Year: 1986
Runtime: 86 mins
Language: English
Director: John P. Finnegan
Seven girls from a local Catholic school are sent to inventory the Wells estate, hoping for a quiet weekend. Their plans shift when they hold a séance to contact Jennifer Wells, a 20‑year‑old who died mysteriously on the grounds in 1939. The night grows stranger when they realize Jackie, one of the girls, is an uncanny double of the dead woman.
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A group of seven senior students — Jackie [Mollie O’Mara], Elizabeth [Sharon Christopher], Kate [Colleen Harrity], Karen [Beth O’Malley], Susan [Karen Krevitz], Adelle [Marcia Hinton], and Rosemary [Monica Antonucci] — at the all-girls Catholic Trinity College are sent to spend four days cataloging a vast art collection in the now-empty Welles mansion, a place long rumored to be haunted by a vengeful female ghost. The project is overseen by the elderly Sister Urban [Vera Gallagher], who is surprised upon arrival to be greeted by Dr. Robert Fisher [Tony Manzo], a man presenting himself as a prospective buyer of the home.
On the first day inside, Jackie discovers a diary dating back to the 1930s belonging to Jennifer Welles, [Mollie O’Mara] a Trinity College alumnus and the niece of Tyler Welles, the mansion’s original owner. In Jennifer’s writing, she mentions Sister Urban and reveals a desire to become a nun. When Jackie brings up the name during dinner, Sister Urban explains that the orphaned Jennifer was killed at the mansion in an accident. That night, the group—aside from Jackie and Adelle—proposes a seance to contact Jennifer’s spirit, triggering what seems like poltergeist activity. After the others drift to sleep, Jackie and Elizabeth come upon a large portrait of Jennifer in the parlor that eerily resembles Jackie herself. Unable to sleep, Jackie pores over Jennifer’s diary and uncovers a dark history: Jennifer endured sexual advances from her uncle Tyler, and the relationship grew into an incestuous bond.
The following day, Jackie and Elizabeth attempt to hide the portrait from the others while cataloging items. Sister Urban grows increasingly ill and spends the remainder of the night bedridden. In the meantime, Rosemary is murdered with a meat cleaver by an unseen assailant while riding in a dumbwaiter. The others assume she’s pranking them when she fails to meet them for dinner; Karen heads to the basement to look for her and instead uncovers Rosemary’s lifeless body stuffed inside the dumbwaiter. Shortly after, Kate is dragged into a pond outside by a rotting, decomposed hand and is killed as well.
Soon after, Paul, Jackie’s boyfriend, and his friend Bruce arrive at the mansion, startling Susan. While Paul locates Jackie, Bruce is run over and killed by Paul’s car outside. Back inside, Sister Urban’s illness deepens, and Elizabeth and Susan stand vigil at her bedside, growing increasingly worried. Susan is lured into the attic, locked inside, and electrocuted to death, her body left to burn in a sudden incineration. Jackie and Paul begin a frantic search for Adelle and Bruce, and outside, Paul is stabbed to death with a pitchfork by the killer, who is posed as a sculpture wearing a babydoll mask.
Desperation mounts as Jackie, unable to locate anyone, finds Sister Urban in the hallway in a feverish, confused state. After tucking Sister Urban back to bed, she ventures to the basement, where she discovers all of her classmates’ corpses—save Elizabeth, who has been kidnapped and remains alive—seated in chairs before a ceremonial altar. There, she confronts Dr. Robert Fisher, who is in fact Tyler Welles, intent on marrying Jackie because he believes her to be the reincarnation of his dead niece. In the meantime, Sister Urban manages to summon Jennifer’s spirit, which possesses Jackie and enables a calculated act of vengeance against the monstrous uncle Tyler: she gouges out his eyeballs, exacting justice for Jennifer’s decades-old murder. Jackie, Elizabeth, and Sister Urban manage to flee the house in an ambulance. As they drive away, an apparition of Jennifer looks down from an upstairs window, a lingering reminder of the mansion’s tragic legacy.
Last Updated: October 09, 2025 at 14:27
Discover curated groups of movies connected by mood, themes, and story style. Browse collections built around emotion, atmosphere, and narrative focus to easily find films that match what you feel like watching right now.
Stories of groups trapped in isolated estates, uncovering a violent past.If you liked the eerie, claustrophobic atmosphere of Girls School Screamers, explore similar horror movies set in haunted mansions. These films feature groups uncovering dark historical secrets while being stalked by a supernatural presence, blending mystery with intense survival horror.
The narrative typically begins with a group entering an isolated location, often for an innocuous reason. Through discovery—like a séance or finding old objects—they inadvertently awaken a malevolent force tied to a historical trauma. The story unfolds as a linear survival thriller, where uncovering the truth is key to defeating the supernatural antagonist.
Movies are grouped here for their shared focus on a specific, oppressive setting and the narrative pattern of unearthing a tragic past. They create a similar vibe through a mix of supernatural mystery, a claustrophobic atmosphere, and a steady pace that builds towards violent confrontations.
Violent spectral retribution unleashed after a long-buried injustice is discovered.Fans of Girls School Screamers will appreciate these movies centered on ghostly vengeance for historical crimes. If you liked the themes of incest, murder, and a ghost seeking violent retribution, this collection features similar dark stories with heavy emotional weight and disturbing themes.
These narratives are driven by a cause-and-effect structure: a past atrocity creates a restless spirit, and present-day characters inadvertently become the catalyst for its revenge. The journey is straightforward but emotionally heavy, as characters piece together the grim truth while being hunted, leading to a confrontation that resolves the immediate threat but often leaves a lingering sense of tragedy.
They are grouped by their core plot mechanism—a ghost or supernatural force acting as an agent of revenge for a specific historical wrong. This creates a cohesive experience defined by dark themes, high intensity, a steady pace of unveiling horrors, and a focus on the consequences of buried trauma.
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Track the full timeline of Girls School Screamers with every major event arranged chronologically. Perfect for decoding non-linear storytelling, flashbacks, or parallel narratives with a clear scene-by-scene breakdown.
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