Movie Review – Poltergeist (2015)
Starring: Sam Rockwell, Rosemarie DeWitt, Saxon Sharbino, Kyle Catlett, Kennedi Clements, Jane Adams, and Jared Harris.
In 2013, a seeming pointless remake of Stephen King’s first novel Carrie, starring Chloe Moretz in the title role, hit cinemas and was mostly met with resounding groans. In a way, I can see the point in Kimberly Pierce’s attempt at recreating the zeitgeist of Brian DePalma’s 1976 original film for a brand new generation because 2012 was dominated by headlines of extreme bullying. While watching Poltergeist, the 2015 remake of Steven Spielberg and Tobe Hooper’s 1982 film, it was almost impossible to not think of the failed Pierce effort from two years ago. Reason being director James Wan’s recent forays into haunted house horror The Conjuring and Insidious have revamped the seemingly dying sub genre for a whole new generation. Evil Dead director Sam Raimi, seeing a chance to pounce on a trend much like Pierce did two years ago, acquired the rights to Spielberg’s sentimental film and employed director Gil Kenan (Monster House), as well as highly regarded actor Sam Rockwell (Moon) in the lead role, hoping to aspire dollar signs similar to Wan’s recent efforts. While people who like their scares served on a rapid-fire platter might find something to grasp with the result, Poltergeist mostly falls down in the most clumsily put together big studio horror film I have seen in a long while.
When judging a film for what it is, we are taught to take what a new version gives us and not fall back on comparisons to what came before it. Unfortunately, I am having a hard time doing so with Poltergeist 2015. I guess the wall I am running into is I have always felt that while there are definitely scares in the original film that not only pushed the boundaries of its PG rating, but ran over them with a tank, there was always an established heart in its center. Here, writer David Lindsay-Abaire (Oz: The Great And Powerful) and director Kenan layer the film with a modernized coat of paint while also highlighting some key differences. For example, the three kids in this version are handcuffed to their portable devices, and if it weren’t for its music video style kinetic energy, I would think there was some sort of modern commentary being given to us about how much these small ports of technology inhibit the family unit to the point of extinction. Don’t get me wrong. They come into play later in the film. But like so much of its attempts at modernization, this part of Poltergeist falters and we are barely introduced to the Bowen family (I guess MGM has a strange stranglehold on the Freeling name) before we are dragged to the depths of not unsettling scares, but a more than modest form of mediocrity.
One complaint I have about Wan’s style is his work does not build mood as much as jolt you silly with loud noises and booming music cues. Kenan employs this technique to massive effect in Poltergeist, as mood is abolished for silly camera movements and kinetic temperaments. Maddy Bowen (Clements) is sucked into the depths of TV hell rather quickly, and her family is rapidly pulled through one scary situation after another, first by paranormal ‘expert’ Adams and then by Jared Harris, 2015’s answer to Zelda Rubenstein’s quirky performance in the original. Echoing 2011’s Fright Night remake, Harris’s character is modernized in this take to be a reality star. While I enjoyed what Harris brought, there was a sense of forced kookiness to his character as opposed to the natural feeling dryness from Rubenstein’s original performance.
Despite identical story beats and lack of characterization, not all is bad in Poltergeist. Rockwell, as much as he seems to be mimicking his performance from last year’s Laggies, is a likable presence every time he appears onscreen. Which is hard to do given his character is a mostly drunk father of three who has just been laid off. DeWitt (Mad Men) does what she can with an underwritten role lacking the heroism and faultiness from JoBeth Williams’s previous incarnation. And Clements fills the shoes of the late Heather O’Rourke better than I was expecting, as her big eyes and eagerness to move makes us care once her plight unabashedly starts. However, the real revelation about Poltergeist is the successful expansion of the brother character, this time named Griffin and characterized by Catlett. The decision to make the brother a neurotically inclined center of the story is the only wise one I can think of from Lindsay-Abaire’s script, and there is even a cleverly placed Spielberg tribute in his room which I won’t spoil here.
Despite that one touch, it is impossible to mention a moment when this take on the material improves upon its counterpart. The horror genre is a genre known for its ability to milk a successful formula until it’s dry. Yet remaking a movie with as much sentimental value as Poltergeist just because of Wan’s currently successful style goes to depths even Pierce didn’t touch upon in her much better Carrie remake from two years ago. And it is looking to not go away anytime soon, as Wan’s The Conjuring 2 has been subtitled ‘The Enfield Poltergeist.’ Brace yourselves. As much as it pains me to say, Raimi’s much faulted production may only be the beginning.
4 out of 10
floyd
May 20, 2015 @ 1:10 pm
You mean 4 on 10
Matt Berliner
May 20, 2015 @ 1:39 pm
Solid review. I hope your last sentence means there is going to be a Poltergeist II. I want to see another Henry Kane type character :).