Main Cast: Whoopi Goldberg, Gérard Depardieu, Haley Joel Osment, Denis Mercier, Andrea Martin
Release Year: 1996
Country: US
Run Time: 110 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
Albert Franklin (Haley Joel Osment) is the son of stage magician Lorraine Franklin, and has learned to do a few magic tricks of his own. However, when his mother dies and he is sent to live with his aunt Harriet (Whoopi Goldberg), it becomes clear that for him the boundary between stage magic and the real kind is just a bit fuzzy. This is fortunate, because the young man needs a friend. The friend magically appears in the form of a spirit (Gerard Depardieu) calling himself "Bogus," who helps him figure out how to meet the challenge of relating to his very preoccupied aunt. She is more concerned with keeping her restaurant supply company afloat than she is with her new ward. Things change when she, too, catches a glimpse of the spirit. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
Nancy Travis - Lorraine Franklin; Don Francks - Dr. Surprise; Kevin Jackson - Bob Morrison; Ute Lemper - Babette; Sheryl Lee Ralph - Ruth Clark; Fiona Reid - Teacher; Barbara Hamilton - Mrs. Partridge; Al Waxman - Principal
Credit
Alicia Keywan - Art Director, Michael Jewison - Associate Producer, Howard Feuer - Casting, Ruth Myers - Costume Designer, David J.Webb - First Assistant Director, Norman Jewison - Director, Stephen E. Rivkin - Editor, Patrick Markey - Executive Producer, Gayle Fraser-Baigelman - Executive Producer, Marc Shaiman - Composer (Music Score), Marc Shaiman - Songwriter, Ken Adam - Production Designer, David Watkin - Cinematographer, Norman Jewison - Producer, Arnon Milchan - Producer, Jeff Rothberg - Producer, Bruce Carwardine - Sound/Sound Designer, Alan Munro - Special Effects Supervisor, Alvin Sargent - Screenwriter, Mike Harris - Set Dresser
A fantasy, it tells the story of a boy named Albert Franklin, the son of a Las Vegas magician's widowed assistant. His mother dies suddenly, and Albert, who is now an orphan, is sent to New Jersey to live with his mother's foster sister, Harriet. The plot revolves around Albert, and his imaginary friend named Bogus, a French magician, who helps the boy cope with his transition. Gradually Harriet, who can also see Bogus, comes to terms with her new situation as well.
