Horror Classic Review: POLTERGEIST (1982)

[@KonElKent]

Just last night: Wife: I've never actually seen Poltergeist. Me: **adds another item to the list of things her parents failed her on.**

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

Lol! I have a very similar list going.

[@jasonblalock4429]

14:00 Along the same lines, another thing that makes Poltergeist unique is how the characters are actually dealing with confirmation of the supernatural. If people have found out that ghosts are real, and therefore souls and the afterlife are real, that should *blow their minds.* Yet it's so rarely shown in movies like this, and it seems like a big missed opportunity for character development. Except here.

[@ConsciousMigration]

I remember I talked my mom into taking me to see this when it was released. Because the name "Spielberg" was on it, my mom figured this was going to be tame material. She was wrong. And I was THRILLED. I love this film.

[@chuckpoore]

I agree with your take on the director issue, I think that's probably spot on. My way of viewing this has always been kind of like the first time your Dad lets you drive the car. You may be sitting in the driver's seat with your hands on the wheel. But Dad's pretty much telling you every move to make, even if only subconsciously--with a look, or because you know what he would do in this situation. You're technically driving, but Dad is looking on, and you know he has to be made happy with what you're doing, or else you won't get to drive next time!

[@errantknight-f2z]

The kitchen table/ chair scene, where the camera pans away for a second and when it returns all the chairs are suddenly stacked in a pyramid on the table, has always been one of my favorite scenes in any movie.. the timing was perfect!

[@landonbenford8369]

@@errantknight-f2z If you look Very Closely at the toaster, you can see the reflection of crewmembers doing their thing. The Good Old Days when cgi was a brand new and Very expensive invention.

[@CaminoAir]

To me this always looked and felt like a Spielberg 'directed film', regardless of who actually formally was the director. It has that very vibrant sense of suburbia built up out of many small details and moments, just like Amity Island in 'JAWS'. And the use of lighting is trademark Spielberg, even if the colour scheme is more typical of Hooper. We even get a real estate boss who is a variation on Murray Hamilton's Amity mayor. Jerry Goldsmith has only spoken about working with Spielberg on this film. His music score received a much better sound dub/mix than Williams got on 'E.T.', where a good deal of Williams cues were effectively buried down in the mix. The way I would sum it up is that Spielberg provided the overall vision and canvas and Hooper filled in the brush strokes. The cast are all great. The only gripe I have is that the 'All is well again' only to be followed by the 'Worst is yet to come' formula feels a bit contrived.

[@KonElKent]

By all accounts, Spielberg is a very "hands on" producer. And I dare say that films are usually the better for it.

[@AbrasiousProductions]

hey I know you!😄

[@CoinOpTV]

Classic movie just picked up the 4k can’t wait to rewatch it

[@moritzstrohriegel8724]

there is one really strange scene in the movie. the parents are in the kitchen while discovering the phenomenons of the house and then the movie cuts away into the middle of a conversation.,

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

I see what you did there. But yes, that does happen, and I remember reading about it, but I can’t for the life of me remember why that edit is in the final film.

[@janetcraft]

@@TheUnapologeticGeek I heard about that to. I saw it in an other film reviewer clip, but I can't remember which one. I remember saying that there was a reason for the cut and it wasn't made by accident by the editor. If I come across the review clip again, I'll let you guys know. It's somewhere in my "Reviews" or "Halloween" Playlists.

[@dinacharlayne1912]

They probably took out a scene. We feel that this stuff's all true because it's about us. spielberg filmed us and made the movies. We so we saw behind the scenes what it's about like. It's actually all real and he's smart. Some may find these films boring, but he's smart for real.

[@joshfacio9379]

I had heard it had to do with steven exasperated replying that he hated pizza hut after dianne said we'll go to pizzahut to carolanne. Word is pizza hut wasnt happy about that remark and it was hastily edited out quite badly.

[@1kylecurry]

Truly a classic! One of the best horror/ thrillers of the 80's & beyond. A very solid story, well acted, cutting edge SFX for the time & of course the great Jerry Goldsmith. Just a hell of a enjoyable ride. The sequels are watchable, Poltergeist: The Legacy was pretty good. Poltergeist 1982 was the 2nd best horror movie of that year....all hail "The Thing".!

[@MartialArtsFilmFreak]

Heeey, I work in Hopkinsville, KY. But I live in TN.

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

Hehheh. Now I know where to find you!

[@gmanley1]

I’m surprised it didn’t get a 40th anniversary re-release like what Universal did with E.T..

[@JoseyWales44s]

It did get a 40th anniversary re-release a few weeks ago. Took the family to see it.

[@toddgrogg8005]

Why did you skip over Oliver Robins, who played Robbie???.

[@strangerthanfiction4014]

I love the look of it, strange light Highlights everywhere, moving shadows etc. It fits the "otherworldy", slimy theme. As a kid exactly this creeeeeeped me out

[@morgangallowglass8668]

GREAT VID as ALWAYS! Funny TRUE story for you. When this movie came out, I was dating a teacher and she and her teaching aid decided to take their 5th Grade class to see this film. She asked me to come along and an extra set of adult eyes. Well, none of us had any idea about this movie and... Suffice to say, there were SCREAM of terror from the 5th graders and she and her aid only barely kept their jobs.

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

Oh my gawd. Hey, at least the kids got an education!

[@morgangallowglass8668]

@@TheUnapologeticGeek , oh boy, did they!

[@kenyetamoses2797]

GOOD VIDEO. WHEN THIS MOVIE CAME OUT IN 1982, I WAS 9 YEARS OLD AND I WAS IN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL. LOVE POLTERGEIST.

[@palmercolson7037]

Because the movie basically has so much involvement by Spielberg, it basically has two heads: Hooper and Spielberg. It has heterogeneity as a KZbinr who has a cooking channel likes to promote in food. It offers up a Spielberg like family and home explaining what is at stake before Hooper slowly introduces the horrors. The horrors are an angry intrusion on the characters' lives. When I first saw it, I found it to be a very effective horror movie that didn't rely on gore to be scary. It also didn't rely o cruelty against its characters, a cruelty seen as some sort of comeuppance on them or torture porn.

[@dinacharlayne1912]

spielberg filmed us though and got a lot of ideas for his films and TV shows from us, too. he seems really smart to us after seeing how he put these films and TV shows together from what he filmed. we ran into him twice and he always had a film camera. him or his friend pointed to us and said look at that and he started filming us then maybe. they were walking behind us on a sidewalk in mexico. the next time we ran into him and his other friend was on an airplane to Las Vegas.

[@davidcomito505]

Spielberg and Hooper collaborated to make a film neither would have made on their own. It is truly one of a kind.

[@thrashpondopons8348]

'We opiate ourselves on the comforts of a crumbling Empire.' Unknown & in answer to your question... favorite Haunted House Flic, 'Burnt Offerings'!

[@drbuckley1]

The Haunting (1963) kept me awake at night for weeks.

[@landonbenford8369]

I had just turned 11 when I saw the Poltergeist ad in the Chicago Tribune. And I said it doesn't know what scares ME!! I spent half the movie with my hands over my eyes. And I Still to this day have a nitelite in Every room of my house. True story: In 1987 I dated a girl whose dad owned a warehouse in Oak Brook, ILL where the studio scenes of Poltergeist III including the parking structure were filmed. And every day JoBeth Williams returned to her apartment from filming EVERY picture on her wall was crooked like something had moved 'em!😮😮

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

As an adult, I can see Poltergeist III as the goofy, cheesy movie it is, but as a kid, it made me terrified of my own reflection.

[@landonbenford8369]

@@TheUnapologeticGeek I know a LOT of people hate P' III to this day!! I am Not one of them! It'll be Somewhere on my Top 50 Greatest Movies list. Yes higher than 49.😁Probably in the 30's. And yes I'm partial to movies filmed in my Hometown Chicago. The effects with the mirrors are STILL REALLY Freaky!!😮They were ground-breaking. And as a carnivore: After the scientist-raided-the-fridge scene in P' I and his face came apart, I couldn't eat meat for a week!!😨😭

[@DonKeyhoetee]

I haven't watched this in literally decades. Seriously scary. I really don't think I can watch it alone.

[@saltiney8578]

This movies terrified me as a kid, was scared of underneath beds, closets,, trees near my window for years, It also helped along with "the shining" in making me terrified of bathrooms and mirrors lol I watched all these fucked up movies when I was like 7 at my uncles house and I was terrified of a bunch of stuff until I was like 20

[@seangilchrist3102]

"It lies to her" is the creepiest line of the movie, its delivery is perfect

[@indyspotes3310]

This was an excellent film, regardless of who or how many directed it. The mundane setting of the suburbs helps juxtapose the horror elements of the story in the best way possible. Your takes are usually spot on, but this review clearly needs more love for James Karen. Let me guess. Nobody's complained... until now.

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

You’re right. I didn’t mention him. I shall slap myself with wet noodles as penance.

[@gmanley1]

I got a feeling that Spielberg was probably ghost directing this movie.

[@b.k.ontheair]

Great ghost movie! One of the best! 👻 #tobehooper #jerrygoldsmith

[@VFXforfilm]

Nice work

[@moritzstrohriegel8724]

great video.

[@mind-of-neo]

I feel like all the product /pop culture placement feels just as much like a Spielberg thing as it does a Tobe Hooper thing

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

It is, but I think it's used as a social commentary in this film the way Spielberg never does. I could absolutely be wrong, but Spielberg never includes his product placements in a cheeky or biting way--E.T. just likes Reese's Pieces--whereas Hooper's movies all have a satiric edge toward culture. The sheer volume of product placement in Poltergeist seems like a jab to me, but then again, there is A LOT of product placement in E.T. as well. You could be right. 🤷‍♂️

[@stillbuyvhs]

Hooper directed the film; Spielberg produced it, but Spielberg produced it the same way Irving Thalberg or Walt Disney or David O. Selznic would've produced a movie.

[@dinacharlayne1912]

It seems like Spielberg said he directed it and hired Tobe Hooper to pretned to be the director. The films were filmed in the same neighborhood. Spielberg said that's what we do we put on a show so we use different names sometimes. AT the end when he puts the TVoutside it's like when we were laeving Mexico. It's got the drama and the ending is so matter of fact. Our grandfather who disowned us he got out of the car and got back in as we were leaving Mexico. This is in many films the dramatic car leaving scenes. Spielberg filmed us and did many movies and TV shows about us obviously. He just got back out then looked around like the man in the movie and got in the car. It's just like in the movies and TV shows. The car wouldnt' start the police went by so we thought a store was robbed. ET was light and PJoltergeist was dark so they had to have different director names to them.

[@kenyetamoses2797]

What do you mean that POLTERGEIST was born?

[@nicolebaker7534]

Wait, it was cheaper to get real skeletons than fake ones for that scene? How does that work? Can I assume that there are regulations in place so that wouldn't happen today?

[@racookster]

They got the skeletons from a medical supply company. The skeletons would have ended up hanging in a classroom or something anyway. I don't believe there are any laws against that, even today. I'd kind of like it if mine ended up hanging in a funhouse.

[@nicolebaker7534]

@@racookster Okay, that makes a bit more sense now. Thanks!

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

The real scandal is that they didn’t get screen credits for their acting! If my skeleton winds up in a movie like Poltergeist, I want my name in the cast list!

[@kenyetamoses2797]

AND ANOTHER THING, WHAT DOES IT MEAN THAT POLTERGEIST WAS BORN?

[@mikesilva3868]

Horror classic 🦖

[@Spottedfeather]

awesome movie...one of my favourites. But it's not horror.

[@TheUnapologeticGeek]

You say tomato, I say weird acidic red fruit. 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@jgw1846]

The trailer for this movie is a nostalgia trip while still sending chills down my spine.