Poster Poltergeist

Title: Poltergeist

Original Title: Poltergeist

Year: 1982

Info

Release Dates

  • UK: September 16 1982
  • United States: June 04 1982

Plot

'Poltergeist' is a supernatural horror film directed by Tobe Hooper with a screenplay by Steven Spielberg, Michael Grais, and Mark Victor. It premiered successfully at the box office, and over time it has become a cult film, especially in the paranormal and horror genres.

A typical middle-class American family moves to a new housing development in Cuesta Verde, California. The youngest daughter, Carol Anne, begins to talk to the television on standby in the middle of the night while a series of paranormal events occur in the home: "they're here," she claims one day. The phenomena become increasingly sinister, and during an attempted abduction of the middle son, Robbie, Carol Anne crosses a portal and is seemingly trapped inside the television.

Parapsychologist Martha Lesh asserts that the house is suffering from a poltergeist because the housing development is being built over an old cemetery. Lesh contacts a medium, Tangina Barrons, who is responsible for analyzing the ghosts and the forces that are trapping Carol Anne in an attempt to free her.

With a box office gross of $76.6 million, 'Poltergeist' was the highest-grossing horror film of 1982 and the eighth highest-grossing film of the year in the United States.

Cast

Director:

Tobe Hooper Tobe Hooper

Craig T. Nelson

Craig T. Nelson

Steve Freeling

JoBeth Williams

JoBeth Williams

Diane Freeling

Heather O'Rourke

Heather O'Rourke

Carol Anne Freeling

James Karen

James Karen

Sr. Teague

Sonny Landham

Sonny Landham

Pool Worker #2

Videos

'Poltergeist' Trailer 2:24

'Poltergeist' Trailer

June 15 2015

Photos

Poltergeist
Poltergeist
Poltergeist
Poltergeist
Poltergeist
Poltergeist
Poltergeist
Poltergeist

Trivia

Drew Barrymore could have been Carol Anne

Drew Barrymore was close to playing Carol Anne, but Spielberg wanted someone sweeter. As a result, he cast Barrymore in 'E.T.' instead and chose Heather O'Rourke after spotting her with her mother in a café.

A cursed movie

There is a belief that the Poltergeist series was cursed due to the strange deaths that befell members of the technical crew and cast. Perhaps the most popular is that of the protagonist, Carol Anne Freeling, who suddenly died at the age of 12 from septic shock. Dominique Dunne, who played the older sister, died a few months after the film's release at the age of 22, having been murdered by her boyfriend. The sequel also had its share of suspicious deaths.

For the whole family

Initially, Spielberg planned for Carol Anne to die in the first act and become the one haunting the house. However, the idea was scrapped for being too cruel and because Spielberg wanted the movie to receive a PG rating (parental guidance suggested) so it could be shown as a double feature with his other film, 'E.T.'. In fact, the final version of the movie includes only one death—that of the pet bird. Even so, the film was initially rated 'R', but after an appeal from the studio, its rating was changed to 'PG'.

Soundtrack from 'Poltergeist'

The Star-Spangled Banner

Interpretada por

Music based on quot The Anacreontic Song quot John Stafford Smith

Recommended movies and tv shows Poltergeist

The Evil Dead

1981

7

The Evil Dead

The Thing

1982

7.3

The Thing

Halloween

1978

8.2

Halloween

The Walking Dead

2010 - 2022

8.1

The Walking Dead

Alien

1979

7.6

Alien

Lifeforce

1985

6.4

Lifeforce

The Shining

1980

8.1

The Shining

Gremlins

1984

7.8

Gremlins

Follow Us