SpuffyWeb
Sadly Over-hyped
Claysaba
Excellent, Without a doubt!!
Freaktana
A Major Disappointment
HurrDurr
I've seen porn-movies with better acting, editing, camera-work... hell, even better props than this movie has to offer. The story struggles to keep going onward and most of the movie feels more of a filler than most Naruto episodes. This isn't even "it's so bad it's funny" kind of movie, it's up and beyond with how awful this is. I imagine only a masochist or group of high teenagers could get even slightest enjoyment out of this, but even saying that feels like showing this movie too much positive light.
James Wright
With a name like American Poltergeist you might think that this is supposed to be a parody of found footage haunting movies of the last decade, or at least a blatant cash-grab based on Paranormal Activity. There are already a lot of these movies, but some can actually be pretty good, or at least funny. This movie however has no idea what it is. It certainly isn't parody or comedy, even though the acting, writing, directing, story and editing are so bad that it is shocking that the makers didn't think to try to make out like it was all a winking joke rather than an attempt at a serious movie. Because they went the serious route, there are so many instances where humour could occur that ends up with nothing happening. Comically long pauses and decisions that aren't made light of, terrible effects that aren't highlighted to show their shoddiness, and cringe-worthy dialogue that isn't delved into enough to be anything but just bad.Overall there is no real intention or story behind this pile of trash. Modern haunting stories have such a simple formula that they should be hard to get wrong, but this one does at every turn by combining multiple elements for no reason and making a complete mess of things. It would be bad even with a bigger budget and better actors, because from the start there is nothing there. It is a complete waste of time with no redeeming factors.
pete_betts
Much like Baldrick of the Black Adder series of excellent comedies I have a cunning theory about this movie! My theory is that this movie was deliberately made to be so shockingly awful.Why? Well, you make a film that is so very bad that every review is unbelievably dire that people will watch it purely out of curiosity. Eventually so many folks will have watched it that it will attain cult status.Once there the money will start rolling in! No? Oh alright! An episode of the cartoon Scooby Doo was more traumatic and the acting was way better.
Nitzan Havoc
In a genre sadly known for releasing an increasing number of films of below average quality, the action which best serves me is lowering my expectations. That way I can at least almost enjoy even the not so well made films, by recognizing their positive features. American Poltergesit is not a good film, but the rates and reviews on this site are (as always) extremely exaggerated. Giving 1 star to any film that isn't a masterpiece doesn't make you cool, it makes you a juvenile amateur.The story starts off as nothing remotely original. A bunch of teenagers arriving at a haunted house. There have been, what, a thousand similar plot in the past decade? However, as events unfold and new information is given, the story takes a rather interesting turn, actually offering something rather new. Additionally, the antagonist ghost (played by screenwriter Nicole Holland in a nice Peter Jackson/Stan Lee kind of touch) is very well designed, and comes out as pretty frightening (so, compliments due to the make-up artists, I guess).Sadly, that's pretty much all I can say in favor of this film. While the acting by most of the cast was okay (and not more), Donna Spangler (Diana) wasn't really acting. I don't know if I should blame her or the instructions she'd received from director and screen-writer Mike Rutkowski, but she honestly appeared unconvincing and in no way professional. Her attempt at being troubled and eccentric came out as "this is my first time in front of a camera". Seeing as how this is in no way Spangler's first performance - I must assume bad direction.In addition, a lot of the build up receives no conclusion at all, some of the scenarios are illogical enough to make you face-palm yourself, and the ending lacks any twists or climax. I can't say I suffered during watching this, the purpose of "let's enjoy a Horror flick I haven't seen yet" was indeed served, but nothing about this film was impressive or worthy of remembrance. One can only hope that the sequel will be better, despite the tendency of sequels to be far worse.
