Poltergeist III (1988)

Director:

Gary Sherman

Writers:

Gary Sherman (writer)
Brian Taggert (writer)

Release Date:

10 June 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

He's found her.

Plot:

Carol Anne is staying with her aunt in a highrise building, and the supernatural forces that have haunted her previously follow her there.

Plot Keywords:

Building | Supernatural | Good Versus Evil | Psychologist | Surrealism

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Tom Skerritt	...	Bruce Gardner
Nancy Allen	...	Patricia Wilson-Gardner
Heather O'Rourke	...	Carol Anne Freeling
Zelda Rubinstein	...	Tangina Barrons
Lara Flynn Boyle	...	Donna Gardner
Kipley Wentz	...	Scott (as Kip Wentz)
Richard Fire	...	Dr. Seaton
Nathan Davis	...	Reverend Henry Kane
Roger May	...	Burt
Paul Graham	...	Martin Moyer
Meg Weldon	...	Sandy
Stacy Gilchrist	...	Melissa
Joey Garfield	...	Jeff
Christian Murphy	...	Dusty (as Chris Murphy)
Roy Hytower	...	Nathan

Also Known As:

Poltergeist III: The Final Chapter (Australia)
Poltergeist III: We're Back (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Germany:16 | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) | USA:PG-13 | Iceland:16 | Netherlands:16 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Finland:K-16 | France:U | Norway:15 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG-13 (edited for re-rating) | USA:PG (original rating) | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Lara Flynn Boyle's film debut.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Bruce Gardner and Patricia Wilson-Gardner are being chased by cars in the underground garage the driver is visible when one of the cars is crashed at the end of the chase.

Quotes:

Marcie Moyer: Oh, Scott! My knight in shining acne!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Moonlighting: Poltergeist III - Dipesto Nothing (#3.10)" (1987)

Soundtrack:

NIGHT RIDER

Bad on all counts.

What made the first Poltergeist so appealing was how likeable the characters were. For the 3rd installment in the Poltergeist series only Heather O'rourke (Carol Anne) and Zelda Rubinstein (Tangina) are hold overs from the original cast. If O'rourke and Rubinstein were smart they would have skipped particiapating in this bomb of a movie also.

Though the special effects were somewhat interesting this movie suffers from a bad script and bad acting highlighted by the actor who plays Dr. Seaton, who may have given the worst acting performance ever. There are far too many characters in this movie who are uninteresting and that you have a hard time caring about.

There is a certain sadness in watching this film knowing that Heather O'rourke died a few months before it's release. A double for Heather is used to shoot the final scenes of the movie which creates an odd and choppy ending.

This movie is a sad final chapter in the Potergeist series. The people behind the 2nd and 3rd installments were never able to recapture the magic from the original Poltergeist. It's even sadder that the cute and innocent little girl passed away at such a young age.