SYNOPSIS:

It was a rainy night in 1865, when Garth Steelman was hanged by the neck for the murder of his own wife and child. For hours, he was left to dangle at the end of a rope high above the scaffold, his body swaying in the wind and slowly transforming into that of a grotesque monster. His lawyer, Rutherford Kingwood, steps up and whispers to the corpse admitting his guilt for the murder. The eyes snap open, they burn bright red with rage. Over a hundred years later, Harrison Kingwood sees a ghastly creature in the mirror as he is shaving. Thus, begins the nightmare that will change his life forever. A descendant of Rutherford Kingwood, Harrison is aware of the tragic deaths that have occurred in the family over the years. An uncle dies and warns him in a video of the family curse. He points out that Harrison is the last male in the Kingwood family and is in grave danger. His fiancée, Rachael, and her daughter, Beth, are quickly drawn into the frightening nightmare with brief encounters with the beast and near misses on their lives. They have a striking resemblance to the monster’s wife and child, and he is determined to take them back to England. One day, Beth doesn’t come home from school. After a frantic search, Harrison and Rachael determine that they must go to England to get her back. Once in England, they meet with Durwood Holmes, a retired judge who is an authority on criminal history. He helps them acquire the court records from the 1865 trial of Garth Steelman. After a careful examination of the evidence, they are convinced that Garth was innocent. They decide to conduct a new trial to exonerate the wrongfully accused man, which should, hopefully, put his spirit to rest and lead them to Beth. Everyone takes a seat in the courthouse. Garth joins the others and insists that the trial begin. Harrison presents evidence in Garth’s behalf, evidence that has never before been known. Durwood Holmes rules that it is not enough to overturn the conviction. Garth becomes irritated. As the trial progresses, he becomes more and more enraged until finally his wrath leads across the room towards Harrison. He decides to kill the last of the Kingwoods. He wraps his massive hands around Harrison’s neck and squeezes. The judge tries to stop him, but Garth is much too big and powerful. Finally, Holmes strikes his gavel onto his desk and declares Garth Steelman innocent of his crimes. Wrinkles shoot all over Garth’s face, and soon his grayish skin falls in sheets from his bones. He, finally, collapses to the floor and is reduced to a few tattered clothes and a pile of dust. Rachael is reunited with her daughter Beth, and the three of them return to the United States.