Poltergeist (25th Anniversary Edition, DVD) Reviews
Description:Genre: Horror / Theatrical Release: 1982 / Director: Tobe Hooper / Actors: Craig T Nelson, Jo Beth Williams ... / DVD ... more
Poltergeist (25th Anniversary Edition, DVD) ... released 15 October, 2007 at Warner Home Video / Features of the DVD: Anamorphic, PAL / It’s been a long time coming, but at last the digitally remastered version of the original 1982 horror movie has arrived. Tobe Hooper, the director of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, teamed up with family-oriented producer Steven Spielberg to make Poltergeist, about a haunted suburban home in a development very much like the Arizona one in which Spielberg was raised. (Because it came out the same summer as Spielberg's E.T., it was tempting to see both movies as representing Spielberg's ambivalent feelings about childhood in suburbia. One was a fantasy, the other a nightmare.) Spielberg also co-wrote the screenplay, which taps into primal, childlike fears of monsters under the bed, monsters in the closet, sinister clown faces, and all manner of things that go bump in the night. At first, some of the odd happenings in the house are kind of funny and amusing, but they grow gradually creepier until the film climaxes in a terrifying special-effects extravaganza when five-year-old Carole Anne (Heather O'Rourke) is kidnapped by the spooks and held hostage in another dimension. Though not nearly as frightening as Hooper's magnum opus, or the original A Nightmare on Elm Street, which came along two years later, Poltergeist is one of the smartest and most entertaining horror pictures of its time. --Jim Emerson
Newest Review: ... into a pretty terrifying situation. Whilst there are a few moments that are intended to make the audience jump, these are ... more
... pretty mild in the overall scheme of things. Indeed, by today's standards, Poltergeist doesn't really warrant its original 18 Certificate. Yet, this blending of low-grade terror with a smattering of scarier moments gives Poltergeist a slightly unsettling atmosphere.
OK, so Poltergeist's plot elements are a little mixed up at times when it comes to ghost lore (poltergeists, benevolent spirits, demons and possession are all thrown into the mix in some ill-defined way), but they hang together well enough to create a sati...more
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Customer Poltergeist (25th Anniversary Edition, DVD) Reviews (15)
Poltergeist (25th Anniversary Edition, DVD): Conclusive proof TV is bad for you (944 words)by - written on 16/10/12 (Very useful, 33 readings)
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Poltergeist saw Steven Spielberg try his hand at "horror" for the first time since Jaws, teaming up with Texas Chainsaw Massacre Director Tobe Hooper. It seems an odd pairing- Hooper's reputation for bleak, shocking films married to Spielberg's wistful all-American nostalgic view of life. Yet, it works thanks to a careful combination of tension, scares and heart. The film's plot sees an ordinary American family experiencing strange events in their home. At first these are odd, yet innocuous, but become increasingly sinister, resulting in the family's young daughter disappearing, heard only as a distant voice emanating from the TV ... Read the complete review
by - written on 02/05/10 (Very useful, 5 readings)
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Spielberg's venture into horror writing and producing gave us this masterpiece of horror, Poltergeist. This is arguabley one of the best horros of all time, and deserves its place alongside The Shining, The Exorcist and The Omen as one of the 'big four'. This was written and produced by Spielberg, but in the end it was directed by Tobe Hooper, who brought us the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. And there are few directors who could have done it as much justice. This is a fabulous film that just moves and really does have enough thrills in it to make you scared. A family (The Freelings) live in a small purpose built town in California. The man of the ... Read the complete review
by - written on 05/01/10 (Very useful, 46 readings)
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So having resigned myself to the fact that we are snowed in today I made the decision to stay in where its warm and safe and got settled down to a few DVDs that I have been meaning to re-watch for ages but just haven't got round to. First on my watch list today was the classic 'Poltergeist'; prompted by a review I had read on here the other day I dug out my copy and gave it a long overdue viewing and this is my review of this seminal horror film from 1982. Film only review Written by Stephen Spielberg and directed by Tobe Hooper the storyline follows the Freeling family as they begin to settle into their new home, the family is your ... Read the complete review
by - written on 13/08/08 (Very useful, 122 readings)
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Diane: Sweetheart, do you remember last night when you woke up, and you said "They're here.'? Carol Anne: Uh huh Diane: Well, who did you mean? Carol Anne: The TV People. (Quote care off the Imdb.com quote alphabet) After yet another unexpected wet Saturday night wash in I found myself without the will to go out and rent a movie in that unseasonable and now regular downpour, which means it was Dads Army repeats on BBC2 first and then delving into my special DVD collection (no, not that special DVD collection!) for the primetime, draw the curtains 9pm slot! The days of drawing the curtains for anything else seem a distant ... Read the complete review
by - written on 30/10/00, updated on 30/10/00 (Very useful, 35 readings)
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Poltergeist is good film that proves that older scary films still have great potential to entertain as well as make you jump. This film may not have some of the spectacular special effects that recent films like Final Destination has, but with its limited special effects (compared to today films) I found that it still made the hairs on the back of my neck go on end on several occasions! The film revolves around a family, which moves into a new home. This home proves to be more than they bargained for, because it happens to be a centre of a number supernatural phenomenon. At first the family is baffled at the events, even slightly amused, but as they ... Read the complete review
