#121 - "Poltergeist" (1982) with Ben Carpenter and Bethany Wells

Get ready for chills as we revisit a classic that doesn’t rely on superhuman slashers or crazed killers but still managed to freeze audiences in fear. "Poltergeist" (1982) tells the story of an ordinary suburban family haunted by supernatural forces that tap into our deepest fears. From a clown doll that springs to life, to a closet that becomes a portal to another dimension, and a tree that breaks through a bedroom window, the terror builds. But nothing is more unsettling than a young girl calmly pressing her hands against a flickering TV screen and announcing: "They’re here..."

Join Tim Williams, Ben Carpenter, and Bethany Wells as they slide across the kitchen floor, grab a raw steak from the fridge, and dive into why this PG-rated fright fest has haunted HBO viewers since the 80s. Does it still give them the creeps? Tune in to this episode of the 80s Flick Flashback Podcast to find out!

Here are some additional behind-the-scenes trivia we were unable to cover in this episode:

• Dr. Lesh states in the movie that the paranormal activity in the Freeling home is likely caused by a poltergeist, rather than a haunting. This is because poltergeists are typically linked to a specific person, while hauntings are associated with a particular location. However, this assessment proves to be incorrect when Steven discovers that the house was built on a cemetery, indicating that the phenomenon is actually a haunting and not a poltergeist.
• The sound effect for the beast that attacks the house at the end of the movie is the source for the MGM lion roar.
• Poltergeist's special effects and score were both nominated for Oscars but lost to Spielberg's bigger film, "E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial", in both categories.

Sources:

Wikipedia, IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, Box Office Mojo

⁠https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2022/09/poltergeist-at-40⁠

Some sections were composed by ChatGPT

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