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Poltergeist

Play trailer Poster for Poltergeist PG 1982 1h 54m Horror Mystery & Thriller Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
89% Tomatometer 80 Reviews 79% Popcornmeter 100,000+ Ratings
Strange and creepy happenings beset an average California family, the Freelings -- Steve (Craig T. Nelson), Diane (JoBeth Williams), teenaged Dana (Dominique Dunne), eight-year-old Robbie (Oliver Robins), and five-year-old Carol Ann (Heather O'Rourke) -- when ghosts commune with them through the television set. Initially friendly and playful, the spirits turn unexpectedly menacing, and, when Carol Ann goes missing, Steve and Diane turn to a parapsychologist and eventually an exorcist for help.
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Poltergeist

Poltergeist

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Critics Consensus

Smartly filmed, tightly scripted, and -- most importantly -- consistently frightening, Poltergeist is a modern horror classic.

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Critics Reviews

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Wendy Ide The Times (UK) Oct 23, 2023
... A masterclass in creeping suburban horror. Go to Full Review Kevin Maher The Times (UK) Oct 21, 2022
4/5
One of the great anti-TV movies, alongside Network and The Truman Show. Go to Full Review Peter Bradshaw Guardian Oct 21, 2022
5/5
The keynote of the film is O’Rourke’s eerie, ethereally pale face, illuminated by the unearthly light of the haunted TV. Go to Full Review Rachel Wagner Rachel's Reviews (YouTube) Oct 28, 2025
They do a great job building tension with some effective scares Go to Full Review Bryce Hanson Horror Movie Talk Sep 18, 2025
10/10
It really has something for everyone. It’s accessible enough to general audiences that don’t want to see gore, or be constantly scared out of their gore, but it has enough scares and good special effects to satisfy most horror fanatics. Go to Full Review Patrick Cavanaugh The Wolfman Cometh Sep 11, 2025
4/5
The major scares stuck with audiences for good reason, though it's the family dynamics that really make this one a classic. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Fred Oct 13, 2024 Man, this is a GOOD movie. Nowadays I only hope for solidly mediocre. No boring parts. Great character development. Freely, but not too gory, we'll except for one dream sequence where a guy tears his own face off. Very California 1980s growing up - R.C. Cars, T.V. remotes new technology, Televisions going off air at night after the National Anthem, etc See more geminielsy Oct 13, 2024 One of the best movies it still gave me the chills. See more jessie Jul 18, 2022 Classic 🤌🏽 not too spooky 👍🏽 See more Ron B @mets1225 4 hrs ago Great movie. Keeps your attention entire movie See more logan L @RT79790437 Sep 12, 2026 It’s a good movie. I wouldn’t consider it Horror, It’s more like a Supernatural Thriller. But still good. 👍 See more Anthony H @Hardy Sep 7, 2026 This was honestly a fun movie but not as a scary movie because it’s really not that scary. It’s a good family film with a good bonding story and has some surprisingly good comedy. The pacing is a little slow but not too bad, but the worst part of this movie is the last 30 minutes. They were completely unnecessary. See more Read all reviews
Poltergeist

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Cast & Crew

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Tobe Hooper

Director

Craig T. Nelson

Steve Freeling

JoBeth Williams

Diane Freeling

Beatrice Straight

Dr. Lesh

Dominique Dunne

Dana Freeling

Oliver Robins

Robbie Freeling

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Poltergeist

Poltergeist (1982) Poltergeist (1982) Poltergeist (1982) Poltergeist (1982) Poltergeist (1982) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis Strange and creepy happenings beset an average California family, the Freelings -- Steve (Craig T. Nelson), Diane (JoBeth Williams), teenaged Dana (Dominique Dunne), eight-year-old Robbie (Oliver Robins), and five-year-old Carol Ann (Heather O'Rourke) -- when ghosts commune with them through the television set. Initially friendly and playful, the spirits turn unexpectedly menacing, and, when Carol Ann goes missing, Steve and Diane turn to a parapsychologist and eventually an exorcist for help.
Director
Tobe Hooper
Producer
Frank Marshall
Screenwriter
Michael Grais, Mark Victor
Distributor
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Production Co
Metro Goldwyn Mayer
Rating
PG
Genre
Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 4, 1982, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 1, 2009
Box Office (Gross USA)
$121.8M
Runtime
1h 54m
Sound Mix
Surround, Stereo, Dolby
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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