Written by Steven Spielberg And Michael Grais And Mark Victor
Directed by Tobe Hopper
Carol Anne: "They're here."
There are still classic horror series that I have yet to cover for this blog. This was a movie that yet again, I've seen several times but never got around to reviewing for here. Until now of course.
Haunting movies are no more iconic than this one with the focus being on an ordinary family terrorised by restless spirits in their home. The family being Steven (Craig T. Nelson) and Diane Freeling (JoBeth Williams) and their children, Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke), Robbie (Oliver Robin) and Dana (Dominique Dunne).
The focus was mostly on youngest child, Carol Anne. She was communicating with a static television and both her and Diane went into denial mode when the chairs stacked themselves on the kitchen table. Then Carol Anne went missing.
In fact, it was the ghosts who had taken her into a portal inside the closet. For a good chunk of the movie, you had both Steven and Diane at their wits end trying to get Carol Anne back. This brought in a slew of experts to help out the distressed family.
The most memorable of all these experts was of course Zelda Rubenstein's Tangina Barrows. She's the most helpful of the bunch, succeeding in actually getting Carol Anne back to her family. Rubenstein's performance was also the one that stood out the most in the film.
As for the rest of the movie, it's still great but somewhat meandered a bit. There's a few moments in the film where it could've ended but it kind of went on just to further highlight how dangers the spirits of that particular house were.
- Some of the scenes included the hurricane sequence and that face removal one.
- There's two sequels and a remake that came out in 1986, 1988 and 2013 respectively.
- Standout music: The eerie use of The Star Spangled Banner.
- Chronology: Set in the planned community of Cuesta Verde, California.
Poltergeist (1982) definitely deserves it's plaudits as a movie and it's definitely a defining piece of 1980s cinema. It does lag a bit in the third act but overall, it's a favourite.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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