Reviews provided by RottenTomatoes
Vincent Canby, New York Times: Poltergeist is like a thoroughly enjoyable nightmare, one that you know that you can always wake up from, and one in which, at the end, no one has permanently been damaged. It's also witty in a fashion that Alfred Hitchcock might have appreciated. Read more
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Hooper and Spielberg hold our interest by observing the everyday rituals of this family so closely that, since the family seems real, the weird events take on a certain credibility by association. Read more
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader: Though the shocks are well conveyed, it's the sweetness that lingers, making this the first cute and cuddly entry in the genre. Read more
TIME Magazine: The film delivers honest special-effects shocks without forfeiting its good nature. Read more