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One of the 1982's biggest hits was Poltergeist, a supernatural thriller that brought something to the genre that hadn't really been seen before...a sense of humor.
The film was directed by Tobe Hooper, though a lot of people associate the film with Steven Spielberg, who was a producer and co-wrote the screenplay. This is the story of the Freeling family, who have just moved into a new California home, built by the company that Steve Freeling works for who are thrown when a series of strange events start occurring in the house, climaxed by younger daughter's Carol Anne's personal encounter with "the TV people" when she actually gets sucked into the television set and disappears.
Even though Tobe Hooper is credited as director, Spielberg's directorial hand is all over this, especially in the depiction of the Freeling family as an ordinary family involved in some extraordinary circumstance and reacting to it in a natural way, reactions that sometimes come off as humorous. We laugh at the duel of the remote controls, we laugh at Diane's joyous reaction to Carol Anne sliding across the kitchen floor for her daddy, we laugh when Steve and Diane almost get caught by their daughter smoking pot. These are the kinds of moments we don't associate with a horror film, but they are believable and acceptable.
On the other hand, another thing this film does so effortlessly is tap into those childhood nightmares that we experience but are afraid to talk to anyone about...the scary clown doll across the room that keeps staring at us...the big ugly tree outside the house that looks like it's going to attack, the big hole in the backyard that Mommy and Daddy told us to stay away from. Hooper and Spielberg slowly allow these nightmares to unfold before us without completely giving them away, even providing a couple of false starts to lull us into a false sense of security, the kind that gives us just enough time to stop holding are breath right when we should start.
Craig T. Nelson and JoBeth Williams are wonderful as the Freelings. Williams has rarely been better, as Diane seems to take what has happened to her daughter very personally and seems to take responsibility for what has happened to Carol Ann. I love the moment when Diane is on the stairs and she feels Carol Anne's spirit pass through her and it is so real she can smell Carol Anne...easily one of my favorite moments in the film. Beatrice Straight is effective as the head of the paranormal investigative team and Zelda Rubinstein is a lot of fun as Tangina, the spiritualist brought in to "clean" the house.
Hollywood legend has it that this film is cursed, evidenced by, among other things, the fact that Dominique Dunne, who played older daughter Dana and Heather O'Rourke, who played Carol Anne, are no longer with us. Of course, Beatrice Straight and music composer Jerry Goldsmith are no longer with us either, but it does add a slight air of creepiness to the proceedings as you watch.
Hooper, Spielberg, a crack special effects team, and yes Jerry Goldsmith's music all help to make this instant classic worth checking out.
The film was directed by Tobe Hooper, though a lot of people associate the film with Steven Spielberg, who was a producer and co-wrote the screenplay. This is the story of the Freeling family, who have just moved into a new California home, built by the company that Steve Freeling works for who are thrown when a series of strange events start occurring in the house, climaxed by younger daughter's Carol Anne's personal encounter with "the TV people" when she actually gets sucked into the television set and disappears.
Even though Tobe Hooper is credited as director, Spielberg's directorial hand is all over this, especially in the depiction of the Freeling family as an ordinary family involved in some extraordinary circumstance and reacting to it in a natural way, reactions that sometimes come off as humorous. We laugh at the duel of the remote controls, we laugh at Diane's joyous reaction to Carol Anne sliding across the kitchen floor for her daddy, we laugh when Steve and Diane almost get caught by their daughter smoking pot. These are the kinds of moments we don't associate with a horror film, but they are believable and acceptable.
On the other hand, another thing this film does so effortlessly is tap into those childhood nightmares that we experience but are afraid to talk to anyone about...the scary clown doll across the room that keeps staring at us...the big ugly tree outside the house that looks like it's going to attack, the big hole in the backyard that Mommy and Daddy told us to stay away from. Hooper and Spielberg slowly allow these nightmares to unfold before us without completely giving them away, even providing a couple of false starts to lull us into a false sense of security, the kind that gives us just enough time to stop holding are breath right when we should start.
Craig T. Nelson and JoBeth Williams are wonderful as the Freelings. Williams has rarely been better, as Diane seems to take what has happened to her daughter very personally and seems to take responsibility for what has happened to Carol Ann. I love the moment when Diane is on the stairs and she feels Carol Anne's spirit pass through her and it is so real she can smell Carol Anne...easily one of my favorite moments in the film. Beatrice Straight is effective as the head of the paranormal investigative team and Zelda Rubinstein is a lot of fun as Tangina, the spiritualist brought in to "clean" the house.
Hollywood legend has it that this film is cursed, evidenced by, among other things, the fact that Dominique Dunne, who played older daughter Dana and Heather O'Rourke, who played Carol Anne, are no longer with us. Of course, Beatrice Straight and music composer Jerry Goldsmith are no longer with us either, but it does add a slight air of creepiness to the proceedings as you watch.
Hooper, Spielberg, a crack special effects team, and yes Jerry Goldsmith's music all help to make this instant classic worth checking out.