Rating: 
Summary: Buy this set, if anything, just to see Julian Beck!!!
Review: Ok, I'll be the first to admit that in and of itself, Poltergeist II is one of the most well-plotted but weakly executed horror films ever. The abrupt and tacked-on ending seems to be just an excuse to throw in some fancy pseudo-CGI effects, and the end scene leaves you feeling dissatisfied if not completely cheated. But, to the infinite good fortune of the producers, a staff-employed psychic who had a hand in casting the film chose for the role of the evil Reverend Kane an actor whose bone-chilling countenance and blood-curdling voice will linger with you long after the end credits have ceased. The masterful two to three-minutes total screen time that Julian Beck was allotted is worth the ENTIRE price tag all by itself!!! He OWNS the screen. As soon as he walks into frame, you can actually FEEL the impending doom and death wafting off of him in thick, smoky waves. Reverend Kane IS death, in the flesh. He's also my personal pick for Scariest Movie Villain Of All Time! Oh, and Poltergeist III is pretty cool also!
Rating: 
Summary: Review
Review: Poltergeist has scared me since I was a small child, and Poltergeist II is definitely as good as the original, if not better. I'll admit that the ending is kind of cheesy and has poor special effects (i.e. the whole family floating around in some weird disco-lighted other dimension) but overall the movie is awesome! Beck is very believable as the evil and insane Reverend Kane, and the by the end you really feel for the whole family who are just trying to live normal lives and never asked for any of this to happen to them.Poltergeist III on the other hand made me want to vomit. What was MGM thinking when they made this movie? How sad that it had to be this terrible piece of garbage that is dedicated to the memory of Heather O'Rourke. This movie seems very slapped together, almost like the producers wanted to get it done as fast as possible and didn't care what the end result looked like. From very, very, VERY poor acting on the part of ALL the actors, to horrible special effects which basically only consisted of flashing lights, fake snow and ice, and a fog machine, to barely any coherent plotlines, this movie is a big fat 0 out of 5 stars. It is cheesy (and not in the good cheesy horror movie kind of way) and boring and leaves the viewer with a sick feeling at the end not because the movie itself is scary and disturbing, but because they can't believe how bad Poltergeist III actually was! My advice...buy this DVD only because it has Poltergeist II on it. Remember...there aren't any evil spirits who would FORCE you to watch Poltergeist III. I don't think anyone or anything could be that crazy. : )
Rating: 
Summary: A likeable sequel
Review: Poltergeist II doesn't leave the viewer totally fulfilled in my opinion, but it leaves the viewer satisfied. I think any fan of the original movie needed to see the family once again after their first ordeal. Poltergeist II allows that reunion. It is done well enough that it is a likeable sequel, though not ultimately impressive. It is filled with the same lovable cast (with the exception of the oldest daughter, Dana) and the movie gives you reminders of the first (through various elements including a similar -- yet varieted soundtrack -- by Jerry Goldsmith). The whole indian theme of Poltergiest II is kind of suprising to me, yet they make sense of it (it is obviously rooted in Steven's boss's line in the first movie: "This is NOT ancient tribal buriel ground. It is just people."). Overall, the special effects were pretty good, considering the idea behind some of them were cheesy. Ultimately, I think the movie is worth it if you really are a major fan of the first. POLTERGEIST III -- This movie leaves me with a bad taste in my mouth. Not only was it super cheesy and outright dumb, it just felt strange to me seeing the famous "Carol Anne" mixed in with a different cast in the setting of a skyscraper in Chicago. Overall, I remember feeling sad that Heather O'Rourke had died in real life, and this had to be her last movie. Put it this way: There is a good reason the movie is attached to Poltergiest II in one DVD package (nobody would buy the poorly-done third movie by itself). I think the III movie kind of taints the whole Poltergeist genre.
Rating:
Summary: Good But Thin Sequel Vs. Horrible Wrap Up.
Review: Poltergeist II is a good movie lost in a bad one. The back story to the original film is revealed and it quite good but the movie falls apart when it should deliver. The film opens up with a Native American being given a "spirit" to help combat a strong presence located back on the property in which the house from the 1st film was located. He senses that the family is in trouble and goes on a search for them. The movie eventually reveals the real reason behind the first haunting and why the Poltergeists are back again. The movies' main villain is "The Preacher" Kane. He will do anything to get Carol Anne back to lead him and his followers into the light. All of this is quite interesting but the movie fails to deliver on its premise. For one, there are way too many false scares. Characters dream about being pulled underground by dead bodies. Dead bodies appear in a mirror. Dead bodies which turn out to be closet items appear. This really cheats the audience. Also, take the scene where about 50 ghosts are walking on the lawn. You look at that and get a chill but then, we never see them again. We hear some beating and stomping in the house and that is it. And another scene has a character in grave danger only for it to suddenly go away. Was he actually in trouble? When the ghosts come back, they do so through a plastic toy telephone and Heather O'Rourke delivers a weak "They're Back" line. No where near as chilling as "They're here." The acting in this film is very good and keeps the movie from sinking. Once again, you really feel for these people. JoBeth Williams is effective but not as good as she was in the first film. Julian Beck is quite scary as Kane but he isn't given much to do and the film could have benefited from more scenes with him. Were there some scenes cut out? I would like to see deleted scenes with Kane. And of course, I still think Zelda Rubinstein was born to play Tangina and her presence is always welcome. The "monster" and the ending of the film feel very rushed as if they had no time to develop them. Don't ask HG Giger to create a monster for a film that will hardly be used. And the final "battle" isn't much at all. It is a convoluted scene of special effects and confused editing. There is a lot to like in this film, but you will walk away from it feeling empty, especially about the forced "funny" final moments. You get insight to the events from the first film but don't expect new and exciting scares. Poltergeist III, on the "other side", it a bad, bad movie but it has a sort of "Mystery Science Theater 3000" charm to it. This time, Carol Anne is living in Chicago with her Aunt and Uncle to attend a "gifted" school and the "ghosts" find her. That is the basic plot and given the fact that Kane and his followers went into the light at the end of the 2nd film, having Kane as the "main ghost" made this film fail. The movie is filled with bad acting and dialogue. Tom Skerritt is just way over the top in his early scenes and gives his worse performance of his career. Nancy Allen doesn't help much and Laura Flynn Boyle was lucky she survived this mess. Then there is the dialogue, which many quotes have become part of my daily life in just the sheer silliness of it all. From "Give Me The Necklace" to "I've got the knowledge and the power" to the bloated face Tangina saying "Outside-In", the movie makes you laugh unintentionally many times. Oh, then there is "The Puddle!","Funny, funnier","We wont harm you..we love you." While over the top, Zelda Rubinstein is the ONLY saving grace in this film. Her presence brings some of the creepiness that this movie needed. Yes, her final scene is pretty bad but here scenes in the middle of the movie are pretty good. Poltergeist III fails on all fronts but mainly due to the fact that it needed a fresh, new idea for haunting Carol Anne one more time.
Rating:
Summary: Neither one is as good as the original
Review: Poltergeist II: 4 stars
Poltergeist II: The Other Side was a pretty good film. I found it to be almost as good as the first one. We revisit the family that got spooked out of their house in the first film a year after the original took place. They're broke, and no one believes their story. So it's a good set up for interesting characters. The characters in this film were just as intriguing here as they were in the first film.
The old preacher ghost, Kane, has stuck with me since I was a kid as being one of the most scariest-looking people I have ever seen. So that alone is enough to make the movie scary. But the overall story is well written.
Poltergeist III: 2 Stars
Poltergeist III, on the other hand, is pretty much a bad film. The special effects, for the budget they had, were pretty good. I liked the concept of the mirrors in the building being the portal to the other side, as well as some of the other special effects. I liked that Kane, although played by a different actor(how unfortunate) was back. He was the creepiest thing about part II, so that was a good idea. And it was good that Carol Anne and Tangina were back. Lastly, it was a good idea to have the ghosts haunt the skyscraper.
But the original family did not return. As the story goes, they sent Carol Anne to stay with her aunt and uncle in Chicago who live in a Skyscraper. The actors who played the aunt and uncle did a decent job, but they weren't nearly as interesting as the original family of the first two films were. Lara Flynn Boyle does an alright job as the daughter of the aunt and uncle. But the rest of the actors were terrible. And this is the only movie that really shows that it was made in the 80s. The hairstyles, clothes and heavy make-up give it all away. The first two films don't look dated like this one does. And lastly, it just wasn't scary or interesting. I was bored about half-way through waiting for something exciting to happen, and it just doesn't. Most of the time we just hear Kane calling out to Carol Anne in that "evil dead" voice, trying to suck her into the other side. "Carol Anne! Carol Anne!" But nothing really happens until the last 20 minutes of the film, and even that's not that exciting.
It's too bad that Heather O'Rourke died four months before this film's release. And it's also very strange, if you remember the kind of character she was in these films. It was like she was destined for a nightmare in real life like she was in the films.
The DVD itself is pretty minimal. The picture is good, but the sound isn't in 5.1 or anything special. And the only special features are the theatrical trailers for the films (one for each film). But I'd say it was cool that they put both films on one disc, even though the third film wasn't all that great.
Rating:
Summary: Satisfying 1st Sequel and Pretty Poor 2nd
Review: Poltergeist II: Satisfying sequel to "Poltergeist" This Second Movie could have been slightly better, for example it could have featured more footage of Julian Beck as Kane and should have not omitted key scenes that were filmed but ended up missing due to MGM rushing Production. On a whole though I liked the Second Poltergeist Movie and was pleased with the story they dreamed up as to why the Poltergeist's attacked the Freelings in the first Movie. So many people seem to think the Second Movie is set 1 year after the first "It is not!" If you have reed the book you would know that Diane, Steven and the kids have been staying with Diane's mother for nearly 4 years and when Steve says "It's been a full year" he is referring to the fact that he has tried "yet again" to claim for the house disappearing and has had to wait a full year to get a response again. I thought the ending could have been better too as that also felt rushed I mean, "Where did Tangina go when Taylor drove off???" She is clearly missing from the shot. One thing I respect about II is that it made common sense and pretty much featured the original cast obviously missing Dominique Dunne who was murdered by her violent boyfriend. Just think if this had never happened II would have been so very different as Steven Spielberg was considering doing a second Movie along with Tobe Hooper and scrapped the idea when Dominique Dunne was murdered. The Scene in Poltergeist II where Diane Mentions Dana being away at college was filmed but was stupidly cut by MGM'S Producer on the movie, Freddie "Jackass" Fields who was the biggest mistake to have ever worked on this movie (he is the man directly responsible for all of the movies plot holes) Thankfully he was finally fired in 1990! I know that a good 26 minutes of Footage was cut by him from Poltergeist II and this is why it so badly needs to be restored and re-released as a Special Edition. I think if this version had been released back in 1986 Poltergeist II would have had very good reviews. All of the put-downs by critics were mainly regarding chops to the Movie and script plot holes. Poltergeist III: "Poor Movie only worth watching for O' Rourke's last performance" The 3rd Movie was just awful, "I'm not even going to waste my time". Poor little Heather O'Rourke died during filming which was such a
tragedy. "She was the only thing that saved this Movie from being a total
disaster" R.I.P Heather -xxxxxx I give Poltergeist II - ***1/2 out of *****
I give Poltergeist III - * our of *****
Rating: 
Summary: Poltergeist II should've Been Given a Better Treatment
Review: Poltergiest II had several cut scenes, some of which made it on to the Laser Disc version. This DVD release is a bare bones disc, with only theatrical trailers as extras. Poltergiest III was a TERRIBLE film and should not appear on the same disc as Poltergiest II: The Other Side. They were definately not cut from the same cloth so to speak. I can't believe MGM just threw them both onto one disc without putting much effort into it. Shameful.
Rating:
Summary: Reverend Kane is Awesome!!
Review: Reverend Kane was great in Poltergeist II. Poltergeist II was my favorite of the 3 and definitely one of the best of all time. If you have not seen it, you definitely need to buy this DVD... "God is in his holy temple...earthly thoughts are silent now..."-Reverend Kane.
Rating:
Summary: Reverend Kane is Awesome!!
Review: Reverend Kane was great in Poltergeist II. Poltergeist II was my favorite of the 3 and definitely one of the best of all time. If you have not seen it, you definitely need to buy this DVD... "God is in his holy temple...earthly thoughts are silent now..."-Reverend Kane.
Rating:
Summary: Two sequels in the same set....not bad
Review: The first "Poltegeist" movie was a smash hit, and naturally the producers in Hollywood saw a franchise in the making. Close to three years after the first movie, "Poltergeist II: The Other Side" debuted in theaters. This first sequel was decent as a haunted house thrill ride, but the original flare of the first film seems lost. In the original movie, we learn that the housing development the Freeling family resides in was built on top of an old cemetary, which apparently ticked off the souls interred there. In the second movie, we are given further explanation for why the Freelings' home was particularly targeted over the other houses int he community: beneath the cemetary, directly beneath the Freelings' home was the burial site of a bizarre religious cult that committed mass suicide under the direction of an insane Reverend Kane. Wrestling with insurance companies over the uncertain fate of their home, the Freelings (Jobeth Williams and Craig T. Nelson) have been forced to move in with Diane Freeling's mother. Soon, the spirits from the development track down the Freeling family, in the form of a fiendish Reverend Kane (Julian Beck), and again attempt to steal away Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke) to lead them into "the light". The family is once again aided by the "magical munchin" (as said by Craig T. Nelson in this sequel) Tangina (Zelda Rubinstein) with the assistance of an Indian shaman named Taylor (Will Sampson). The frights include Robbie Freeling's braces cocooning the poor boy and Steven Freeling ingesting a possessed worm from a bottle of tequila. The movie culminates in a slightly hokey conclusion as the family returns to the site of their missing home from the first film. Notably absent is the teenage Freeling daughter played by Dominique Dunne (the actress was murdered in 1983). Apparently, the director (Brian Gibson) had originally conceived of the idea that the character was away at college, though this never made it to the theatrical version.
"Poltergeist III" is an entirely different package. There was a novel idea proposed with this film: what would it be like if a skyscraper apartment community was haunted? Imagine Trump Tower being visited by the spectres from the first film. It is an intriguing concept that was regretably executed with all the excitement of unbuttered toast. While Heather O'Rourke and Zelda Rubinstein reprise their signature roles from the previous films, the rest of cast is new. Carol Anne Freeling is temporarily residing with her Aunt Pat (Nancy Allen) and Uncle Bruce (Tom Skeritt) in a Chicago highrise, while Carol Anne attends a special school for "gifted" children. The school's founder, Dr. Seaton (Richard Fire), shows no empathy or compassion for any of the gifted children under his supervision. His hypnosis sessions with Carol Anne lure the demonic Reverend Kane from "Poltegeist II" to Chicago, and then all hell breaks loose (though not as hellish as the other entries in the franchise). While the frightening events of the previous films transpired over the course of weeks, this plot covers a single day from beginning to end. The Tangina character feels very different and rather hokey compared to her original depiction. Bruce and Pat Gardner are a poor substitute for Steven and Diane Freeling. And then there's Lara Flynn Boyle playing the Gardners' daughter Donna, an obnoxious version of Dominique Dunne's character from the first film. The director of this film, Gary Sherman, admitted that he wanted to prove that this could be a great horror film without using the high budget special effects employed in the first two films, which is why audiences are left with clouds from subliming dry ice and reflections in mirrors not mimicking their real life counterparts. This entry severely lacks any truly frightening scenes. In the first movie, Tobe Hooper expertly exploited childhood fears of clowns and monsters under the bed and in the closet. In the second movie, Brian Gibson produced gruesome images of demonic tequila worms being regurgitated, a child being engulfed by his braces, and a sinister priest. I cannot find a single aspect of Gary Sherman's creation that taps into some primal fear. Sure, it would be extremely disconcerting to encounter your reflection doing something you are not, but the way it is executed in this film lacks any scare. The Reverend Kane character (this time played by Nathan Davis, since Julian Beck died after the second film) is reduced to a laughable presence here. Even sadder is that Heather O'Rourke died during the making of this film. A different, possibly more satisfying ending was filmed, but the studio did not like it and ordered a re-shoot. Unfortunately, O'Rourke had passed away by this time, so in the rushed new ending we never see Carol Anne's face because it is a stand-in. I really want to like this movie since the concept is an interesting one, and I very much enjoyed the previous two films in the franchise. However, this production is nothing more than a "what not to do" as a movie director.
The films are on opposite sides of the single disk in the set. Each comes with a menu allowing for chapter selection, language modification, and the original trailers for each film. It is pretty bare bones as far as extras go. Perhaps, in the future, we will be treated with a special edition set with deleted scenes including the much speculated orignal ending of "Poltergeist III". However, if you are a fan of the Poltergeist franchise, this is clearly a must-own set.
| 
