Review of The Entity (1982) by Cory T — 29 Oct 2014

Aside from an officious musical score over the workaholic opening credits and some blatantly cheesy lightning special effects, 'The Entity' is a chilling, pumiced ghost story where the poltergeist isn't craving vengeance or old-fashioned mischief.

The ghost violates Clara Morgan (Barbara Hershey in a tour-de-force performance) almost immediately within the rushed beginning (no slow-burn plot development here) and the rape sequences gradually become more habitual and skin-crawling.

Sidney J. Furie cleverly elects for a rewardingly cerebral analysis of whether the ghost is a psychosexual manifestation of Clara's adolescent wounds from her minister father or a tangible paranormal phenomenon.

The unpleasantly irate rape scenes are heightened with a multitude of Dutch angles and a Stan Winston full-frontal body mold for Hershey where her bruised flesh is invisibly caressed by the evil spirit.

The pounding death metal percussion in the background by Charles Bernsteinin really crackles. Two university professors in the parapsychology department could be remnants from Tucker and Specs: The Early Years.

Ron Silver is the eternal skeptic as the soothing, sensitive therapist Phil Schneiderman. The science wing and Fredian principles clash over the validity of each other's diagnosis. A coda about how the story occurred in 1976 and the real-life Clara is still plagued by the attacks is particularly horrifying.

'The Entity' is Furie's magnum opus and Hershey should've won an Oscar for her haunted exhibition.