Poltergeist II: The Other Side (Exclusive Series) (HBO Max)

Initial release date: May 23, 1985

Studios: MGM

Tagline: They’re back

Plot: The Freelings have escaped their haunted house, which is now being studied by paranormal investigators, including shaman Taylor. When Taylor realizes that the Beast, masquerading as the Reverend Kane, knows where young Carol Anne now lives, he goes to warn the family that their daughter is in danger again. To protect Carol, her father and the rest of the family must plot to take down the Beast.

Cast

JoBeth Williams - Diane Freeling

Craig T. Nelson - Steve Freeling

Heather O’Rourke - Carol Anne Freeling

Oliver Robbins - Robbie Freeling

Zelda Rubinstein - Tangina Barrons

Will Sampson - Taylor

Julian Beck - Kane

Geraldine Fitzgerald - Grandma Jess

Writer(s): Michael Grais and Mark Victor (both writers of ‘Poltergeist’)

Director: Brian Gibson (The Juror; What’s Love Got to Do with it)

Rated PG-13 (91 min)

‘Poltergeist II: The Other Side’ is the second entry of the ‘Poltergeist’ trilogy that will still give you some good chills. In fact, the first sequel is slightly darker than the 1982 movie.

There are quite a few tense scenes and a new villain named Reverend Kane. The Kane character was actually involved with the supernatural elements that took place in the first movie. This new character is truly creepy and is a great addition to the sequel.

The ending does seem rushed and looked like it was just cobbled together. One actual reason why the ending was rushed -- the actor who played Kane passed away while filming and his character had a huge part in the ending.

Overall, the sequel is a decent follow up that has a few good scares and a couple laughs. Even though this movie is not bad at all, the 1982 feature is definitely the better of the two. And, skip the third movie. It’s not that great.

You can stream ‘Poltergeist II’ on HBO Max.

FYI - ‘Poltergeist II’ is 35 years old!!!

Here are some interesting tidbits about ‘Poltergeist II: The Other Side’:

• The only family member absent from the film is Dana, who according to the script is off at university, but a scene explaining away her absence was never filmed. Due to the death of the original actress, it was decided by the filmmakers to retire the character and not recast her out of respect for the actress’ family.

• The film had an original running time of 131 minutes before being edited down to 91 minutes. Some have surmised that MGM rushed production and ordered the cuts, e.g. the final battle with Kane lasts all of two minutes.

• Several scenes that appeared in press stills or promotional posters were cut from the finished film.

• ‘Poltergeist II’ grossed roughly $41 million at the US box office.

• A third movie was released in 1988 and was a critical/commercial failure.