Poltergeist – It knows what scares you

by Chuck Duncan

From a classic haunted castle to a modern day haunted tract house, the 31 Days of Halloween continues with a look at the modern classic, 'Poltergeist.'

Earlier this week, I picked the original The Haunting as the best haunted house movie ever made. I still stand by that proclamation, but there is a modern day haunted house movie that ranks pretty close to the top — Poltergeist.

Where The Haunting is more of a psychological thriller than ghost movie, Poltergeist is a movie about familial bonds … and the spirits that try to tear them apart. And yes, there are plenty of ghosts, and other things, on display, although there is one terrific scene that takes place in a single camera shot with no edit as the kitchen chairs stack themselves on the kitchen table without a sound. It’s funny and chilling at the same time. And that creepy clown that tries to kill Robbie?!? If you were never afraid of clowns before, that was something to make you re-think that policy.

The movie has plenty of other scares too, such as the giant, demonic head that comes out of the closet as Steve and Diane try to rescue their daughter from whatever is telling her to come into the light. For years, that scene was ruined on home video and television broadcasts because of the widescreen format of the film. Those early versions could only show the right side of the frame and had to be electronically panned to the left in order to see the head pop out, pretty much ruining the shock. Thank goodness for high-def, widescreen televisions!

What makes Poltergeist work on so many levels is the family dynamic. You can definitely feel producer Steven Spielberg‘s influence (and this is one of his rare films where the family is intact) within the suburban setting and within the Freeling family home. JoBeth Williams gave a magnificent performance as the mother willing to do anything to save her child, even when her husband and the ghost expert were telling her it was too dangerous. The setting itself, a suburban housing development, helps the audience relate more to the plight of the Freeling family than it would have if they had been living in a spooky old mansion somewhere. A lot of what happens also happens during daylight hours too, so even in the bright light of day, some scary things can happen.

Of course, the film’s pièce de resistance is the finale when Diane suddenly discovers her home was built on an Indian burial ground. I love Craig T. Nelson screaming at his boss (the wonderful James Karen), “You moved the cemetery, but you left the bodies, didn’t you? You son of a bitch, you left the bodies and you only moved the headstones! You-only-moved-the-headstones! Why? Why? ” The mouldering corpses popping up from the muddy waters in what was meant to be the pool are creepy and disgusting and more than enough to give you a few nightmares. Unlike the bleak ending of The Haunting, we’re left with the family unit safe and sound as the spirits reclaim the land … unfortunately, the Freelings (and audiences) had to suffer through two inferior sequels, but the original’s scare quotient and charm have never been abated.

Trivia: After Tangina proclaims, “This house is clean,” and it seems like life is returning to normal, Diane mentions a smell of mimosa which is a reference to the ghostly smell of mimosas in another classic haunted house movie, The Univited. It was a sure sign that there was more to come.