POLTERGEIST (2015) : MOVIE REVIEW

Poltergeist features subtle horrors

Director: Gil Kenan

Starring: Sam Rockwell, Rosemarie DeWitt, Jared Harris, Jane Adams

Studios: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Ghost House Pictures, Vertigo Entertainment

Distributed by:  20th Century Fox

Release Dates: May 22, 2015 (United States)

June 24, 2015 (Philippines)

Plot: A family moves into a suburban home being haunted by evil forces. When these malevolent spirits take their youngest daughter captive, they must come together to rescue her.

I’m not really a big fan of remakes. Although there are some that comes as an exception. Some remakes were just so good that I really forget the fact that they’re just…remakes. The Ring (2002), Black Xmas (2006), Sorority Row (2009), Evil Dead, and Carrie (2013) are some of my most favorite horror movies that were remakes of classic hits. And they worked for me. So when I heard of a Poltergeist remake, I was thinking if it’s gonna be a hit or miss.

So how did the film hold up? Let’s me tell you what are the things that I liked about it and what are those that didn’t really worked out.

Everything’s Been Updated

I’ve seen the original movie from producer Steven Spielberg and director Tobe Hooper and this new adaptation basically follows the story of the 1982 film. And just like how every remake works, all the things in the original movie has been updated.

The family, lead by Eric (Sam Rockwell) and Amy Bowen (Rosemarie DeWitt) decided to move into a much cheaper home with their three children: eldest daughter, Kendra (Saxon Sharbino); their son, Griffin (Kyle Catlett); and youngest daughter, Madison (Kennedi Clements). Eric has just been laid off and luckily, they found a house that fits their price range.

But soon, the spirits residing along with them inside their home starts to manifest themselves, starting from lights turning on and off to things moving by themselves, like comics books stacking up like a pyramid (which is a nod to the infamous scene in the original featuring the chairs in the kitchen forming a similar pattern. They also talk to their eldest daughter with her phone, whispering to her through her earphones.

Soon, their youngest daughter is abducted (along with their young son being taken by a moving tree) which is by far the best part in the movie. They hire the assistance of paranormal investigators Dr. Brooke Powell (Jane Adams) and her team, along with occult specialist and television personality Carrigan Burke (Jared Harris) to help them get their daughter back.

Aside from the use of an LCD television, cellphones, etc., there were a lot of things were changed from the original film. One of the main changes in the film was the gender switch of the psychic. In the original film, it features Tangina Barrons (Zelda Rubinstein) as the medium. In this version, we get a male psychic in Jarred Harris’ character. Another change in the film was the way they rescued their youngest daughter. Instead of the mother, Diane Freeling (Jobeth Williams) rescuing her daughter from the spirit world, we get their young son Griffin (Kyle Catlett) getting her young sister back from the other dimension.

Horror for Kids

I must agree though. The film is mostly a horror film destined to scare kids ages 6 to 9 years old. This isn’t Insidious or Oculus or other PG-13 horror films. This film offers scares that only children would deem as scary. Even the dead bodies who came out of nowhere and tried to pull Kendra down with them weren’t that scary to look at. The original had some creepy effect on me, since I found out that they were real dead bodies (because at that time, real skeletons were cheaper to buy than plastic ones).

Although I still had a good time watching it because it was creepy for me. And I just love the part where Griffin gets abducted by the moving tree outside their home. That actually was the scariest part of the film that really made me jump at least once.

Top Notch Prod Values

Well, at least, the production values was top-notch for a horror film like this. From the set designs to the visual effects of the film, everything looks pristine. Although I noticed that unlike the original film which used mostly practical effects, this remake relies heavily on computer-generated effects. I think that’s what most remakes are doing these days since CGI effects are more cheap than using practical ones.

Still, I must say that they done a good job in this aspect especially during the scene where their youngest, Madison gets abducted. Here in this scene, her eldest sister gets terrorized by dead bodies coming to life from a pool of black sticky stuff in the garage. Then, his brother gets pulled out fro their home by a creeping tree branch which is by far the best thing I’ve seen in this film. I love the timing of this scene, which was matched to the startling music and amazing effects. I think the cast and crew was able to pull this wonderful scene off with flying colors.

Verdict:

Okay. Although I wasn’t really scared to death by this film, I think it still deserves a good look. Honestly, I prefer this version over the old one (don’t judge me) because I can really relate to this version, as its been created for my generation. Now, I’m not saying that the original was bad. It’s just not my time, I guess. There’s a lot of differences when we talk about horror during 1982 and 2015, and I’d still prefer the horror movies today because this is where I can really see myself.

So despite being a kiddie horror film, I pretty much had a really fun time watching this movie. Some great productions values, great actors and directors, and some evident efforts in making this movie still scary for adults make this somewhat a must-see.

I am rating this film 3 out of 5 stars.

Poltergeist Official Trailer #1 (2015) - Sam... by itvhd3