New "Poltergeist" Is A Crashing Bore

Above, the poster for the new version. Definitely false advertising.

Rarely do remakes exceed the quality of the original movies. The new Poltergeist totally bombs in that department.

Here's a synopsis of the new version by 20th Century Fox and MGM:

All seems well for Eric Bowen (Sam Rockwell), wife Amy (Rosemarie DeWitt) and their three children as they move into their new house in the suburbs of Illinois. Soon, youngest daughter Maddy (Kennedi Clements) begins talking to an imaginary friend, or so the family thinks. It's not long before sinister spirits wreak havoc in the home, holding Maddy captive and forcing the parents to consult a team of parapsychologists who engage the supernatural entities in a battle for the girl's freedom.

In watching the movie, I was struck by the feeling that we've been here before and when it was done before, it was done way better. The original was produced in 1982 with Craig T. Nelson, JoBeth Williams and Heather O'Rourke and it was directed by Tobe Hooper.

The characters in the original were much more likable and it had a very satisfying "chill factor". This movie wasn't scary at all. And, despite decent effects, it just had nothing suspenseful about it. It was a crashing bore. I asked myself several times, "Why?" (was this even made).

My advice: save your money and rent (or buy) the DVD of the original. The producers of this movie (who also produced The Grudge and Evil Dead) ought to be ashamed.

My grade: D (and I am being charitable here).