The Entity (1982) review: an eighties classic which shouldn’t be missed

Carla Moran (Barbara Hershey) is haunted by an invisible entity whilst living alone with her children while boyfriend Jerry works out of town in this 1982 horror.

Reportedly based on Doris Bither’s real experiences, The Entity tells the story of Moran’s attempts to seek help when family and friends find it hard to believe her claims that a ghost has raped her. This entity repeatedly attacks Moran and her panic intensifies when she believes her family to be in danger.

The film’s score adds a sense of tension which is used to great effect. The simplistic repeated drum beat of the attack scenes makes the subject matter all the more striking. The special effects employed are simple but are done well as they aid the anxiety caused by the story and music.

Similarities can be drawn with The Exorcist for its horror, The Fly for the imposition of science onto an unknown phenomena and Poltergeist for the ghostly appearance of an unknown entity in an American home. Unlike these films however, The Entity uses the supernatural to touch on an overlooked social subject and allows rape to become the focus of a Hollywood film.