and Vic's girlfriend whom she along with Vic plans to sabotage Kat's party until the Ghostly Trio scare them away.
Don Novello as Father Guido Sarducci
Dan Aykroyd as Raymond Stantz

Voice actorsMalachi Pearson as Casper McFadden, originally a 12-year-old boy who died from a pneumonia attack after a sled accident. He spends most of his afterlife in Whipstaff dealing with his ghouling uncles antics while hoping to find a friend. He becomes infatuated with Kathleen "Kat" Harvey.
Joe Nipote as Stretch, the leading member of the Ghostly Trio and one of Casper's obnoxious uncles who bonds with Dr. Harvey.
Joe Alaskey as Stinkie, the second member of the Ghostly Trio as well as one of Casper's obnoxious uncles who also bonds with Dr. Harvey.
Brad Garrett as Fatso, the third member of the Ghostly Trio and one of Casper's obnoxious uncles who bonds with Dr. Harvey.
John Kassir as the Crypt Keeper
Brock Winkless performed the puppetry for the Crypt Keeper in the film

CameosClint Eastwood (as Stretch's human form)
Rodney Dangerfield (as Fatso's human form)
Mel Gibson (as Stinkie's human form)
Fred Rogers (archive footage)
Terry Murphy
Steven Spielberg (cameo cut)

ProductionIn the mirror scene, Dr. Harvey was also supposed to transform into Steven Spielberg. According to director Brad Silberling, the cameo was filmed, but was cut for pacing reasons. Spielberg was relieved, feeling that he's not much of an actor himself and was quite nervous in front of the camera.

Casper is the first feature film to have a fully CGI character in a leading role.