Rotten
Given the talents, Poltergeist is an annoying film because it could have been so much better.
Variety Staff, Variety
Overview
The Freelings' suburban home becomes the center of paranormal activity that opens a portal to the 'other side'. With help, they must cross over to get their daughter back.
Director and cast
- Tobe Hooper Director
- JoBeth Williams as Diane Freeling
- Craig T. Nelson as Steve Freeling
- Beatrice Straight as Dr. Lesh
- Dominique Dunne as Dana Freeling
- Heather O'Rourke as Carol Anne Freeling
- Oliver Robins as Robbie Freeling
- Zelda Rubinstein as Tangina Barrons
- Richard Lawson as Ryan
- Martin Casella as Dr. Marty Casey
- Michael McManus as Ben Tuthill
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
88%
Tomatometer
Fresh
Though the shocks are well conveyed, it's the sweetness that lingers, making this the first cute and cuddly entry in the genre.
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
Fresh
It is consistently redeemed by its creator's dazzling sense of craft.
David Pirie, Time Out
Fresh
Hooper and Spielberg hold our interest by observing the everyday rituals of this family so closely that, since the family seems real, the weird events take on a certain credibility by association.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Fresh
Poltergeist is like a thoroughly enjoyable nightmare, one that you know that you can always wake up from, and one in which, at the end, no one has permanently been damaged. It's also witty in a fashion that Alfred Hitchcock might have appreciated.
Vincent Canby, New York Times
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