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

Heather O'Rourke

Heather O'Rourke

Carol Anne Freeling

JoBeth Williams

JoBeth Williams

Diane Freeling

James Karen

James Karen

Mr. Teague

Sonny Landham

Sonny Landham

Pool Worker #2

Videos

'Poltergeist' Trailer 2:24

'Poltergeist' Trailer

June 15 2015

Photos

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Trivia

The Lion's Roar

The sound made by the ghost attacking the house near the end of the film is the same one used by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in its iconic opening featuring a roaring lion.

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.

They're here

Carol Anne's quote in the movie, "They're here," has been considered one of the most famous lines in American cinema history, ranking 69th in an AFI study.

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