Poltergeist III (1988)

Switching from suburbia to the big city is just one of the many changes present in Poltergeist III, the final chapter in what quickly became a sputtering horror series. While there is a trend that suggests the final installment of a series is often times the worst, I found this film to be an exception to the rule.

While this film fails to capture the magic and chills of the original Poltergeist, the filmmakers did enough right to make me enjoy this film more than Poltergeist II: The Other Side. There are still plenty of problems holding the film back, most important of which is the fact that this is once again a direct sequel that retcons the ending of the second installment.

At the end of Poltergeist II, the evil Reverend Kane was defeated by the Freeling family and was sent on to the other side. Poltergeist III ignores that little fact and has the religious kook of a spook coming back for more. Instead of tormenting the entire family again, which would have been annoyingly redundant, little Carol Anne has been sent to live with her aunt and uncle in a Chicago high-rise. No explanation is given for why the Freelings decided to ditch their daughter but it probably had something to do with the fact that none of the other actors wanted anything to do with another Poltergeist film. A weak cover is made that Carol Ann is going to a school for special children in Chicago (because, clearly, no such schools exist closer to her parents) and her aunt and uncle seem oblivious to any of the horrors their relatives have faced over the last few years.

The spirit of Kane manages to follow Carol Ann and begins appearing to her everywhere. Her school psychologist doesn’t think Kane is real and believes she is making it all up because it gets her the attention she craves. Meanwhile, Tangina somehow realizes Carol Anne is in trouble and begins trekking across the country to help her. It all boils down to a series of attacks and a final battle against Kane’s spirit.

While the story itself has plenty of pitfalls, I think most of that comes from trying to force the story to fit into the Poltergeist mold. Poltergeist II had the same problem- the story was interesting enough to have worked as an indirect sequel. While moviegoers aren’t always so hot on indirect sequels, sometimes they work out well. The concept of an evil spirit haunting a high-rise in the middle of a big city is pretty neat, though hardly original enough to make a good movie. It’s the small things that count.

One of the little touches that I really enjoyed was the tricky mirror work through the latter half of the film. When Kane finally takes full control of the building, he can manipulate people’s reflections, doing his dirty work for him. Some very unique camera techniques are used to make it appear that someone is in the mirrors in the hallway but not in the hallway itself. Also, double static shots and a lot of editing are used to make it appears as if the people in the hall are heading one way and their reflections the other. This bit of technical trickery is one of the big reasons that I prefer III to II. While maybe not innovative, it is certainly a step in a different direction from the standard lot of predictable scares that flooded II.

But technical trickery aside, the film really doesn’t deliver like it should. Very few chills and thrills are to be found and the script desperately needs rewriting in places. Carol Anne isn’t a compelling enough character to carry the film and the supporting players aren’t up to the task either. The battle between psychology and the supernatural was awkward at best and felt forced and borderline silly at times.

Poltergeist III has more raw potential than II did but most of that potential was held back (once again) by not allowing this film to develop as its own supernatural thriller instead of as another Poltergeist sequel. Had it been given the chance to develop outside of its forced foundation, this film could have had a completely different title, completely different characters and a much more satisfying aftertaste.

RATING: 2 out of 5