Jun 04,1982
Craig T. Nelson stars as Steve Freeling, the main protagonist, who lives with his wife, Diane, and their three children, Dana, Robbie, and Carol Anne, in Southern California where he sells houses for the company that built the neighborhood. It starts with just a few odd occurrences, such as broken dishes and furniture moving around by itself. However, a tree comes alive and takes Robbie through his bedroom window, and Carol Anne is abducted by ghosts. Realizing that something evil haunts his home, Steve calls in a team of parapsychologists led by Dr. Lesh to investigate, hoping to get Carol Anne back, so he can remove his family from the house before it's too late.
| nudity | Steve is seen shirtless in bed. Steve and Diane kiss. Only their silhouettes are seen. Diane's shirt is lifted by spirits (non-sexually); her underwear is shown, but there is no nudity. Diane is seen wearing only a T-shirt. |
| violence | A gnarled tree comes to life and attempts to 'eat' a young boy. He is pulled free, however. A man imagines himself ripping off his face. We see him pull bloody chunks of his face off and drop them into a sink. Very bloody and disturbing, though very brief. A young girl is sucked screaming into a portal. A violent earthquake rocks a house, however no one is injured. A woman falls into a large hole filled with water were several skeletons appear. They are very grotesque looking. A woman is attacked by spirits and flung around a room. She is unharmed. A large clown doll comes to life and attempts to kill a young boy. We see its arm wrap around his throat and drag him under a bed but he manages to destroy it. A mouth-like portal tries to suck two children into it. They scream in terror, but are unharmed. |
| profanity | - 7 uses of Shit - 4 uses of Damn - 1 use of Ass - 3 uses of Son of a Bitch - 1 use of Bastard - 4 uses of Hell - 1 Middle Finger |
| alcohol | The parents are seen smoking marijuana. They discover it in a drawer at home, and decide to smoke it together. It is implied that it was hidden there long ago and forgotten about; a remnant of the couple's younger "hippie" days rather than something they still do. Adults are seen drinking beers while watching a football game. Steve can be seen in Dr. Lesh's office with a cigarette that you never actually see him smoke. |
| frightening | One scene has a tree attacking and attempting to swallow a young boy. The tree crashes through a window and actually pulls the kid outside with its branches. A scene has a man hallucinating that he is pulling the skin and flesh off of his face. The bloody chunks fall into a sink. A scene has a young boy being attacked by his stuffed clown doll. The toy wraps its arms around the kid and tries to strangle him. The only real scare in this scene is that the dolls face changes from comical to menacing. One scene in a closet has a man angering a demonic spirit. The spirit's grotesque face manifests in the doorway. One scene has a woman trapped in an unfinished swimming pool and discovering that it is filled with rotting skeletons. One scene has a closet morph into a giant, mouth-like portal that tries to suck the children in. The ending scene has the family being blocked from leaving their home by coffins rising out of the ground and opening to reveal skeletons. Although no deaths are evident in the film, it has many scenes that place children in threatening conditions. Several scenes might also be considered too strong for the youngest audiences. One scene features scores of skeletons. A jump scene where a woman opens a door and a deafening shriek occurs, and another where a loud thunder and an explosion of wind comes down the stairs, knocking people to the floor. Children who fear clowns probably shouldn't watch it. Recommended Rating: PG for disturbing gross images, intense frightening sequences including some violence and mayhem, thematic elements, language, suggestive content, and for some smoking and drinking and partial nudity - some involving children |
|
|
|
|
|
