Filipe Neto This movie might just be a remake, but it's not. In fact, it seems to have taken very little from its predecessors in title. The script is banal: as it has happened in thousands of films before, a family with children moves to a new house, acquiring without knowing the (not very encouraging) possibility of being frightened by an endless series of ghosts. Of course, children will be the preferred target of these ghosts, be it by the ingenuity or the effect that this can provoke in the public. Nothing new here. Equally unoriginal (we've seen something similar in "Insidious" or "The Conjuring"), the wardrobe in the girl's room is the most active place, eventually "devouring" one of the children. I will not talk more about what happens in this movie so I will not spoil. I just wanted to demonstrate that the film is a succession of cliches.Gil Kenan's direction proved to be poor, fragile and did not seem to have been able to ask for the best of the actors and staff members. A lazy direction, which is content with the medium without pursuing excellence. The scares are scarce and predictable: objects that jump towards the display, snoring, scary noises and lights. I can say that I never felt truly frightened while watching the film. About the actors what can be said is that they seem to me to have tried to fulfill their role well, but they were not directed effectively. Sam Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt fulfilled their roles, while the children (especially Kennedi Clements and Kyle Catlett) seem to have fully lived up to what was asked of them. Jared Harris and Jane Adams do not seem to have been good choices, a complete casting error.This film is a far cry from the quality of the Poltergeist of the 1980s, and I do not know if it's honest to relate these films to this movie. This seems a bit too ambitious, even though they share the same name. Despite this, I have the feeling that it would have been better with a more creative script and a more demanding and skillful director.

Nigel P I vaguely remember watching the original version of this on television many years ago. The only abiding memory I have is of a little girl mewling 'They're coming,' and a television screen dancing with static. So on that basis, I have nothing much to compare this remake to. It begins with that most frightening thing: the wholesome family unit!Dad (Eric played by Sam Rockwell) is initially something of a twit but we warm to him as time goes on; mum (Amy, Rosemary DeWitt) tolerates everything with a smile; the teen daughter (Kendra, Saxon Sharbino) is constantly bored, growing up to look perfect and is spitefully sardonic and unbearable unless she gets her own way; the young son (Griffin - Kyle Catlett injects a refreshing earnestness into his character) is the best of the lot: un-sporty, polite and reserved, and the little girl (Maddie, Kennedi Clements) is a typical drama student juvenile. No more, no less. The paranormal investigator Carrigan Burke (Jared Harris) called out to investigate livens things up.The encroaching possession elements are handled very well. Apart from the cartoon-ish CGI tree terrorising Griffin, most of the effects in the house are real and physical (the finale very much the exception). The camera pans round a bedroom full of everyone sleeping as all the electrical items crackle on and off of their own accord. There are loud bangs and musical stings. And not one of these things is remotely frightening. What is guaranteed to squash the effect is the almost constant accompaniment of screaming children - which may be something I might be in the minority having any kind of problem with.I would say this is as competent as it can be, with a spectacular finale. It doesn't appear to tarnish the high reputation of the original, but doesn't take any particular risks with the format either.

CB Another butchered classic.Gone are the fascinating light effects, cool monster puppets and skeletons. Instead we get a lot of noise, action oriented escape scenes and an admittedly nicely done look at the other side. The latter doesn´t save the movie, though.In the end this is another of those totally unnecessary remakes, that add nothing new to the original.

tstudstrup I can't really remember the original. I do know that when it comes to horror I prefer practical effects over cgi. And this remake has way too much cgi. The old one of course only had practical effects. I still don't remember it as scary though. Except one scene where a technician in horror thinks he's pulling his own face off. This being PG13, we only get a scene where an annoying rude Ashton Kutcher-type-technician gets his arm stuck and is almost getting a drill into his face. Pretty lame.Especially considering the scene just before where it would have been nice if he had been killed by the drill.The acting goes from bad to decent to bad to decent again. And there are plot holes biggger than the one in the little girls closet.For a family that has lost their youngest daughter to angry spirits, they remain very calm, only to break down a couple of times. If I had kids and one of them had gone missing, I would be terrified all the time, unable to eat or sleep.As far as plot holes go, the entire movie is a major plothole, like how a father who was recently fired, can get a bankloan to buy a house.Especially since the mother isn't working How the family can just borrow the ghost hunters car at the end of the movie, only to never give it back and never come back for their own car. How the father with cancelled creditcards can buy expensive gifts for his family. How they're forcing their boy to sleep in the attic,. when he's terrified. How they find creepy clown dolls in his closet and don't get rid of them, even though they scare the boy.As far as the girl gone missing this was done way better in Insidious where a boy went missing the exact same way. And most likely much better in the original Poltergeist movie.If you can live with all these plot holes and some annoying characters, acting illogical in many situations, then you will like this movie. If you want good acting and real scare, watch Insidious instead.