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Tom Selleck and Sam Elliot's 1982 Civil War Western film The Shadow Riders will be streaming for free next month. The movie hits Tubi on Jan. 1, 2025.

Based on Louis L'Amour's novel of the same name, The Shadow Riders focuses on two brothers (Selleck and Elliot) who meet up after fighting on opposite sides of the Civil War. When the brothers return home, they find their siblings have been kidnapped, and they set out to rescue their family. Dominique Dunne and Katharine Ross starred alongside Selleck and Elliot in the film. The 96-minute movie premiered in the United States on Sept. 29, 1982, when it aired on CBS, foregoing a traditional theatrical run.

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Warning! This post contains spoilers for Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.

This post contains mentions of abuse and murder.

Netflix's Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story briefly refers to Dominique Dunne's real-life trial, making it hard not to wonder what happened to her. Serving as a followup to Ryan Murphy's hit show Dahmer Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story centers on Jos and Kitty Menendez's murders, who were killed by their own sons, Lyle and Erik. Like the first season of the Netflix true-crime show, Monsters, too, attempts to present a neutral perspective on the central real-life crime instead of solely framing the titular brothers as "monsters."

Given how Netflix's Monsters has received mixed reviews like its predecessor, not everyone seems to be on board with the show's approach towards true crime. However, it is still interesting...

Much has been made of the incestuous portrayal of the Menendez brothers in “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.” But the actors behind the widely discussed Netflix original want viewers to know this element of the series isn’t necessarily based on fact.

“To be honest with you, I don’t remember reading any of that in my research. So if he did suggest that, it was a suggestion as it is at this dinner party where he talks for 20 pages,” Nathan Lane told TheWrap of Vanity Fair reporter Dominick Dunne.

During the dinner party in question, Dunne (Lane) entertains his guests with an onslaught of questions and theories about the case, questioning why the brothers didn’t bring up their alleged abuse sooner.

“Then he suggests maybe this is a possible scenario, and they cut away to Kitty walking in on them in the shower,” Lane explained. “That...

“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” is shining the spotlight on a completely separate murder – one that happened a decade before the brothers’ trial.

Episode 7 of the series – titled “Showtime” – features a long dinner party scene where Nathan Lane’s character Dominick Dunne breaks down the Menendez case as he sees it through the context of having sat through his own daughter’s murder trial. It’s also a trial that earned significant media attention a decade earlier.

Dunne’s daughter Dominique was a 22-year-old rising actor fresh off a lead role in 1982’s “Poltergeist.” She was strangled to death by her ex-boyfriend John Sweeney after their breakup on Oct. 30, 1982. Sweeney confessed to the murder – and an attempt to kill himself after – when the police arrived on the scene.

Here’s what we know about Dominique, the night she was killed, and where Sweeney and the rest of her family is today.

Emmy-winning actor Nathan Lane was able to channel his performance as legendary crime reporter Dominic Dunne in Netflix’s Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story by going through the writer’s famous son, actor Griffin Dunne.

Lane’s performance is winning praise for his harnessing of the pain and loss Dunne held onto for decades after the double blow the writer experienced in the early 1980s of a tragedy and an injustice; as the series shows, the perceived miscarriage of justice informs Dunne’s perspective on crimes he covers for Vanity Fair and leads to his speculations about the nature of the Menendez boys’ relationship, which are peppered throughout the limited series. But it wasn’t only through researching his crime and trial reporting that Lane got into the mindset of the late legend.

“What helped was talking to Griffin Dunne, his son, a lovely actor and a wonderful...

Max, formerly known as HBO Max, is a popular streaming service that is an absolute must for many movie and TV enthusiasts. When the service initially launched in 2020, it offered a wide range of titles in partnership with HBO Now and WarnerMedia. Even now, Max is quite active in introducing various films and television shows to its users, often on a monthly basis.

Max has revealed its monthly movie releases for October, including a series of films from one of the most iconic horror franchises and a nostalgic creature feature that is still loved today. That said, let's dive into these exciting titles in further detail as we present you with a list of every movie that will be available on Max in October 2024.

A Nightmare on Elm Street Movies (1984-1989) Streaming Oct. 1

A Nightmare on Elm Street is one of the most well-known horror franchises of all time, with...

Acclaimed television producer Ryan Murphy addressed criticism of his latest Netflix series, which dramatizes the tragic case of brothers Lyle and Erik Menendez. The series has sparked controversy over its depiction of a possible incestuous relationship between the brothers. In interviews, Murphy defended creative decisions in the show and emphasized the careful handling of sensitive topics.

Murphy explained that the series aims to present multiple perspectives on the complex case. It incorporates theories from people involved, like journalist Dominique Dunne. The producer said one episode focuses on the therapist Leslie Abramson’s view of events. Murphy believes the show has an “obligation” to share diverse opinions raised over decades.

However, Erik Menendez criticized the series as an “dishonest portrayal” that hinders understanding of abuse trauma. But Murphy noted Erik did not watch the show before commenting. About 60-65% of episodes center on abuse claims, according to Murphy. He said the...

Quick Links Poltergeist Cast Members Began to Suffer Tragic Fates Heather O'Rourke's Losing Battle With a Parasitic Infection Dominique Dunne's Infamous Murder Led to a Miscarriage of Justice Getting to the Bottom of the Poltergeist Curse Theory

Poltergeist was one of a handful of films that Steven Spielberg conceptualized but didn't end up directing due to contractual obligations to another film in this case, E.T. Spielberg had written the story idea and drafted out a script with three other writers for a horror film that combined his love of suburban Americana with a supernatural horror. Spielberg was still a producer on the film and settled on horror master Tobe Hooper, famous for his film The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, to direct. While Spielberg's original concept was more science fiction, Hooper's influence steered the film towards being a ghost story.

Poltergeist's plot centers around a family who,...

“Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” is now on Netflix, bringing renewed interest to the case of the two brothers who murdered their parents. But as with any true crime series, there’s interest in knowing what the real people involved are up to now.

Erik and Lyle Menendez have been in prison since their 1996 conviction in the murder of their parents. As a note at the end of a series tells us, “Lyle and Erik Menendez maintain the allegation of sexual abuse at the hands of their mother and father. They continue to serve life sentences without the possibility of parole.”

Here’s where everyone stands.

Erik Menendez mugshots from 2000 and 2002 (Credit: Bureau of Prisons/Getty Images) Erik Menendez

Erik, the younger brother, is now 53. He has been incarcerated at a San Diego prison since his conviction and was only reunited with his brother Lyle in 2018 after he...

“Well, if we’re gonna kill our dad, we should probably just kill our mom too.”

In August 1989, siblings Lyle and Erik Menendez purchased shotguns and drove to the Beverly Hills mansion they shared with their parents. They proceeded to fire several bullets through their parents’ hands, stomach and feet before retreating outside to their car to reload. They continued firing at their mother’s face to finish the job, setting off 16 shots between their two parents.

Afterward, they attempted to see a movie at a local theater before dining at a trendy Los Angeles area restaurant where they knew they’d be seen. The product of entertainment wealth and the sons of an immigrant father, the Menendez brothers initially claimed the mafia put a hit out on their family before admitting to murdering their parents after they were arrested.

The new limited series “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menéndez Story...

Horror fans received a scary treat last Halloween when it was announced that a Poltergeist television series was in development at Amazon MGM Studios. News was scarce at the time, with the only tidbit being that the series is inspired by the 1982 film of the same name. While plot details remain a mystery, major moves are happening behind the scenes with the announcement that Amazon has hired a pair of showrunners, writers, and executive producers with connections to Fear the Walking Dead and Supernatural.

Per Variety, Kalinda Vazquez and Robbie Thompson have been tapped as showrunners, writers, and executive producers on the Poltergeist television series. Vazquez's credits cover a variety of genres and series, including Fear the Walking Dead, Once Upon a Time, Star Trek: Discovery, Prison Break, and Nikita. While Thompson doesn't boast as many credits, he was a writer on The CW's Supernatural before going on to...

While the home featured in the 1982 classic Poltergeist (watch it Here) sits on the market, looking for a buyer with more than $1 million to spare, Amazon MGM Studios is moving forward with the Poltergeist TV series we first heard about back in October of last year. Variety reports that the in-development project has just found the duo that will serve as the show’s writers, showrunners, and executive producers: Kalinda Vazquez and Robbie Thompson.

Variety notes that Vazquez has previously worked on the shows Fear the Walking Dead, Star Trek: Discovery, Once Upon a Time, Prison Break, and Nikita. She has also written for Marvel Comics, teaming up with Carlos Gomez for the comic book series America Chavez: Made in the USA. As for Thompson, he was a writer and co-executive producer on Supernatural and was also creator and showrunner of the prequel series The Winchesters. He has Marvel Comics experience of his own,...

A TV adaptation of Poltergeist is in development. The showrunners for the series are Kalinda Vasquez and Robbie Thompson. Other classic horror films have been reimagined recently, such as Chucky and The Exorcist.

A television series based on Poltergeist is now in development. Originally released in 1982, Poltergeist is one of the most iconic horror films of its era, telling a supernatural horror tale about a family whose home is haunted by demonic ghosts. The original Poltergeist was directed by Tobe Hooper and featured a leading cast including JoBeth Williams, Heather O'Rourke, Craig T. Nelson, Beatrice Straight, Oliver Robbins, and Dominique Dunne. The Poltergeist franchise has already continued beyond the 1982 film, getting a panned remake in 2015 among sequels.

As per Variety, a TV adaptation of Poltergeist is now in development. The series showrunners will be Kalinda Vasquez and Robbie Thompson, who will also both serve as writers and executive producers on the series.

The house from Poltergeist is up for sale. This is the actual house used in the movie, and it is loaded with plenty of urban legends. However, the realtor selling the house is playing off the legends from the horror movie and promises the house is “definitely not haunted.”

Here is what you need to know about the famous house that is up for sale.

Poltergeist House Up For Sale For First Time In 45 Years

An ad went up, and it appears that the house used in the movie Poltergeist is for sale. This is the first time the house has been on the market in 45 years. The movie is based on the supposedly haunted Herrmann House in Long Island. However, this house is located in Simi Valley, California.

The Poltergeist house from the movie

The Poltergeist house, located outside Los Angeles, was listed for $1.174 million. It has a 16,000-square-foot lot,...

Have you ever watched the 1982 classic Poltergeist (watch it Here) and wished you could live in the house that belonged to the Freeling family? Well, if you have around $1 million to spare, now you can! A Zillow listing reveals that the house used for the Freeling family home in Poltergeist, located at 4267 Roxbury Street in Simi Valley, California, is now up for sale, going for the price of $1,174,999.

Here’s the information from the Zillow listing: For the first time in 45 years, the legendary house from the movie Poltergeist is back on the market! Yes this is the home where much of the first movie of the series was filmed but “This house is clean.” Seriously, it is! Well-loved by its original owners, this charming 4 bedroom, 2 1/2-bathroom home is ready to welcome a new family, without the ghostly antics, we promise! Enjoy a thoughtfully designed layout perfect for entertaining, relaxing,...

Griffin Dunne’s family has done so many larger-than-life, unbelievable things that when the actor-director-producer started to write his memoir “The Friday Afternoon Club: A Memoir of Family,” he realized it wasn’t enough to start the story with his complex writer father Dominick Dunne.

In fact, it was impossible to understand the forces that shaped the Dunnes, including his uncle John Gregory Dunne and sister Dominique Dunne — without understanding his father’s abusive upbringing in an Irish Catholic family, his mother’s Mexican heritage and all great love stories, clandestine affairs, celebrity encounters and tragedies that seem to surround them, buffeted with lots of pitch-black mordant humor.

The heart of the new memoir is the 1982 murder of Griffin Dunne’s younger sister, “Poltergeist” star Dominique Dunne. It’s the first time he’s really grappled with telling the story of that pivotal event in his family’s history. The...

Griffin Dunne opens up about his family like never before in his candid memoir The Friday Afternoon Club, available now. The actor charts his family’s early years, his relationship with his enigmatic father, Dominick Dunne, and the tragic death of his sister, Dominique Dunne. Dominique, who starred in Poltergeist and The Shadow Riders, was strangled to death by her ex-boyfriend, John Sweeney, on October 30, 1982. She died five days later at 22 years old. The subsequent trial garnered significant media attention as the Dunne family sought justice for their beloved daughter. Below, you’ll discover some of the biggest revelations from The Friday Afternoon Club about the final days of Dominique’s life, the trial, and the aftermath. ABC / Everett Collection Dominick’s final words to Dominique Each member of the family had the chance to say goodbye to Dominique in the hospital. Griffin wrote, “None of us could hear what the others said,...

Poltergeist 2's Reverend Kane, played by Julian Beck, is an iconic horror villain despite Beck's battle with stomach cancer during filming. Beck's health condition added to the eerie appearance of Reverend Kane, making him even more terrifying on screen. Julian Beck passed away before post-production was completed, leading to some of his lines being re-recorded by a sound-alike. His death contributed to the "Poltergeist Curse" surrounding the franchise.

1986 sequel Poltergeist 2's villain, the terrifying Reverend Kane, is a horror icon, but actor Julian Beck barely made it through production alive. The first Poltergeist, directed by Tobe Hooper and released in 1982, is a horror classic, managing to scare audiences while only being rated PG. At the time, the PG-13 rating didn't exist. In 1986, Poltergeist's Freeling Family — minus older daughter Dana, as actress Dominique Dunne had been tragically murdered in the intervening years — returned for another ghostly adventure. Few...

Last year, Amazon closed an $8.5 billion acquisition of the film studio MGM, giving them ownership of the studio’s thousands of films and TV shows. Earlier this year, we heard that Poltergeist was one of the six MGM properties Amazon was most interested in doing something with… and now Variety has discovered that a Poltergeist TV series is in early development at Amazon MGM Studios! There are no plot details to share at this time, but Variety has been told “the show will be set within the world of the film”.

Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey are set to executive produce the series for Amblin Television.

Tobe Hooper, who had previously made The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Eaten Alive, Salem’s Lot, and The Funhouse, directed Poltergeist from a screenplay Steven Spielberg wrote with Michael Grais and Mark Victor. Spielberg also crafted the initial story. The film has the following synopsis: Strange...

Some of Hollywood’s most iconic movies are also rumored to have "cursed" productions. Due to a combination of urban legends and well-known unfortunate accidents on the set of these films, the curse behind a movie’s making becomes as popular as the movie itself. Many of these films are considered cursed for tragic reasons involving injuries, fires, lightning, and death. From Superman to Poltergeist, these "cursed" movies make for sensational stories, but this list will also delve into the truth behind each movie’s supposed curse.

Chaos and misfortune are common in any film production, yet the most famous troubled productions lead audiences to believe a movie is cursed. For this list, "cursed" refers to a movie’s troubled and tragic film set or the horrific events that occurred after a film’s release. Some of these cursed movies include events that can be violent, graphic, and triggering. Whether...

From "Halloween" to "A Nightmare on Elm Street," there's no shortage of iconic horror movies from the '70s and '80s that launched long-running franchises. Still, "Poltergeist" stands out among the rest because of its cult following - and many of those fans believe the Poltergeist franchise is actually cursed.

A reboot of the classic 1982 horror film "Poltergeist" came out in 2015, but let's be honest: nothing could compare to the original. While no horrific accidents occurred on the set of the most recent movie, there are plenty of rumors of a curse on the original film trilogy's cast.

The movie revolves around a suburban family who moves into a new home and begins to notice strange things involving their 5-year-old daughter, Carol Ann. Turns out, menacing spirits are haunting the house, and while their interactions seem harmless at first, their true evil nature is soon revealed when Carol Ann goes missing,...

Fright master Tobe Hooper’s 1982 movie has Steven Spielberg’s fingerprints all over it, but has a disturbing, satirical edge that’s all its own

The 80s classic gets a Halloween re-release for its 40th anniversary: a supernatural chiller and anti-gentrification satire that came out the same year as Et – Mr Hyde to that film’s Dr Jekyll, perhaps – and one of the most Spielbergian films not actually directed by Steven Spielberg. It is also a movie with its own particular flavour of sadness, owing to the early deaths of two of its stars: Dominique Dunne, daughter of author Dominick Dunne and niece of Joan Didion, killed in the year of the film’s release by her violent ex-boyfriend, and Heather O’Rourke, who died in 1988 at 12 years oldafter suffering cardiac arrest and septic shock connected with a bowel condition.

It was directed by horror maestro Tobe Hooper, who claimed to...

The '80s was a pretty scary time to be a kid. Over in the United Kingdom, we were routinely terrified by grim public information films and even educational content like "Dark Towers" and "The Boy From Space" were pretty hair-raising for a class full of eight-year-olds at the time. Then you had "Watership Down," a tale of bunny brutality that inexplicably received a U (Universal) certificate and scarred an entire generation for life.

Unlike the United States, we didn't get our 12 certificate (the British equivalent of the PG-13) until 1989, which meant big Hollywood movies like "Gremlins" and "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" were still available to rent with the family-friendly PG rating. As a result, many impressionable '80s kids were traumatized by nasty little creatures trashing Christmas and a cult leader ripping out someone's still-beating heart well before they were equipped to deal with such stuff.

As a child of the ‘80s, the so-called Poltergeist curse looms largest in my memory amongst films supposedly plagued by supernaturally bad luck. And as a paranormal pop culture researcher, the fact real skeletons were used in the finale’s swimming pool scene makes the notion of a curse all the more compelling. As purely a storytelling device, a curse would make sense; it tracks. Of course there is most likely no truth to it either.

To be sure, there is indeed tragedy connected to the film. Most notable is the murder of 22-year-old actress Dominique Dunne in November 1982–five months following the film’s June release–and the death of 12-year-old Heather O’Rourke during the filming of Poltergeist III due to complications from an undetected bowel obstruction.

The premature deaths of the two were enough to create the notion of a cursed franchise, which was only exacerbated by the revelation of the skeletons…...

If you’re a movie fan, then chances are you’re already familiar with the concept of “cursed films,” which is when a project’s legacy has something of a sinister undertone to it due to extenuating circumstances beyond any sort of normal production woes. And for their new series entitled Cursed Films, Shudder is diving into whether or not films like Poltergeist, The Omen, The Exorcist, The Crow, and Twilight Zone: The Movie were actually doomed from the start, or victims of being dealt an unfortunate hand by fate.

The two episodes this writer had the opportunity to check out were for Tobe Hooper’s Poltergeist as well as Richard Donner’s The Omen, and for the most part, I found them extremely entertaining, although admittedly, neither one was very in-depth as a whole. For Poltergeist, filmmaker Jay Cheel dives into all the terrible things that happened to various...

Last year, AMC’s horror-centric streaming service Shudder unveiled the compelling documentary “Horror Noire,” examining the role African-Americans played throughout film history. That feature’s success sparked a desire for the service to cater to more niche facets of film history, and their next foray into that arena is “Cursed Films,” which looks to examine films that have long histories of being cursed. The material is interesting, especially in conjunction with the features the five-part documentary series covers, but director Jay Cheel takes too many tangential digressions to keep things from feeling tiring.

When the 1982 feature “Poltergeist” debuted it was quickly tempered by the murder of actress Dominique Dunne. Actors Will Sampson and Julian Beck would pass after the film’s sequel came out, while leading child star Heather O’Rourke passed at just 11-years-old while working on “Poltergeist III.” It’s easy to see where audiences would start to wonder...

Sometimes, what goes on behind the scenes of some of our favorite horror movies are much more terrifying than what winds up on the screen. That point is really driven home in the upcoming Shudder series Cursed Films, which explores the tragic and strange coincidences during the productions of many classic movies. Ahead of the launch of the documentary series in April, Shudder has gone ahead and unveiled a trailer for Cursed Films, and it does a fine job at letting us know what we can expect to see from the series. You can take a look at it below.

As seen in the trailer, multiple horror titles will be showcased for their supposed curses in Cursed Films. That of course includes the Tobe Hooper horror movie Poltergeist, which is famous for an alleged curse which took the lives of several major cast members. Sadly, that includes the horrific deaths...

The following essay was produced as part of the 2017 Nyff Critics Academy, a workshop for aspiring film critics that took place during the 55th edition of the New York Film Festival.

Documentaries often get personal with their subjects, sometimes in ways that are essential to the powerful filmmaking on display. But what does it look like when family, so often the subject, mingles with the forces behind the camera?

Two new documentary films, “Arthur Miller: Writer” and “Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold,” position their eponymous 20th century literary figures beneath their progeny’s gazes. Plenty ambitious, often neutral, and never too critical, these filmmakers seek a delicate, ethical balance between titillating an audience with the private life behind a public persona and executing a squeaky-clean legacy. Writer and director Rebecca Miller is tasked with her father Arthur, the man who used theater to confront the fallacies of the...

“This house is clean.”

Poltergeist (1982) plays midnights this weekend (October 6th and 7th) at the Tivoli as part of their Reel Late at the Tivoli Midnight series. Tickets are $8.

Poltergeist had all the hallmarks of the Spielberg blockbuster production – a small-town suburban family setting, fantastic special effects, fast-paced action and a liberal smattering of Spielberg’s own brand of natural humor. Rumors have persisted for decades that he wrested the direction away from credited director Tobe Hooper, but the influence and style of Hooper are also evident and, rather than detracting from the considerable input of Spielberg, they complement it in a way which results in a movie of subtle originality.

Poltergeist is fun, extremely well-made, and is packed full of terrific scares. It took the opposite approach from normal; there’s no big old spooky house or gruesome back-story of some patriarch walling people up in the tower. By contrast,...

The Poltergeist franchise is famously cursed, supposedly due to the real human skeletons that were used as props in the original film. Stars Heather O’Rourke and Dominique Dunne both died young under tragic circumstances, and spooky happenings occurred on the set not only of Tobe Hooper’s 1982 movie, but on the set of Poltergeist II and the 2015 remake as well. Compared to all that, then, rumors that have persisted for decades that producer Steven Spielberg, not credited director Tobe Hooper, actually directed the film are no big deal.

Obviously, the existence of curses and ghosts and assorted beasties that hide in kids’ closets can’t be proven. Those rumors about the film’s true authorship can, though, and Wish Upon and Annabelle director John Leonetti did pretty much exactly that on the newest episode of Blumhouse’s Shock Waves podcast. Leonetti’s brother Michael was the Dp ...

There was never really a need to sequelize 1982’s Poltergeist. It told a complete story. It vanquished the evil spirit haunting the house by film’s end. Heck, it even vanquished the house itself. But because the original movie was a hit and it was the ’80s, the Tobe Hooper/Steven Spielberg collaboration got not just one sequel but two, despite the fact that it does not lend itself to being a franchise. New villains and new mythology—and eventually even new family members—were introduced to keep the story going, albeit with mixed results. And while the sequels have their fans, they’re hardly among the most beloved horror films of the decade. Thanks to Scream Factory’s new Collector's Editions of both, horror fans now have the chance to reevaluate them in the best possible format.

Though released four years after the 1982 original, Poltergeist II: The Other Side...

Drug addicts! Who in 1970 really knew what life was like for them? Jerry Schatzberg, Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne's story of hell on the streets of NYC provided a stunning debut for Al Pacino -- and should have done the same for Kitty Winn. It sounds too tough to watch, but it's riveting. The Panic in Needle Park Blu-ray Twilight Time Limited Edition 1971 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 109 min. / Ship Date June 14, 2016 / available through Twilight Time Movies / 29.95 Starring Al Pacino, Kitty Winn, Alan Vint, Richard Bright, Marcia Jean Kurtz, Raul Julia, Joe Santos, Paul Sorvino Cinematography Adam Holender Film Editor Evan Lottman Original Music Ned Rorem Written by Joan Didion, John Gregory Dunne from the novel by James Mills. Produced by Dominique Dunne, Roger M. Rothstein Directed by Jerry Schatzberg

Reviewed by Glenn Erickson

We all know how the 1970s upheaval in Hollywood brought new talent to film -- actors,...

Napa Valley Film Festival kicked off with (what else?) a wine movie. “Somm: Into the Bottle," the second documentary exploring the Exclusive Court of Master Sommeliers. To be distributed by Samuel Goldwyn Films, "Somm: Into the Bottle", as told through the eyes of the world’s greatest sommeliers and winemakers, raises the curtain on the seldom-seen world that surrounds the wine we drink and gives viewers close-up access to the most accomplished sommeliers in the world and to some of the most prestigious winemakers working today. By opening some of the world’s most rare bottles of wine, the viewer understands how a wine ages and just what happens in a cellar.

At the festival’s gala opening night party, filled with vintners pouring their wines accompanied by some of the best restaurants in the world supplying bite size hors d’oevres, Peter Goldwyn pointed out that the film is already number 22 on iTunes because of the fan base built up by Jason Wise’s previous film, “Somm” in which four sommeliers attempt to pass the prestigious Master Sommelier exam, a test with one of the lowest pass rates in the world. As Peter circulated through the crowd of the local bourgeoisie and filmmakers like Eric Troung whose 30 minute short is also screening here, I felt right at home…I love seeing new friends and old at these events.

So far, as a jury member, I have seen one film, “Life in Color” directed, written and produced by Katherine Emmer, along with producers Jason Berman, Anne Carey, Lance Johnson and Giles Clark and starring, as a lovable slob who grows up, Josh McDermitt, Katharine Emmer herself who could play a spoiled rich girl as well as the miserably inattentive nanny she plays in this movie, Adam Lustick a really perfect button-down successful comedian buddy of Josh, Fortune Feimster and Jim O’Heir. Katharine's directorial feature film debut, “Life in Color”, world premiered at South by Southwest 2015. It won Best of Fest - The L.E.S. Prix D'Or at The Lower East Side Film Festival 2015 in New York City.

I am now about to see the second film, “Tumbledown," directed by Sean Mewshaw, produced by Aaron Gilbert, Kristin Hahn and Margo Hand, written by Desi Van Til and Sean Mewshaw and starring Jason Dudikis, Rebecca Hall, Blythe Danner (!), Dianna Agron, Griffin Dunne (“Dallas Buyers Club” and “After Hours”!) son of Dominick Dunne and older brother of Dominique Dunne, Joe Manganiello and Richard Masur. Starz will release the film stateside. Director-writer Sean Mewshaw was raised in Rome, Italy and spent a decade in L.A. working on film sets where he was mentored by some of his heroes. He made a short starring Frances McDomand (one of my favorite actors btw), then moved to Portland, Maine with his wife Desi (who cowrote “Tumbledown”), where he directs theater wile developing film projects. “Tumbledown is his feature debut.

End of Day One and Beginning of Day Two, signing off, Sydney Levine, working in her suite at the Embassy Suites with my partner Peter Belsito sitting on the other side of the table after he hosted a pitch session with Scott Mandille.

Special mention: Häxan

Directed by Benjamin Christensen

Denmark / Sweden, 1922

Genre: Documentary

Häxan (a.k.a The Witches or Witchcraft Through The Ages) is a 1922 silent documentary about the history of witchcraft, told in a variety of styles, from illustrated slideshows to dramatized reenactments of alleged real-life events. Written and directed by Benjamin Christensen, and based partly on Christensen’s study of the Malleus Maleficarum, Häxan is a fine examination of how superstition and the misunderstanding of mental illness could lead to the hysteria of the witch-hunts. At the time, it was the most expensive Scandinavian film ever made, costing nearly 2 million Swedish krona. Although it won acclaim in Denmark and Sweden, the film was banned in the United States and heavily censored in other countries for what were considered, at that time, graphic depictions of torture, nudity, and sexual perversion. Depending on which version you’re watching, the commentary is...

Fans of E! and their True Hollywood Story docu-series will be quite familiar with the supposed 'curse' surrounding the Poltergeist franchise. It was a subject that was fully explored on that program quite well. Now, the mystery behind the curse will hopefully be solved in what promises to be a very spooky new documentary titled The Curse of Poltergeist.

The Curse of Poltergeist hopes to unravel the truth behind all the ugly incidents that have followed those associated with the 1982 classic and its sequels. Producer and filmmaker Adam Ripp wants to get to the bottom of this intriguing and scary curse that has plagued the cast and filmmakers behind the Steven Spielberg produced horror movie series for the past three decades. Adam Ripp is directed the movie through his Vega Baby company. Vega Baby is financing the project, and producing along with Indonesian studio MP Pictures. Shooting will start in November.

Any number of famous horror movies are supposed to have had a curse that plagued their cast and crew both during the shoot and subsequently. The Exorcist is one; Poltergeist is another. And the latter is now set to be the subject of a documentary. Producer and director Adam Ripp is putting together The Curse Of Poltergeist, taking the life and experiences of actor Oliver Robins as its starting point and main focus.What's the supposed curse? A number of deaths, basically. Actress Heather O'Rourke - the trilogy's cute Carol-Anne -  died suddenly at the tragically young age of 12, just before the release of Poltergeist 3. Dominique Dunne, who played Dana, was killed by her boyfriend in 1982, not long after the first film. Bit-part player Lou Perryman was the victim of an axe murder in 2009. Will Sampson died two years after appearing in Poltergeist II. And Julian Beck - Poltergeist II...

Poltergeist

Written by Michael Grais, Steven Spielberg, and Mark Victor

Directed by Tobe Hooper

The original 1982 Poltergeist, directed by Tobe Hooper, opens with an apt image: an extreme close-up of a television set. Not only does the object prove pivotal to the film’s narrative, but the close proximity of the camera to the screen imbues the television with a strange, almost alien quality. Though it simply plays the national anthem over patriotic imagery, the signature sign-off for most TV stations in the 1980s, the close-up distorts the pictures and renders them wholly indeterminable. For a film that explores the dark unknowns that lie beneath the seemingly innocent and ordinary, Poltergeist certainly knows how to prime its audience for what’s to come.

As the channel transitions to the familiar static blizzard, five-year-old Carol Anne Freeling (Heather O’Rourke) awakens to the sound of voices emanating from the set. As...

Ahead of the reboot of the 1982 horror classic, Poltergeist, former child actor Oliver Robins spoke out about the alleged curse that supposedly resulted in the deaths of five of his costars. Steven Spielberg's hit flick was centered on a suburban family, whose youngest, clairvoyant daughter Carol-Anne (Heather O’Rourke) communicated with a spirit located in the family's TV set. In the movie, Robins played terrified middle child Robbie Freeling alongside his on-screen sisters, which also included teenaged Dana (Dominique Dunne). While the film — also starring Craig T. [...]...

Poltergeist has become legendary for two major reasons other than being a great film: First, there are rumours that co-producer/co-writer Steven Spielberg took over as director midway through production. Secondly, its young co-star Dominique Dunne was murdered just before the film hit theatres. Over 30 years after its release, the film is regarded by many critics as a classic of the horror genre, and the tag line ‘They’re here’ is recognized as one of the greatest movie quotes ever. Now Legendary filmmaker Sam Raimi (Spiderman, Evil Dead) and director Gil Kenan (Monster House) contemporize the classic tale with a script written by Pulitzer Prize-winning screenwriter David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole) and an all-star cast let by Sam Rockwell and Rosemarie DeWitt. As someone who is usually skeptical of remakes, I am actually excited for this film; and the decision to change the release date from early February to late May,...

This summer, a brand new vision of Poltergeist will arrive in theaters everywhere and terrify a whole new generation of fans. While I’m going to reserve my judgments on just how that version is going to fare until I see it on May 22nd, I thought this made for a perfect time to revisit Tobe Hooper’s original film, which has remained one of my favorite horror movies for over three decades and is still one of the greatest and most effective haunted house films of all time.

The first time I saw Poltergeist, I was only 5 years old and, suffice to say, my childhood was forever changed on that fateful day. Growing up, I was raised by a single mom and we lived in a trailer park, so I guess I always viewed families with both parents who could afford to live in a "real" home as individuals...

Actress Amber Tamblyn'snewest book of poetry, a collection called Dark Sparkler, is out this week, and mostly centers around dead or otherwise fabled Hollywood starlets. There is one who committed suicide by breathing carbon monoxide in her garage, one who jumped to her death off the "H" in the Hollywood sign, one who was strangled by her jealous ex-boyfriend in the driveway of their home. You'll already know the stories of some (Dana Plato, Jayne Mansfield, Brittany Murphy), but others (Dominique Dunne, Frances Farmer, Heather O'Rourke) will send you down a dark Wikipedia spiral through Hollywood's most tragic demises. There's one living soul included in Tamblyn's collection: Lindsay Lohan. Vulture got the exclusive to excerpt the poem, then spoke to Tamblyn about what it meant to her and what it was like writing this book.You are going to get a lot of questions about the Lindsay Lohan poem...

The Poltergeist curse that haunted Stephen Spielberg and Tobe Hoopers original film (and its subsequent sequels) isnt just a thing of folklore its real. The history is well documented from the death of Dominique Dunne and Heather ORourke to the infamous malfunctioning clown that took to actual strangulation to the actual skeletons unearthed while filming. Its all known Hollywood mystery and it seems that the new production played host to some more... strange occurrences.

After a number of trailers and TV spots, it's quite clear that the iconic clown from the original 1982 horror classic Poltergeist is responsible for one of this remake's biggest scares. A new poster has arrived for the new haunted house thrill ride, and it showcases the not-so-funny doll cracking an evil grin before it leaps off the toy shelf with its cruel intentions. Don't be afraid, it's only a movie!

Legendary filmmaker Sam Raimi takes over from Steven Spielberg as producer on Poltergeist, with director Gil Kenan stepping in for original director Tobe Hooper. Together, they bring a contemporized spin on this legendary tale about a family whose suburban home is haunted by evil forces. When the terrifying apparitions escalate their attacks and hold the youngest daughter captive, the family must come together to rescue her before she disappears forever.

20th Century Fox and MGM will release Poltergeist this summer,...

Poltergeist has become legendary for two major reasons other than being a great film: First, there were rumours that co-producer/co-writer Steven Spielberg took over as director midway through production. Secondly, its young co-star Dominique Dunne was murdered just before the film hit theatres. I will always remember Poltergeist, however, as the film that left me sleepless for a week as a child. Someone once famously said that Poltergeist does for TV sets what Psycho did for showers. I never had a problem taking a shower but I’m still left unsettled having a TV set left on over night. Hooper’s directing skill combined with Spielberg’s ability to make anything family-friendly makes this one of the few on the list the entire family might theoretically enjoy. Fast forward 33 years and a remake is on the way. Legendary filmmaker Sam Raimi and director Gil Kenan (Monster House) update the...

Top 100 horror movies of all time: Chicago Film Critics' choices (photo: Sigourney Weaver and Alien creature show us that life is less horrific if you don't hold grudges) See previous post: A look at the Chicago Film Critics Association's Scariest Movies Ever Made. Below is the list of the Chicago Film Critics's Top 100 Horror Movies of All Time, including their directors and key cast members. Note: this list was first published in October 2006. (See also: Fay Wray, Lee Patrick, and Mary Philbin among the "Top Ten Scream Queens.") 1. Psycho (1960) Alfred Hitchcock; with Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles, John Gavin, Martin Balsam. 2. The Exorcist (1973) William Friedkin; with Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Jason Miller, Max von Sydow (and the voice of Mercedes McCambridge). 3. Halloween (1978) John Carpenter; with Jamie Lee Curtis, Donald Pleasence, Tony Moran. 4. Alien (1979) Ridley Scott; with Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, John Hurt. 5. Night of the Living Dead (1968) George A. Romero; with Marilyn Eastman,...

With Halloween right around the corner, we're counting down the days by posting five facts about our favorite fright flicks.Today's featured film is "Poltergeist" (1982).1. Many believe there is a curse associated with the film.Heather O'Rourke, who played Carol Anne Freeling, died of intestinal stenosis just four months before the release of "Poltergeist III." Dominique Dunne, who played the teenage daughter, was strangled by her boyfriend and died in 1982, the same year as the film’s release. Her character was away at school in the sequel. Julian Beck, who played Kane in "Poltergeist II," also passed away between filming the movie and its release. He had been battling cancer for well over a year.2. The hands which pull the flesh off of the investigator’s face were actually Steven Spielberg's. 3. Drew Barrymore was up for the role of Carol Anne, but Spielberg wanted someone more "angelic." However, her...

Every year, we here at Sound On Sight celebrate the month of October with 31 Days of Horror; and every year, I update the list of my favourite horror films ever made. Last year, I released a list that included 150 picks. This year, I’ll be upgrading the list, making minor alterations, changing the rankings, adding new entries, and possibly removing a few titles. I’ve also decided to publish each post backwards this time for one reason: the new additions appear lower on my list, whereas my top 50 haven’t changed much, except for maybe in ranking. I am including documentaries, short films and mini series, only as special mentions – along with a few features that can qualify as horror, but barely do.

Come Back Tonight To See My List Of The 200 Best!

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Special Mention:

Wait until Dark

Directed by Terence Young

Written by Robert Carrington

USA, 1967

Directed by Terence Young,...

Aside from a couple of casting stories, news on the Poltergeist reboot has been fairly quiet. Some of you probably don't even know that one of the greatest haunted house thrillers of all time is getting the remake treatment.

Released in 1982, the now iconic horror movie was directed by Tobe Hooper from an original idea by producer Steven Spielberg. Its long been rumored that Tobe, who made a name for himself with the low budget The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, fell victim to the pressures of a huge Hollywood blockbuster, suffering from panic attacks that led to Spielberg, who was just down the street working on E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, taking over and helming the majority of the project.

That same scenario isn't likely on the set of the new Poltergeist, and even if it were, we probably wouldn't hear about it. As it seems to be a much smaller affair. Gil Kenan,...

Taking on a classic is a gutsy move, even for an award-winning filmmaker. And when director Kimberly Peirce signed on to re-imagine Stephen King's horror classic "Carrie," about a teenage girl with telekinetic powers hellbent on revenge, she knew she had some sky-high expectations to meet.

"I'd make a joke and say, 'I didn't give a f*ck,' but of course I felt pressure!" she told us recently while doing press for "Carrie." "But I think pressure is good."

All that pressure had Peirce thinking long and hard about what it would mean to sign on to a project of this scale, with its history and existing fan base. Having made just one film, 2008's "Stop-Loss," since her 1999 directorial debut, "Boys Don't Cry," it's clear, as a filmmaker, she doesn't make decisions lightly.

"I walked into this feeling a huge responsibility, much like I did with 'Boys Don't Cry...

Rosemarie DeWitt has signed on to play the female lead in MGM and Fox 2000's horror remake Poltergeist. The search for a male lead is currently under way.

We first reported on the project back in February 2011, when MGM announced a spate of potential remakes and other projects, after the studio came out of bankruptcy. Back in March, we reported that Monster House filmmaker Gil Kenan is directing, from a screenplay provided by David Lindsay-Abaire (Oz: The Great and Powerful, Rise of the Guardians). No story details have been given for the remake, which is being produced by Sam Raimi and Nathan Kahane.

The original Poltergeist, directed by Tobe Hooper from a screenplay by Steven Spielberg, Michael Grais, and Mark Victor, was released in 1982, and centered on a family haunted by ghosts, trying to reclaim control of their daughter, who has been taken to the spirit world by malevolent spirits.