A Teenage Bet and a Movie Called "Poltergeist," Directed by . . . Steven Spielberg

Jay here.

Once, in high school, Matt and I were playing a trivia game and the question came up, "Name the director of the 1982 film, Poltergeist."

I immediately said, "Steven Spielberg."

"Nope," he replied. "That is incorrect. It was Tobe Hooper."

"Bullshit."

"No, it's true," he laughed. "Tobe Hooper directed Poltergeist."

These kind of geeky movie games were common between Matt and I. Yes, we spent our times arguing over movies and wondering why we didn't have girlfriends. I know . . .

"Are you sure we aren't talking about Poltergeist II?", I asked. "You know, the one with the old, creepy preacher?"

"No," Matt persisted. "Tobe Hooper directed the original Poltergeist. I promise you, it's true."

This didn't sit right with me. I knew this movie pretty intimately. It was the first horror flick my mother had let me watch when I was in grade school. Full disclosure though, she did make me cover my eyes when the researcher's face peeled off in the bathroom mirror. I peeked anyway, mom . . . . you lose.

But, I was certain that this was Spielberg's movie. His name was plastered all over the opening credits. I'd seen it dozens of times. It even felt like one of his films. Takes place in the Southwest? Check. Strong mother character? Check. Gratuitous Star Wars merchandising in the kids rooms? Check. Check. Check.

There was no way I was wrong, but I knew Matt possessed an encyclopedic knowledge of movie trivia. His command of useless film knowledge was even greater than mine. Could he possibly be right? No fucking way . . . .

"You're wrong on this one. It was Spielberg. I'd bet on it," I smugly persisted.

"Ok. Let's bet."

Well, like most teenagers we were broke, so there would be no money on the table. What we settled on was bragging rights. The winner of our bet would have to proclaim that the other "knows everything about movies and I know nothing." It sounds pretty ridiculous now that I remember but you have to understand that Matt and I were pretty competitive when it came to this kind of thing.

Next, we had to get our hands on a copy of the movie. Don't forget this was the mid 90's and the internet was a few years away for us. We couldn't just pull up IMDB and settle this in a few seconds. No, we needed to procure a copy of the VHS and actually watch it. The closest video store was called Sharkey's and it was located near an intersection known as the "Five Points". It was about 10-15 miles away from the small town in Delaware we lived in, Milton. We drove there in Matt's green Ford Tempo, found the tape for rent, and brought it all the way back to his house to settle the score once and for all. I mean, what else were going to do? We were teenagers growing up in Delaware.

On the way home I boasted how dumb my friend was going to feel when he sees Spielberg's name on that screen. I had no doubts at all about assuredness of my memory of this picture.

Of course, if you haven't already guessed it, when we played the movie I was shocked to find I was wrong. The final proclamation at the end of the opening credit sequence solidified Matt's assertion that it was indeed Tobe Hooper that directed Poltergeist. Spielberg had only written and produced the picture.

Son of a bitch! My first reaction was to accuse him of shenanigans. I determined that this VHS copy must be some made-for-tv version of the film that Hooper must have been brought in to alter for the smaller screen. But, no, that wasn't true either. After some some yelling back and forth and quite a bit of maniacal laughter from Matt, I relented and said the words:

"Matt knows everything about movies and I know nothing."

Twenty years later I wonder if I really lost that bet. Allow me to explain . . . . . .

It's the Monday before Halloween and Poltergeist is playing at the Arclight in La Jolla, California. My girl and I love going to the Arclight. Its certainly one of the nicest cinemas in the San Diego area. It has reserve seating so you get to pre-select where you're going to sit and they have certain showings where you can purchase a cocktail, beer or wine to enjoy during your movie. They also show old movies as well, hence our decision to go see one of our favorite horror films.

Seeing Poltergeist on the big screen was certainly a blast. Its that rare breed of movie that doesn't really show its age. Sure, there is no mistaking that is a product of the 1980's. It absolutely is brimming with a Reagan-era sensibility. Hell, in one scene Steven Freeling, the father (Craig T. Nelson) is even reading a book on the 40th President called "Reagan: The Man, The President". He and his family have live in a recently built house in the suburban neighborhood of Cuesta Verde. His wife, Diane (JoBeth Williams) and three children, Dana (Dominique Dunne), Robbie (Oliver Robins) and Carol Anne (Heather O'Rourke) are enjoying life in middle class America, having achieved their small piece of the Dream. But, things turn real nasty when a malevolent force descends on their house and rips the young Carol Anne out of their plane of existence and into the spectral one ghosts like to call home.

Strange things are happening at the Freeling's house.

 

As I sat there in the theater I remembered the argument and subsequent bet I had made with my friend all those years ago, I smiled and again had that nagging feeling that something was amiss. There is no way Tobe Hooper is responsible for making the movie I am watching right now, I thought. Every scene of Poltergeist feels unmistakably like Steven Spielberg was behind the lens. Thematically it fits right in there with his filmography. A suburban family is assaulted by supernatural forces that threaten to tear them apart. They must unite in order to survive. There's also a healthy dose of fear-of-technology thrown in there for good measure.

The Freelings turn to psychic, Tangina (Zelda Rubenstein) to help them find their missing daughter and exorcise the restless spirits from their home.

The special effects were state-of the-art for that time and they were utilized liberally. How much experience did Hooper have with that kind of big budget filmmaking? Next to none is the answer. Don't get me wrong, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a great film, one of the greatest in the horror genre, and a testament to Hooper's ability to craft something so gritty and disturbingly real. One could argue it is even better than this 1982 blockbuster he is supposed to have directed. But when you look at the rest of his career, most importantly after the huge hit he had with Poltergeist, you cant help but wonder - what happened to this guy?

I decided to go home and read a little bit about the making of this classic of my childhood. I found out that I am a little late to jump on this bandwagon because a lot of people already have written about what I was surmising.

In 1982 journalist, Dave Pollock visited the set of Poltergeist to do a piece on the production for the L.A. Times. What he reported was chronicled in an article on May 24th titled "Poltergiest: Whose Film Is It?". It was pretty revealing and caused a bit of stir throughout Hollywood. The article claimed that it was Spielberg who was on set directing the shots, not Hooper. It also contained a pretty controversial quote from the Academy Award winning uber-director:

"Tobe isn't what you'd call a take-charge kind of guy. He's just not a strong presence on a movie set. If a question was asked and an answer wasn't forthcoming, I'd jump up and say what we could do. Tobe would nod agreement, and that became the process of the collaboration. I did not want to direct the movie - I had to do E.T. five weeks after principal photography on Poltergeist."

Spielberg and Hooper on the set of Poltergeist.

The article and his quotes resulted in the DGA (Directors Guild Association) beginning an investigation. In a response that reeked of damage control Spielberg published an open letter to Hooper in the June 2nd, 1982 edition of Variety. Here's an excerpt:

"Regrettably, some of the press have misunderstood the rather unique, creative relationship you and I shared throughout the making of Poltergeist. I enjoyed your openness in allowing me, as producer and writer, a wide berth for creative involvement, just as I know you were happy with the freedom you had to direct Poltergeist so wonderfully. Through the screenplay you accepted a vision of this very intense movie from the start, and as the director, you delivered the goods. You performed responsibly and professionally throughout, and I wish you great success on your next project."

Anyone else think that sounds like a man backpedaling pretty quickly?

Steven Spielberg directs Craig T. Nelson and James Karen in the climactic scene of Poltergeist. Where is Tobe Hooper?

The rumors began to swirl. Did Spielberg bring in Hooper to "ghost direct" his script? At the time he was also in pre-production on E.T., contractually obligated to what would become one of his most beloved pictures. He would have been forbidden from directing Poltergeist concurrently with it. Bringing on a filmmaker like Hooper, someone who had scored a cult hit in the 70's but had struggled to recreate that success, might allow him to make the movie he wanted to without actually having the title of director. That would go to Hooper who would acquiesce to Spielberg's leadership and creative vision. It isn't that far-fetched.

You only need to read some of the feedback from certain members of the cast and crew to get a clearer image of Spielberg's role in the production:

"I can tell you Steven directed all six days I was there. I only worked six days on the film and Steven was there. Tobe set up the shots and Steven made the adjustments." - Zelda Rubenstein to Ain't-It-Cool-News in 2007.

"It was a collaboration with Steven having the final say. Tobe had his own input, but I think we knew Steven had the final say. Steven is a strong-minded person and knew what he wanted. We were very lucky because we got input from two very imaginative people." - JoBeth Williams to the L.A. Times, May 24, 1982

It also is pretty transparent that Hooper had next to no involvement in post-production on the film.
"He [Tobe] dropped by one or two times, but he had no input whatsoever as far our (sound) work was concerned. Basically, Tobe didn't participate at all." - Bill Varney, Sound Mixer.

"Did he [Tobe] direct the film? Not that I saw." - Mike Fenton, Casting Director.

Composer, Jerry Goldsmith claimed that he had only worked with Spielberg on the score. He was quoted in the Times piece as saying this was "unusual because 99% of the time I work with the director."

It's difficult to find anyone involved in the film who says that Tobe Hooper was the creative force behind Poltergeist. According to various sources Spielberg created all of the storyboards himself, though Hooper himself has claimed that he had his hand in half of them. So, how did Hooper respond to this article and the assertion by so many that he was not the main man at the helm?

"I don't understand why any of these questions have to be raised. I always saw this film as a collaborative situation between my producer, my writer and myself. Two of those people were Steven Spielberg, but I directed the film and I did fully half of the story boards. I'm quite proud of what I did . . . I can't understand why I'm being slighted. I love the changes that were made from my cut. I worked for a very good producer who is also a great showman. I felt that was a plus, because Steven and I think in terms of the same visual style." - Tobe Hooper.

Every quote I read from Hooper on the matter smacks of defensiveness and indignation. That would be understandable if his contributions were being ignored. Imagine you get an opportunity to make a movie like this with a producer and writer who was at the pinnacle of his own career. Then lets say that said producer/writer, with his clear creative vision and take-charge personality, assumes the leadership role over the project. Wouldn't you feel slighted? Poltergeist stands out on Tobe Hooper's filmography like a sore thumb, or maybe its better to say a shining star. I am sure it has been difficult to have to constantly defend his work on possibly his most accomplished film.

I think it is a fascinating little piece of movie history and as you can see the collective information that is out there only serves to support a popular theory that Poltergeist is a truly a Steven Spielberg film. Maybe not in name but when you take the stylistic and thematic similarities combined with the fact that Spielberg wanted to direct it but couldn't due to his role with E.T., one has to concede that he was co-director at least locked in mutually beneficial partnership with Hooper.

This Halloween, if your looking for a classic horror flick to sit down to watch with friend and family you could do a whole lot worse than Poltergeist. It still holds up as one of the pinnacles of the ghost story genre, has fantastic performances from all involved and, despite who may have actually directed it (*cough* Steven Spielberg*cough*), it remains a classic 80's movie that will be cherished for all time.