Poltergeist [M]

The Freelings are a happy family living in suburbia. They are even happy when they discover that they have an infestation of whimsical poltergeist that play stack-the-chair games in their kitchen. But then things go to a darker level when a storm hits, a tree attacks their young son, and their youngest daughter Carol Anne is whisked away into a spiritual void. Bringing in the help of some professionals to get their daughter back, the Freeling household soon suffers a series of horrors that threaten to tear their happy family apart, almost quite literally. 

A tad tamer than his acclaimed horror classic, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Tobe Hooper’s Poltergeist is nevertheless a ghost movie in the realm of classics, bringing us iconic freaky scenes such as the clown under the bed and the tree that literally reaches in and tries to swallow the boy. Not to mention the whole TV thing and the little girl: “they’re here.” 

The Freelings are a happy family living in suburbia. They are even happy when they discover that they have an infestation of whimsical poltergeist that play stack-the-chair games in their kitchen. But then things go to a darker level when a storm hits, a tree attacks their young son, and their youngest daughter Carol Anne is whisked away into a spiritual void. Bringing in the help of some professionals to get their daughter back, the Freeling household soon suffers a series of horrors that threaten to tear their happy family apart, almost quite literally. 

This has to be one of the most interesting films made in the way of director producer relationship. Tobe Hooper is the credited director, but it’s obvious that Spielberg had a strong hand in the whole thing. The movie is very family-oriented and balanced between the suspense of horror and the nostalgia of suburbia, that feeling that just seems to be apparent in all Spielberg’s films. Had Spielberg had complete freedom, it can be assumed that the movie would not have proved to be the spooky and genuinely iconic horror movie that it became. 

And here we must applaud Hooper’s input on the project. With a little indulgence in the macabre such as the skeletal corpses in the swimming pool and the research assistant pulling off his own face, which successfully freaked me out a bit, Hooper was able to take a seemingly mild and childish horror and turn it into a horror movie that had something for everyone. The balance of suspense and gore was very good and the special effects, though dated by today’s standards, were ones that will definitely stay with you. 

Starring JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson, Beatrice Straight, Dominique Dunne, Oliver Robins, Heather O’Rourke, Martin Casella, Richard Lawson, Zelda Rubinstein, and James Karen, Poltergeist was a thrilling little movie filled with suspense, gore, horror, the supernatural, emotional drama, and even a bit of comedy, though that was very, very mild. Although a bit dated, it still spooked me.