This motion picture is based upon strange events that occurred in Point Pleasant, West Virginia from November 1966 to December 1967 although the incidents are set in the present. Also, liberties are taken with those events.
Washington Post reporter John Klein (Richard Gere) and his wife Mary (Debra Messing) purchase a new house during the Christmas season. Afterwards, during a drive, a strange moth-like object strikes their windshield, causing an accident, Mary alone is injured. While recuperating at the local hospital, Mary is discovered to have a glioblastoma (temporal lobe tumor), unrelated to the accident. She soon dies, and after her death Klein discovers her sketches of moth-like creatures, apparently human sized.
While driving two years later, Klein, not knowing how, winds up in Point Pleasant, West Virginia on the Ohio state line. Following a disturbance, Klein meets with local policewoman Sgt. Connie Mills (Laura Linney). Suddenly driven by a need to know, and unrelated to his reporting job, he gets involved in the Mothman Prophesies. They entail strange premonitions of upcoming disasters, like local resident Gordon Smallwood's (Will Patton) dream of an upcoming disaster. This dream foretold hints of a tragedy, the crash of airplane Number 9 in Denver, when supposedly 99 people perished. Also, Gordon has a nighttime vision of 300 dying. Then, right after, 300 people die in an earthquake in Ecuador. Later Gordon claims he saw Mothman alive as a man named Indrid Cold (Bill Laing). Connie also has a dream with her floating in the river, with the number 37 as an undercurrent.
Before the denouement, Klein hears voices on his telephone warning him of a catastrophe that will happen on the Ohio River. Discovering that the governor will visit The Edgewater Petrochemical Plant on the river, Klein incorrectly believes that the plant will blow up, taking many lives. His warnings are unheeded. Noticing a heavy traffic jam on the Silver Bridge on Christmas Eve, Klein realizes his error. While the bridge collapses, he warns and saves many folks of the imminent disaster. Connie, on the bridge, is unconscious as she falls into the freezing waters below. Reacting quickly, Klein jumps in and saves her life. The death toll? Thirty six, not 37! Were the fates cheated? The movie ends with no resolution; there is merely a statement that the prophesies suddenly ended. What was the phenomenon? The film doesn't say. In this writer's opinion, assuming that they are genuine, they were the work of demons.
Because of the interest of the mystery and the fine acting, the movie is watchable. On the other hand, the weak ending is like letting the air out of a balloon: it falls flat and disappoints. Then again, the long-timed collapse of the bridge was meticulously well-done. The Christmas scene at Point Pleasant is quite stark, in normal contrast to the season. Although the general local population may be unaware of the Mothman Prophecies, there is an undertone of trepidation. Richard Gere's character, John Klein, is based upon John A. Keel, a paranormal researcher who wrote the book, the inspiration for the movie. Keel was unmarried. Laura Linney's character is based upon Mary Hyre, who was a journalist and not a policewoman. When the Silver Bridge collapsed in December 1967, thirty-seven vehicles plunged into the river, and 46 died. The movie was mostly filmed in Pennsylvania, not West Virginia.
Washington Post reporter John Klein (Richard Gere) and his wife Mary (Debra Messing) purchase a new house during the Christmas season. Afterwards, during a drive, a strange moth-like object strikes their windshield, causing an accident, Mary alone is injured. While recuperating at the local hospital, Mary is discovered to have a glioblastoma (temporal lobe tumor), unrelated to the accident. She soon dies, and after her death Klein discovers her sketches of moth-like creatures, apparently human sized.
While driving two years later, Klein, not knowing how, winds up in Point Pleasant, West Virginia on the Ohio state line. Following a disturbance, Klein meets with local policewoman Sgt. Connie Mills (Laura Linney). Suddenly driven by a need to know, and unrelated to his reporting job, he gets involved in the Mothman Prophesies. They entail strange premonitions of upcoming disasters, like local resident Gordon Smallwood's (Will Patton) dream of an upcoming disaster. This dream foretold hints of a tragedy, the crash of airplane Number 9 in Denver, when supposedly 99 people perished. Also, Gordon has a nighttime vision of 300 dying. Then, right after, 300 people die in an earthquake in Ecuador. Later Gordon claims he saw Mothman alive as a man named Indrid Cold (Bill Laing). Connie also has a dream with her floating in the river, with the number 37 as an undercurrent.
Before the denouement, Klein hears voices on his telephone warning him of a catastrophe that will happen on the Ohio River. Discovering that the governor will visit The Edgewater Petrochemical Plant on the river, Klein incorrectly believes that the plant will blow up, taking many lives. His warnings are unheeded. Noticing a heavy traffic jam on the Silver Bridge on Christmas Eve, Klein realizes his error. While the bridge collapses, he warns and saves many folks of the imminent disaster. Connie, on the bridge, is unconscious as she falls into the freezing waters below. Reacting quickly, Klein jumps in and saves her life. The death toll? Thirty six, not 37! Were the fates cheated? The movie ends with no resolution; there is merely a statement that the prophesies suddenly ended. What was the phenomenon? The film doesn't say. In this writer's opinion, assuming that they are genuine, they were the work of demons.
Because of the interest of the mystery and the fine acting, the movie is watchable. On the other hand, the weak ending is like letting the air out of a balloon: it falls flat and disappoints. Then again, the long-timed collapse of the bridge was meticulously well-done. The Christmas scene at Point Pleasant is quite stark, in normal contrast to the season. Although the general local population may be unaware of the Mothman Prophecies, there is an undertone of trepidation. Richard Gere's character, John Klein, is based upon John A. Keel, a paranormal researcher who wrote the book, the inspiration for the movie. Keel was unmarried. Laura Linney's character is based upon Mary Hyre, who was a journalist and not a policewoman. When the Silver Bridge collapsed in December 1967, thirty-seven vehicles plunged into the river, and 46 died. The movie was mostly filmed in Pennsylvania, not West Virginia.