Everyone has that one movie they use to officially kick off the Halloween spirit. My wife’s, for example, is The Rocky Horror Picture show. Mine on the other hand, is Poltergeist.
Poltergeist is, hands down, one of my favorite horror movies of all time. It is the perfect balance between terror and wholesomeness. On one hand we have the slowly growing threat of the spirits’ takeover of the homestead. On the other, we have the loving family dynamic between husband and wife Steven and Diane Freeling. I could write an entire post surrounding the love these two have for one another but for now, I would like to focus on another character.
That of their youngest daughter Carol Anne.
For you see, there is more than one love story in Poltergeist. We have the love between Steven and Diane, but also the love between Diane and daughter Carol Anne. A majority of the movie revolves around the mother’s feelings towards protecting, and later finding, her daughter.
Hell. One of the movie’s strongest and most emotionally charged scenes is when Carol Anne, trapped within the spirit world, runs through Diane. Diane then describes the sensation. Talking about how Carol Anne touched her soul and how she can now smell her daughter on her clothes. It is a powerful scene that really hammers home the love Diane has for Carol Anne and is another fine example of just how well made this movie is.
With that out of the way, let’s discuss something I noticed during my most recent viewing. Carol Anne’s “No More.”.
“No More.”
As I had mentioned before; the primary story of Poltergeist revolves around Steven and Diane trying to save their youngest daughter from the spirit world. After several stressful days and sleepless nights, the Freelings get in touch with a medium who agrees to help them.
They concoct a plan to send Diane into the spirit realm to find Carol Anne and bring her back to the world of the living. The plan succeeds resulting in reunion of Carol Anne with her family. The next day, as Steven and Diane pack up their belongings to move away, we learn that Carol Anne seems to have no memory of what happened. According to Diane, the little girl is as happy and as care-free as she has always been – much to the relief of her parents. No expensive therapy for this wee one.
I don’t know why, but for some reason I ended up focusing on that line. What was it that made this line stand out so much? Then it hit me. Carol Anne’s whimper of “No More” meant that she did, indeed, have memory of being inside the spirt world. She was fully aware of everything that had happened to her the previous night and she did not want experience that horrific event again.
Now I don’t know if this was the intention of the writer and director but for me, at least, it adds just that much more tragedy to Carol Anne’s experiences. The poor girl wants nothing more than to forget everything that happened only for the entities to try and pull her back in. It is as heartbreaking as it is terrifying.
What are your thoughts on this scene? Is this just Carol Anne’s reaction to another ghostly event – having already experienced such things earlier in the movie? Or is she expressing fear based off her memories of being within the spirit world? Let us know in the comments below!
I would also like to take a moment to apologize for our lack of updates. We are working to keep moving forward with entries – whether they are brief discussions such as this one or fully detailed reviews. We appreciate your patience!