Gil Kenan has added another face to the roster for his reboot of the 1980's mega-classic Poltergeist. Jane Adams, best known for her role as the frizzy haired pimp in HBO's short-lived Hung, has been cast in the MGM and Fox 2000 reboot. She will be playing a parapsychologist that is enlisted by the family to help identify the spooky spirits and what they want with them in their home. The role was originally played by Beatrice Straight in the original, so no, she's not taking Zelda Rubinstein's part (if that's what you were thinking). Gil Kenan (Monster House) is directing, while the cast already boasts Sam Rockwell (Iron Man 2, The Green Mile), Rosemarie DeWitt (Your Sister's Sister) and Jared Harris (AMC's Mad Men, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button).
More news surrounding the Gil Kenan helmed Poltergeist remake has emerged, and it appears that Kenan has snagged Mad Men's own Jared Harris to star in the flick. While Harris is no longer in the ad agency based drama (that I happen to be a ravenous fan of), I am very excited to see him in the world of horror.
Harris will be joining Rosemarie DeWitt, who was cast in July. He is playing Carrigan, "a larger than life TV personality who left the world of academia behind
to become the star host of basic cable TV show Haunted House Cleaners."
The reboot of Tobe Hooper's 1980's supernatural franchise is well on it's way with this juicy piece of news: Sam Rockwell (Iron Man 2, The Green Mile) is being heavily considered to star in the modern re-visioning of Poltergeist.
If he is cast, he will be starring opposite the already confirmed Rosemarie DeWitt. The project is being helmed by director Gil Kenan (Monster House) and is being produced by Sam Raimi and Nathan Kahane. Not much news other than that has been heading out of the camp, but as I'll be keepin' ya posted as it rolls in.
Today it was announced that MGM has partnered with Fox 2000 for co-financing and distribution of the modern take on the classic ghost film Poltergeist. Production begins this fall and I've already shared that the reboot will be directed by Gil Kenan, but it is being written by Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Robert Lindsay-Abaire(Oz: the Great and Powerful). Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert's Ghost House Pictures will produce.
We've also got a synopsis, which seems to read exactly like the original: “In a revisionist take on the classic horror film, a family
struggling to make ends meet relocates to an outdated suburban home and
is confronted by an angry spirit who kidnaps their youngest daughter and
challenges them to band together to rescue her from the clutches of
evil.”
I’ve said it many times before, music (or lack
there-of) makes a horror film. Over the past 50 years, the horror genre
has pumped out some of the most iconic film scores of all time. Songs
that send chills down your spine and make you think of impending doom
every time you hear their ghastly melody.
I love a good horror soundtrack, it’s a big appeal
for me and something that I think modern horror has lost a sense of. In
this here article, I’m going to list some of the most iconic (as well as
some of my favorite) horror theme songs that you may, or may not, have
heard of.
10. The Shining – Wendy Carlos & Rachel Elkind
What a beautifully haunting main title. As the
Torrance’s little VW Bug winds its way through the jagged Rocky
Mountains, we’re subjected to a collection of sounds that sound both
human and supernatural. It is a perfect indication of the fear and
trepidation that the film instills on its viewers as it progresses to
its rocky finale.
9. The Twilight Zone – Marius Constant
This is probably the most iconic television theme
song of all time. It was composed for the second season of Rod Serling’s
seminal hit television show by Marius Constant and it has become a
staple of many lives, mine included. Every time I hear that fantastic
little jingle I get excited about whatever strange and wonderful journey
I may be going on, even if seen the episode a hundred times already.
You can almost see the swirling, hypnotic background when you hear it.
8. A Nightmare on Elm Street – Charles Bernstein
Considered by Rotten Tomatoes to be one of the best
films of 1984, Wes Craven’s Freddy Krueger sliced his way into horror
fan’s hearts forever as one of the crudest, rudest and generally
hilarious slasher villains out there. The theme is another great,
haunting and melodic, and funnily enough, heavily inspired by Gary
Wright’s Dreamweaver (seriously, check it out here).
7. Poltergeist (Carol Anne’s Theme) – Jerry Goldsmith
This is one of my absolute favorite themes in the
horror world, because it’s the exact opposite of what you would expect
with the theme for a horror film. It’s a beautiful song, and it
perfectly exemplifies the sweet innocence of our protagonist, Carol
Anne. It’s sweet melody, sung by a choir of children, soothes the heart
in the oddest of ways and helps you realize that maybe, just maybe,
everything will be alright.
6. The Omen (Ave Satani) – Jerry Goldsmith
A double-whammy for Jerry Goldsmith, then again
he’s one of my favorite horror composers, this being my favorite of his
compositions (however, on the complete opposite end of the spectrum).
This is the theme for Damian, the son of Satan, in the amazing occult
film The Omen. “Ave Satani” features a choir
singing a Latin chant that translates to “We drink the blood, we eat the
body, raise the body of Satan. Hail! Hail, Hail Anti-Christ! Hail
Satan!” It’s dark shit, and it’s exactly what The Omen needed.
I remember being immediately taken with this score when I first watched
the film some 12 years ago. It played a huge part in my future
fascination, and borderline (who am I even kidding) obsession with the
horror genre.
5. Hellraiser – Christopher Young
Clive Barker had original commissioned a the
soundtrack from his breakthrough film from the industrial band Coil,
however he later rejected it. The job then fell upon the shoulders of
Christopher Young, who created the eponymous theme song, and Lemarchand’s Lullaby that
makes us all immediately imagine chains flying at us from all
directions. I fucking LOVE this whole soundtrack, it sets up the film
with a grandiose feeling of dread and wonder.
They’re heeeeeeeere…. agaaaaain….. Word broke a few days ago that the latest horror franchise to receive the reboot treatment will be none other than Poltergeist,
the story of the Carol Anne Freeling and her families battle to rescue
after hostile spirits suck her into a television set and take her
hostage.
The project will be helmed by Gil Kenan (Monster House, City of Ember), which I am honestly not that keen on, but it is going to be produced by Sam Raimi. This new installation in the mythos of Poltergeist will not be a remake though, it will be a continuation of the same universe, much like this year’s wonderful reboot of Evil Dead, moviehole.com reported ealier today:
Firstly, the Kenan-directed Raimi-produced reboot – much like the
“Evil Dead” remake – exists in the same world as the previous
“Poltergeist” films. So while it is a ‘reboot’ of the franchise, it’s
also somewhat of a sequel – taking place years after the Freeling’s were
ran out of town. In one scene in the new film, the kids’ find some things behind the
sliding panel in the attic. Yep, you guessed it – they find some of the
Freeling’s possessions, intentionally left behind. There’s the Star Wars
bed sheets (from Robbie’s room), a black-and-white TV set (why, of
course!), and some Christmas decorations.
I’m excited about this bit of news. Readers of this blog will know that I am a big fan of remakes and reboots and Poltergeist is one of the great iconic films of our time. If Sam Raimi is involved, then I have trust. [BACKDATED]
