Thrillogy – Poltergeist
October 26th, 2008 • 293 Views • Anna Daugherty
So Villaintechnicians, Halloween is right around the corner. What have you done to get into the spooky mood? Some of you have probably spent time picking out costumes, others buying bulk candy and creepy decorations for your lawns. Me? I’ve been watching scary movies.
I love them. And, from time to time, I enjoy revisiting the scary films that I haven’t seen in a while, just to judge if they withstand the test of time. Poltergeist, the movie that helped spark my irrational fear of clowns, definitely lives up to the hype that it has received as one of the scariest movies of all-time.
The film tells the story of a suburban family who occupy one of the father’s (played by a hilarious Craig T. Nelson) pre-fabricated homes that he sells. It is located in a neighborhood that is comprised of many homes that look exactly alike, all built upon a (what they believe to be) relocated cemetery.
Soon, strange occurrences, such as breaking glass and moving furniture, begin to shake up the mother (played by JoBeth Williams). Little Carol Anne disappears, and the film follows the family as they attempt to reclaim their little girl from the spirits who have abducted her.
Sadly, the sequels lacked the scares and perfect timing that made the first one so magically frightening. Everything is just campier and silly, including the possessed tequila worm in Poltergeist II, and the idiotic addition of the “mirror people” in the very sub-par Poltergeist III.
But the truly creepy thing about this trilogy is the chain of mysterious deaths surrounding it. The Poltergeist Curse claimed the lives of several of the films’ actors, including the adorable Heather O’Rourke, the beautiful little girl who portrayed young Carol Anne in all three films.
I enjoyed re-watching the trilogy, but the first film is undeniably superior. For your viewing pleasure, here are my top five favorite scary moments from the original Poltergeist:
5.) The Chairs
4.) Carol Anne’s Rescue
3.) Crawling Steak/Peeling Flesh
2.) The Clown (I know a certain reader will agree with me on this one.)
And the number one moment that creeped me out, the one that sends chills down my spine every time I watch it, despite its low-key nature, is…
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#1
Seeester
October 27th, 2008 at 12:35 pm
Ahhhhh! Beginning October 1st of every year I begin The Rounds in celebration of the greatest month of the year (imho). Each year I revel in my tried and true favorites (including but not limited to Young Frankenstein and the Alien saga, etc) and try to add a new classic or two each year.
Poltergeist ruined me for clowns, eeeeck! O_O I had a stuffed toy with super long arms just like that freakin’ clown. The *minute* we got home from the movie theater I triple garbage bagged that thing, tied not less than 2 dozen panicky little kid super knots, and buried it in my mom’s closet under a pile of boots. There it stayed for over a year. To this day I still avoid clowns, creepy with a capital CREEP.
I agree with your scariest moments, but I was also highly freaked out by the pink fleshy tentacles (….oh man, still icks me out just thinking about them) that grew out of Carol Anne’s closet as it became the Gaping Maw of Certain Death.
Awesome review!