Poltergeist III Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		5.0
Overall		2.5

Poltergeist III Blu-ray Movie Review

The Rise of Kane

Reviewed by Dr. Stephen Larson February 27, 2017

Poltergeist III is a classic example of a sequel that goes to the well once too often. This retread occurs despite the fact that writer/director Gary Sherman and co-writer Brian Taggert relocate the action from the California suburbs of the first two films to one of the tallest skyscrapers in the world in downtown Chicago. But this third installment in the famed horror series is on familiar ground during the opening scene where a seemingly amiable window washer smiles at the gazing Carol Anne Freeling (Heather O'Rourke), who sees the elderly man descend on his suspended platform. While she cannot see his eyes, Carol Anne seems to recognize the weathered face, long white hair, and broach worn by an infamous preacher that tormented the innocent girl and her family only months earlier. Indeed, according to Sherman, focus research that MGM/UA conducted about the target audience of the Poltergeist films indicated that fans of the 1986 sequel liked Reverend Henry Kane enough to bring him back for a third film. Kane has caught up with Carol Anne, who is now residing in a luxury suite with her Uncle Bruce Gardner (Tom Skerritt), the manager of the 100-story John Hancock Center, and his new wife, Patricia Wilson-Gardner (Nancy Allen), who are getting ready for an art exhibit and dinner party in the building.

While Carol Anne's stay with relatives is only temporary, she is also attending a private school in the area described by the headmaster as "for gifted children with emotional problems." The loathsome Dr. Seaton (Richard Fire) is using Carol Anne's clairvoyance to draw hypnotic suggestions out of her as part of a social experiment to impress external observers visiting the school. Seaton doesn't really believe the stories his young patient tells him about what happened to the Freelings in California. He's more interested in eliciting reactions from Carol Anne as a deceptive ploy. Unbeknownst to Seaton, though, having Carol Anne talk about Kane will not keep him away but actually bring him back.

Who's that looking in at Carol Anne?

O'Rourke, Skerritt, and Allen are all fine in the film (even though Skerritt appears too old to be Allen's husband). It's the secondary and tertiary characters that are the problem, with performances that range from mediocre to downright awful. Marcie Moyer (Catherine Gatz) is a big annoyance and irritant, teasing Carol Anne about her past in the van on the way to school. Martin Moyer (Paul Graham) also sticks out like a sore thumb. The kids' verbal abuse reminds me of the group of school children who heckled Jamie Lloyd in the superior Halloween 4, which was also released in 1988. Lara Flynn Boyle (in her big screen debut) delivers an average performance as Bruce's daughter, Donna Gardner, as does Kipley Wentz as Donna's boyfriend, Scott. Donna's friends are all stock characters, saying things and acting in similar ways as teenagers did in horror movies during this period.

Poltergeist III could have been a much scarier and suspenseful film had it not been for Sherman's overuse of mirrors and window reflections. Whenever a character is about to board an elevator, there is a hall of mirrors with the reflection of Kane or the false Carol Anne. Sherman repeats this pattern with the car windscreen and the mirror in the Taggert's apartment suite. After a while, the style loses its effectiveness. In this film, Nathan Davis's Kane is more of a phantasmagorical entity spun out of an alternate universe in comparison to the flesh and bones of Julian Beck's Kane, whose visage seems far more real through the Freelings' screen door. Apart from the bottomless pool in the parking garage, the Chicago high-rise is the wrong venue for Kane to stalk his victims.

When I watched Poltergeist III on cable years ago, I felt that its tone was simply off. A main reason is that composer Joe Renzetti's score sounds either monophonic or homophonic, meaning that it doesn't demonstrate much rhythmic independence outside of a single chord. The droning synths are repeated like an ostinato and they sound dated in their dissonance. Jerry Goldsmith's scores for the first two films make brilliant use of a lullaby for Carol Anne, haunting melodies, secondary character themes, and a variety of electronic and orchestral sounds. This film really misses Goldsmith.

The very sad and unfortunate passing of Heather O'Rourke following principal photography hangs over Poltergeist III like a dark cloud. O'Rourke and returning co-star Zelda Rubinstein are the best parts of the film. But why did various characters have to bellow "Carol Anne! Carol Anne!" so many times? O'Rourke deserved a much better film to be her last.

Poltergeist III Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Shout! Factory brings Poltergeist III to Blu-ray as a "Collector's Edition" on this AVC-encoded BD-50. The main feature carries an average video bitrate of 34.994 kbps. The movie is presented in its original theaterical aspect ratio of 1.85:1. Shout! advertises this as a new 2K scan of the interpositive and it displays a different transfer than the one my colleague, Michael Reuben, reviewed on the MGM BD a few years ago. I have studied screen captures and frame enlargements from both transfers and conclude that they exhibit variations in color temperature. The Shout! often has more natural skin tones compared to the MGM, which adds a shade of gray. In other instances, faces take on a ruddier complexion on the MGM. Shout! looks a notch brighter but color levels have not been unnecessarily raised. Shout! sports superior definition and detail. Next to the MGM, Shout! has more information on the top and along the edges. The image on the MGM seems to have been zoomed in, although there may be a little more info on the bottom. Hues on the MGM can exhibit a washed-out appearance. Shout! definitely boasts the better picture. There are a few speckles and smudges but this has to be the best Poltergeist III has looked since the 35mm release prints were first unveiled. The grain structure is also very consistent with practically perfect balance.

Poltergeist III Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Shout! provides a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Surround remix (3516 kbps) and the movie's original DTS-HD Master Audio Stereo 2.0 (2004 kbps). The restoration on the 5.1 track is very clean with no audible hiss or noticeable distortion. Dialogue is clear across the front channels except for Kane's gravely voice but that was intentional. Renzetti's music sounds fine on all channels. The surrounds demonstrate the most activity during scenes involving optical visual effects and scenes with creatures' arms reaching out. Most audiophiles will be quite pleased with Shout!'s sound work.

Shout! supplies optional English SDH.

Poltergeist III Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• NEW Audio Commentary with Director Gary Sherman - Red Shirt Pictures' Michael Felsher moderates this feature-length commentary with Sherman. Felsher generally asks solid questions and Sherman's memory of filming is pretty sharp. Felsher too often responds to Sherman's remarks with an "Aha" or "Oh, okay" but keeps the running chat moving along. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Audio Commentary with Poltergeist III Webmaster David Furtney - Poltergeist fan site editor Furtney delivers a nostalgic track, reminiscing about his experience of seeing the film in the theater as an eight-year-old. He is still fond of it and defends it on some fronts. He also points out a bunch of worthwhile production facts and anecdotes that will interest fans. There are some gaps during the last act but Furtney has put a lot of time and effort into this one. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW High Spirits – An Interview with Screenwriter Brian Taggert (16:02, 1080p) - a very informative retrospective interview with Taggert, who recollects his earlier collaboration with Sherman and many tidbits about his screenplay. He's candid and acknowledges the script's weaknesses and speculates how it may have fared better in 1988. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Reflections – An Interview with Actress Nancy Allen (12:15, 1080p) - Allen looks back at making the film and working together with a number of the actors. She only seems to look better as she grows older. In English, not subtitled.

• NEW Mirror Images – An Interview with Special Effects Creator John Caglione, Jr. (12:47, 1080p) - a solid interview with Caglione about the film's pre-CGI effects. He also recounts the special opportunity of working with the legendary Dick Smith. You'll want to listen to the end for a great story about the stripper that he hired for the crew! In English, not subtitled.

• Alternate Ending (2:50, 1080p) - Shout! fortunately discovered this previously lost ending which survives with f/x but without dialogue.

• Theatrical Trailer (1:04, 1080p) - MGM's original teaser trailer for Poltergeist III. In English and presented in 1:85:1 anamorphic widescreen.

• TV Spots (2:06, upconverted to 1080i) - four TV spots promoting Poltergeist III. Presented in 1.33:1 and appearing in decent shape.

• Still Galleries (6:28, 1080p) - a montage of behind-the-scenes photos, production stills, lobby cards, US and international posters, press kit photos, and storyboards from Poltergeist III. In color and black and white.

• Poltergeist III Shooting Script (10:47, 1080p) - captured images from the script pages of Poltergeist III. This is presented as a slide show so you will want to pause each page to be able to read the text in full. I wish that Shout! had included this screenplay as a PDF but because it's copyrighted material, the scribes and MGM probably did not want open-access electronic files circulating around the Web.

Poltergeist III Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I wanted to give Poltergeist III another chance but the film suffers from problems in too many areas to gel together as a sequel that works. While it would seem inconceivable to envision another actress portraying Carl Anne other than Heather O'Rourke, the producers should have waited another year or until they received a better script that would have been worth it for everyone involved. Fans of the film, however, will be extremely pleased with the outstanding picture and sound on this disc. Shout! has pulled out all the stops on the bonus materials. If you are at all fond of Poltergeist III, this C.E. will not disappoint. RECOMMENDED TO FANS OF THE SERIES ONLY.