Poltergeist 3 (1988)

Poltergeist III (1988)

Taglines: He’s found her.

Poltergeist 3 movie synopsis. Carol Anne has been sent to live with her Aunt and Uncle in an effort to hide her from the clutches of the ghostly Reverend Kane, but he tracks her down and terrorises her in her relatives’ appartment in a tall glass building. Will he finally achieve his target and capture Carol Anne again, or will Tangina be able, yet again, to thwart him?

Poltergeist III is a 1988 American supernatural horror film and is the third and final entry in the original Poltergeist film series. Writers Michael Grais and Mark Victor, who wrote the screenplay for the first two films, did not return for this second sequel; it was co-written, executive produced, and directed by Gary Sherman, and was released on June 10, 1988 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures. The film was panned by critics, and was a box office disappointment.

Heather O’Rourke and Zelda Rubinstein were the only original cast members to return. O’Rourke died four months before the film was released and before post-production could be completed. It was dedicated to her memory.

Poltergeist III (1988)

About the Story

The Freeling family has sent Carol Anne (Heather O’Rourke) to live with Diane’s sister Pat (Nancy Allen) and her husband Bruce Gardner (Tom Skerritt) in Chicago. Carol Anne has been told she is living with her aunt and uncle temporarily to attend a unique school for gifted children with emotional problems, though Pat thinks it is because Steven and Diane just wanted Carol Anne out of their house. Pat and Bruce are unaware of the events that the Freeling family had endured in the previous two films, only noting that Steven was involved in a bad land deal. Along with Donna (Lara Flynn Boyle), Bruce’s daughter from a previous marriage, they live in the luxury skyscraper (Chicago’s 100-story John Hancock Center) of which Bruce is the manager.

Carol Anne has been made to discuss her experiences by her teacher/psychiatrist, Dr. Seaton (Richard Fire). Seaton believes her to be delusional; however, the constant discussion has enabled the evil spirit of Rev. Henry Kane (Nathan Davis) to locate Carol Anne and bring him back from the limbo he was sent during his previous encounter with her. Not believing in ghosts, Dr. Seaton has come to the conclusion that Carol Anne is a manipulative child with the ability to perform mass hypnosis, making people believe they were attacked by ghosts. Also during this period, Tangina Barrons (Zelda Rubinstein) realizes that Kane has found Carol Anne and travels cross-country to protect her.

That night, Kane drains the high rise of heat and takes possession of reflections in mirrors, causing the reflections of people to act independently of their physical counterparts. When Carol Anne is left alone that night, Kane attempts to use the mirrors in her room to capture her, but she escapes with the help of Tangina, who telepathically tells Carol Anne to break the mirror.

Donna and her boyfriend, Scott, see a frightened Carol Anne running through the high rise’s parking lot, and move to rescue her; however, before they can, all three are taken to the Other Side through a puddle by Kane and his people. By this point, Tangina and Dr. Seaton are both at the high rise, along with Pat and Bruce. Dr. Seaton stubbornly assumes that Carol Anne has staged the entire thing, while Tangina tries to get her back.

Poltergeist III Movie Poster (1988)

Poltergeist 3 (1988)

Directed by: Gary Sherman
Starring: Heather O’Rourke, Tom Skerritt, Nancy Allen, Zelda Rubinstein, Lara Flynn Boyle, Kipley Wentz, Richard Fire, Nathan Davis, Meg Weldon
Screenplay by: Gary Sherman, Brian Taggert
Production Design by: Paul Eads
Cinematography by: Alex Nepomniaschy
Film Editing by: Ross Albert
Costume Design by: Tom McKinley
Set Decoration by: Linda Lee Sutton
Art Direction by: W. Steven Graham
Music by: Joe Renzetti
Distributed by: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Release Date: June 10, 1988

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