Review of Poltergeist (2015) by Mike M — 23 Jun 2015

Tense, scary and pays a lot of homage to the original Tobe Hooper and Steven Spielberg classic this new Poltergeist remake is an example of a well made remake that doesn't insult or tease the original classic and instead acts as a tribute or homage to the original 1982 classic of the same name.

If you've watched the original Poltergeist then you know the plot but if you never watched the original the plot is just plain and simple. This movie is about a family who starts a new life in a new house.

But soon countless activities start to happen in the house which are at first harmless spirit activities until the spirits show their dark side by kidnapping the youngest daughter of the family and with the help of a medium or paranormal investigator the family is now ready to save their daughter before she disappears forever.

I just came back from Robinsons with my family and we just finished watching the new Poltergeist remake and I was so stunned and amazed with it, and I even enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed watching the original Poltergeist.

What makes the new Poltergeist remake a good movie is that the film doesn't insult the original and instead the film tries its best to make the film look effective as possible and the movie ends up acting as a homage or tribute to the original by playing it safe and sound and that is what director Gil Kenan, Producer Sam Raimi and screenwriter David Lindsay-Abaire did with the film.

One thing I like about this film is that this movie avoids using a large amount of scares that were already used in other Horror films and Gil Kenan instead used a few scenes in the original and just amped it up a bit and he used a few new scenes(in a very good way) that were not in the original Poltergeist and the movie feels more of an update other than a tribute or homage to the original.

One of the other things I like about this film is that the movie is well paced and I love how they shortened the run time of this film compared to the original and the pacing is very smooth in the beginning and it goes into the same pace later on as the original in the middle and last half of the film.

The other good things I like about this film is that the movie is extremely terrifying, frightening, scary and suspenceful as well and there are loads of scenes from the original that are ampped up or updated in a good way which are very effective and useful for a remake (The creepy clown sequence, the spooky closet scene, the intense tree attack scene, the haunting sequence where the little girl talks to the spirits in front of the flat screen Television and the outstanding finale where the little girl gets rescued by her brother) while the new scenes(The intense drill sequence, the creepy sequence with the toy pig with the horn walking on its own and the super creepy cabinet sequence) are also effective as the scenes in the original.

One of the other things I like about this film is that the movie didn't change any of the characters personalities and Gil Kenan kept the characters from being likable and caring to keep fans impressed and not disappointed.

The other highlights of this film is that the movie has a spooky atmosphere and the cinematography gives the film a dark and brooding feel mixed with an incredibly haunting soundtrack. Also I love the different changes in the film (Lots of creepy clowns instead of one creepy clown, The TVs which are just regular TVs in the original while in this film Flat screen TVs, Comic books stacked up instead of chairs stacked up, the medium changed from a girl to a boy, the little brother rescuing his sister instead of the mother saving her daughter in the original and the ending where instead of staying at a hotel and removing the TV in this film the family looks for a new house but leaves instead of buying a new one) and although the swimming pool sequence from the original was missing nevertheless the new changes give the movie a much better and good feel.

While the last things I love about the new Poltergeist remake is that this movie managed to be almost as haunting as the original since it stays true to the formula that Steven Spielberg and Tobe Hooper back in 1982 plus the special effects are extremely updated since the effects are a combination of Practical and amazing CGI effects if the original has loads of gorgeous effects the remake updated or ampped it up to the best level by combining everything with a mixture of practical and CGI effects and the CGI is so cool and amazing and the effects seriously stays true to the original.

Now the acting is amazing all of the casts did a very good job with their performances in the new Poltergeist remake. Sam Rockwell delivers an amazing performance as the father in the family, Rosemary DeWitt delivers an impressive performance as the mother in the family and she is so gorgeous and attractive at the same time, while the kids in the film like newcomer Kennedi Clements as the youngest daughter in the family is just as cute as Heather O'Rourke from the original Poltergeist and she is so adorable at the same time, while the other two casts who portrayed the brother and the eldest daughter deliver impressive performance and last but not least Jared Harris did an awesome job with his performance as the spirit medium or paranormal investigator in the film and his performance is very different from Zelda Rubinstein's performance in the original Poltergeist so far all of the casts did an amazing job with their performances in the film.

Director Gil Kenan did an amazing job in recreating the contemporary remake of the original 1982 Steven Spielberg classic. Gil Kenan seriously managed to turn David Lindsay-Abaire's screenplay into a fresh movie with a lot of updated effects that does not insult the original and acts more as a tribute or homage to the original with the help of Evil Dead creator Sam Raimi.

Although this is the only Horror film Gil Kenan made since his previous films were all family friendly he did a very good job with his work in making his very first Horror film because his previous films Monster House and City Of Ember were more light in tone and aimed more to a younger audience his Poltergeist remake is aimed more for both adults and teens and he understands the formula in making the new Poltergeist remake by playing it safe and sound.

Overall the new Poltergeist remake is an amazing update of the original 1982 classic and it is the best Horror film of 2015 since Insidious Chapter 3. This movie gets a 10/10. If you love Insidious or The Conjuring then you will love this movie even more because it will really scare you a lot.

This is a good Horror film for either fans of the original or new comers who love Insidious or The Conjuring I highly recommend this to anyone who is also looking for the best Horror remake ever made.