Well, the old saying goes: They don’t make em like they used to… And it couldn’t be more true with the latest in the Hollywood remake genre, Poltergeist.
First and foremost, I’ll give credit where credit is due. Sam Rockwell’s performance as the father, Eric, was what held this film together from beginning to end. His character added the bulk of the personality to a storyline that simply felt completely flat. So let’s give a collective salute to Mr. Rockwell for preventing this experience from totally sucking…
Now, for those that have seen the original, I think it goes without saying it was easier to care about the family being tormented in that film as compared to this one. In so many ways it felt like the story was rushed in certain parts, along with a few curious story arcs that made little to no sense. Case in point, the parents in this movie are jobless, and yet at the very beginning are looking to close on a new house. Call me crazy, but that’s just weak writing right there, and right out of the gates I found myself chuckling at that absurdity. Yeah, let’s go house shopping with no jobs, and maxed out credit cards, brilliant!!
Add to it, there was little to no character development of the family beyond the fact that they’re clearly without financial resources, and the son Griffin, played by Kyle Catlett, has a severe anxiety problem. Other than that, the daughter (who ultimately gets sucked into the 5th dimension), Maddie, played by Kennedi Clements, seemed far less developed than her brother which was a very different dynamic than the original film. The original classic kept Carol-Anne’s brother minimized, and it was Carol-Anne who was front and center for the audience to really become scared sick over once she was kidnapped by spook central. As far as the other sibling, Kendra, played by Saxon Sarbino, I’ll admit, the writers wrote her as a very accurate, self-absorbed, smart-phone junkie teenager that didn’t offer anything to the story beyond incessant crying, and whining. So in that sense the film was hauntingly realistic…
As far as the visual effects I was expecting to be somewhat more blown away than the effects in the 1982 original, and in the end it wasn’t a game-changing experience. It’s not that the special effects were bad, but they didn’t seem as visually striking as the shots from the original considering this was a film made in 2015. Go figure. However, I will say the 3D look of the film was well done. It certainly helped add a little more depth to what felt like a very bland environment for these characters in general.
Last but not least, the only other characters that made this film ooze of some charm were the characters of Dr. Brooke Powell, and Carrigan Burke, played by Jane Adams, and Jared Harris respectively. I’d almost say had those two been more of a focal point early on in the story that it could have salvaged this underwhelming experience at the movies. I also think it was obvious the filmmakers were using these two as almost a comedic parody of the real-life ghost hunters Lorraine and Ed Warren…
Nonetheless, stash your cash, and wait for this remake to hit Netflix…Nuff said.
2 out of 4 stars
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