Poltergeist II: The Other Side (1986)

The Freeling family have a new house, but their troubles with supernatural forces don't seem to be over.

Director:

Brian Gibson

Writers:

Michael Grais, Mark Victor

Stars:

JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson, Heather O'Rourke

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
JoBeth Williams	...	Diane Freeling (as Jobeth Williams)
Craig T. Nelson	...	Steve Freeling
Heather O'Rourke	...	Carol Anne Freeling
Oliver Robins	...	Robbie Freeling
Zelda Rubinstein	...	Tangina Barrons
Will Sampson	...	Taylor
Julian Beck	...	Kane
Geraldine Fitzgerald	...	Gramma-Jess
John P. Whitecloud	...	Old Indian
Noble Craig	...	Vomit Creature
Susan Peretz	...	Daughter
Helen Boll	...	Mother
Kelly Jean Peters	...	Young Jess
Jaclyn-Rose Lester	...	Young Diane (as Jaclyn Bernstein)
Robert Lesser	...	Kane's People

Storyline

The Freeling family move in with Diane's mother in an effort to escape the trauma and aftermath of Carol Anne's abduction by the Beast. But the Beast is not to be put off so easily and appears in a ghostly apparition as the Reverend Kane, a religeous zealot responsible for the deaths of his many followers. His goal is simple - he wants the angelic Carol Anne; but the love of her family and the power of psychic Tangina once again unite, along with an elderly native American, to fight for her life.

---

Plot Keywords:

psychic | native american | car trouble | cemetery | girl | 

---

Taglines:

They're back.

---

Genres:

Horror

---

Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 May 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Poltergeist II

Filming Locations:

1589 Homewood Dr., Altadena, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$19,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$40,996,665 (USA)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min 130 min (original cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Like the first film, there are no murders depicted, and no violent fatalities.

---

Goofs

In the scene where Carol-Anne is drying her dolls hair, Carol-Anne has wet hair, later in the scene when Steve tells Diane she never wanted Carol-Anne, Carol-Anne peers round the bathroom door with dry hair, yet earlier in the scene Diane says to Steve that she should dry Carol-Anne's hair, this clearly indicates different times when the scene was filmed.

---

Quotes

Diane: Steven, we are almost broke.
Steve Freeling: Okay, we're, we're broke, but we're not, we're not starving!
Diane: Okay. But I don't happen to like having to live off my mother, and I think that we deserve a house of our own again someday.
Steve Freeling: Aw, honey, geez... see, that's the difference between you and me, Diane, I am into downward mobility. I'm not settling for it, I'm *into* it, I - I like getting out there in the streets and meetin' those people; I like selling vacuums, I like carrying the pipes and the apparatus in ...
[...]

---

Crazy Credits

In the credits, the words "Cavern and Mountaintop set materials by Foam-Tec" do not match with the rest of the closing credits. They seem to have been added on later.

---

Connections

Spoofed in Army of Darkness (1992)

User Reviews

So-so first sequel

"Poltergeist II: The Other Side" is a mostly average sequel to the superb 1982 horror movie about unfriendly ghosts terrorizing a suburban family. This movie is not real bad like most people say it is (I did like some of it), but it's not real good either.

"Poltergeist II" takes place in Arizona, which is where the Freeling family now resides. But no matter where you go you can't keep a nasty ghost down, and those pesky spirits are back to terrorize the family once again. Where the first film was scary with a great sense of humor, the second film comes off more funny than scary. Not a good sign for a horror film where you're expected to be scared. And there isn't much scares this time around. Plus, the special effects this time around aren't as effective as they were in the first film. Nevertheless, the effects received another Oscar nomination, which to me was surprising.

If there's anything to like about "Poltergeist II", it's the acting. JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson, Heather O'Rourke, Oliver Robins, and Zelda Rubinstein are all back reprising their roles from the first film, with a few new faces add to the cast. The new cast members add some spark here. Will Sampson is very good as the Indian medicine man who also happens to be an exorcist, and comes in to help out the Freelings; Julian Beck makes a strong presence as the evil preacher who happens to be the leader of the ill-mannered ghosts (Beck was reportedly very ill when he made this, and it shows on the screen; he died right after filming completed); and the great veteran actress Geraldine Fitzgerald has a nice small part as Grandma Freeling. So to sum up this film: good acting, bad story, so-so effects, which makes for an average movie.

*** (out of five)