But there are some other flaws though in the other casting; Dale Midkiff is good, not great, as the conflicted, disturbed father figure Creed, and his daughter Ellie is played by an actress that just didn't work for me at all.In terms of setting up some chilling set-pieces, only a couple really stand-out: a certain plot-thickening moment (not to spoil, it does involve a cool Ramones song), and the first visit to the pet sematary (the bigger one), including the sort of mystical overtones King had in the Shining. I love John Lithgow, he's always been nothing less than a class act as an actor...But he was no Jud Crandall. The story is patchy and nonsensical in many places, it feels rushed to get to the end, and none of the characters are padded out enough for you to actually care about. Was this review helpful to you? Zelda was a victim, and Rachel's visions are a manifestation of her guilt. Directed by: Carles Torrens Unearthed & Untold: The Path to Pet Sematary. This one gets some PC woke tweaks, change some characters race and adds in special effects that make it silly. If I hadn't have paid a matinee price, I'd have asked for money back. He knows.... but keeps on lying to himself, because he's flawed - and human. The movie greatly suffers from being rushed, it never really takes its time to build up to characters or scares and just rushes its way from one plot point to another without giving any of them the time they need. I loved the original, but was unbelievably disappointed with this remake. Now, despite the terrible results and the insistent warnings from a recently deceased, tragedy-stricken Louis has no other choice but to go back to the Indian cemetery, in high hopes that, this time, things will be different. Awards & Events. The role of Pascow the ghost is pointless with his 3-5 minutes of screen time. Unfortunately, movie is pretty bland. The couple soon discover a mysterious burial ground hidden deep in the woods near their new home. In the original, Rachel is traumatized by Zelda's death because of her sense of guilt. I really don't understand all the 10 star ratings which say this reboot is soooo scary. Ellie was good but scary...not so much. Overall the film is mediocre but enjoyable, if you're a fan of the genre and just want a fun time at the movies it's worth a watch but it won't be one you remember, and it definitely doesn't live up to the legacy of the book. There is ZERO character development. And the writers do an interesting job at making this adaption different than the 1989 version and at adding new elements. This clearly does not fall in that category. In the original, Louis's relationship with Rachel's family has always been tense. The one shining light in this is John Lithgow as Jud, he's incredibly well cast, but the let down with him is they didn't utilise him like they should have. This Horror film has everything, Hags, Zombies, Gore, Ancient Indian Burial Grounds, Evil Pets, Ghosts, Demonic Children.. everytime I watch Pet Sematary I always hope that maybe THIS time Lewis will reach Gage.. but he never does, It looks cheap and thrown together. The story was choppy, because many details were skipped, and I found myself disengaged most of the time because of it. More info about this movie on IMDb.com I was actually angry that I watched it at the end. However, I saw the new one last night and I think they completely missed the mark. Taking on the helm of this new version is the directing duo of Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer. So the theme of the original story, 'our weaknesses make us the architects of our own demise', is replaced by 's*** happens'. From $7.99 to buy. I hated the switch in characters, the daughter brought a whole new dynamic to the story and that alone changed the entire feeling for the movie in my opinion. The editing was horrible, we go from a scene where Ellie asks Jud to come meet her cat, to him having dinner with the whole family, like seriously they're missing a scene where Louis meets Jud, they have no chemistry and no real relationship. I couldn't take any more. I figured with today's movie tech it could be more like the original story, even more so than the first 1989 movie. And the main theme of original story, about understanding of death, has not been well elaborated. If you haven't seen, or aren't a fan of the original, it's not a bad film. Amy Seimetz I liked a lot too, she was really good and sympathetic. External Reviews Lucky them. But something feels missing at times, some sort of style that could correspond with the unmistakably King-like atmosphere, which is in this case about as morbid as you're going to get without incestuous cannibals rising from the graves being thrown in (who knows if he'll save that for his final novel...) As mentioned though, some of the casting is terrific, notably Miko Hughes as Gage Creed, the little boy who goes from being one of the cutest little kids this side of an 80's horror movie, to being a little monster (I say that as a compliment, of course, especially in scenes brandishing a certain scalpel). "Pet Sematary (2019)" is not a bad horror movie since the storyline is creepy and the screenplay and the cast are good. I went alone, because no one else was that jazzed to see it. However, after the inadvertent death of Rachel's cherished tomcat in an awful accident, reluctantly, a desperate Louis will take his friendly neighbour's advice to bury it in an ancient Micmac graveyard: a mystical burial ground imbued with alleged reanimating powers. Clarke as Louis Creed is a chunk of talking wood throughout the film. PS : The cat was, indeed, truly beautiful and good chosen. When Gage died, Rachel's parents blamed it all on Louis. However, they applied the classic old horror movie recipe - jump-scares and dramatic music (in scenes when it was clearly not the case) - and transformed the whole product into some cheap stuff. A single mother gives her son a much sought-after doll for his birthday, only to discover that it is possessed by the soul of a serial killer. A difficult and cynical call, which completely backfired. John Lithgow is a class of his own, but the rest of the cast underwhelms. Pet Sematary: Yet another remake that should never have happened, Directors thought they could do better than original but failed, Flat characters and zero nuance make this an empty shell of a movie. I'm a huge fan of the novel, and whilst I'm well aware a certain amount of artistic licence goes into putting a book onto the big screen, they changed so much of the story that it was barely recognisable. In the book and first movie Louis' grieving is so intense for his child after he dies that you're actually scared for why he's going to do. I'm shocked they cat wasn't made a dog. Cat scratches you if you pull his hair - check | The original 1989 version may have some technical and stylistic shortcomings but it is a masterwork in efficiency in story telling. However, after the inadvertent death of Rachel's cherished tomcat in an awful accident, reluctantly, a desperate Louis will take his friendly neighbour's advice to bury it in an ancient Micmac graveyard: a mystical burial ground imbued with alleged reanimating powers. Otherwise, there's so many better things to do/read/watch instead of this. Plus she was older so you're not as heart wrenched at the tragedy of her death, and I hated that when she came back she had memories of her life and just spoke in a lower voice to show her "changed" behaviour. No discussion about has anyone ever buried a person up there, no watching the children grow and flourish, that happiness and joy that seems perfect only to be ripped apart by the horror of the accident. Watch now: Free with Ads Or $0.00 with a Prime membership ... et al. Get a sneak peek of the new version of this page. Metacritic Reviews. I also didn't like the role of Victor Pascal, he had a bigger part to play in the book and in this movie was just sort of thrown in to show they used a guy named Victor. But it doesn't add up like it could, or should. For me a stranger sat next to me in the cinema summed it all up when she said to me " I don't remember any of that happening in the book " I looked at her and said " that's because it doesn't". I have a fond memory of the 1st, but I've seen it recently and you can tell it has aged a bit. That was real mental anguish that you could feel and that hit you hard on display, this film had almost nothing to it in terms of emotional depth and grief you can feel, there wasn't any of the kind of all-consuming, maddening grief that would drive a father to dig up his own dead child to see here, he just did it without a second thought, there was no finesse or subtlety to it, the parents barely seem to grieve at all here, that felt rushed and tossed aside like everything else in order to get to the bloodshed, which by the way really wasn't anything to write home about.. On a positive it does have some solid performances, Jete Laurence was very impressive and she did her job perfectly, being sweet enough that you felt sad for her death and then effectively wicked and hateful enough that you were quite ready to see her die again! Here, paid cronies attacked again :( No broken Rachel and Louis being overtaken by the power of the place unable to be there for his remaining family. Pet Sematary is a 2019 horror movie about a father who finds out the hard way that sometimes dead is better. 2017 | CC. Pet Sematary (1989) by Stephen King. For most families, moving is a new beginning. The monstrous spirit of a slain child murderer seeks revenge by invading the dreams of teenagers whose parents were responsible for his untimely death. Pet Sematary is just spot on. How he reacted, that scream? You know a lot of these reviews seem to me to consider this a better movie purely based on it being new, and that really makes me a little sad! They could have done amazing things with this movie, modernized it so its current but with the connection and the terror that is felt in the book and the first movie. Whenever it tried to do something different it did but for the worse. ... Pet Sematary (1989) Full Cast & Crew. The only other two individuals in the theater walked out just before I did. One wonders what he would've brought to the film, as the director Mary Lambert, while not really a bad director, doesn't really bring that much imagination to this adaptation of King's novel, of which he wrote the screenplay. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Briefly introducing them in dialogue but not doing much else with them. This movie sucked, plain and simple. In the new version, some of his bad choices are still there (actually only one), but the key element of him being delusional (because he's human and pushed beyond reason) is watered down, replaced by a character who is primarily a victim to circumstance. FAQ Cat sits random places you would not expect - check. But for the Creeds, it could be the beginning of the end. Also, the cinematography and set designs set a dark and foreboding mood. Just an excuse to push the brand out into the marketplace once again. After tragedy strikes, a grieving father discovers an ancient burial ground behind his home with the power to raise the dead. and the end? Some movies should never be remade. Dreadful/. Very creepy moment with her and her dad when he's just cleaned her up after seeing her after her resurrection and he's lying next to her in bed and she speaks to him about what's in her head and where she's been after she died. Most Stephen King adaptations have been fantastic and there are so very very many of them. For the most part it's a very polished directing job, though it could've been made even darker to correspond with the script. As a fan of the book and the original movie i wanted go into the movie with an open mind and to give it a chance, I knew within five minutes that this was going to be NOTHING like the book or the original movie. Directed by (1) Writing credits (2) Cast (30) Produced by (4) Music by (1) Cinematography by (1) Film Editing by (2) Casting By (2) Production Design by (1) A teenage boy and his father move to his recently-deceased mother's hometown, where they encounter the ancient Native American cemetery with the power to raise the dead. If you see so many 10s being given, you instantly *know* the movie is not that good (good movies defend themselves). Here are some great movies worth streaming that you won't see at the Oscars this year. Pet Sematary. Because they’ve just moved in next door to a place that children built with broken dreams, the Pet Sematary. I didn't like the ending with the silly resurrected whole evil family all together and about to prey on poor little helpless Gage... That was just bonkers to me, what a trite and cheaply nasty way to end the movie. In the book, the resurrected 'being' was taken over by a demon-in the film, Ellie is well aware she is dead, and she's living an unwanted 'afterlife' of which she is also aware, and it turns her evil. A family's home is haunted by a host of demonic ghosts. Ok so I won't say that the acting was bad because it mostly wasn't, with the big exception for me being the distractingly Punch-like Jason Clarke, the guy is a horrible actor who has the emotional presence of a block and his interpretation of the Louis Creed character is just very off putting and not particularly even likeable at all.. "Pet Sematary Two" was released theatrically August 28, 1992 to dismal reviews and poor box office grossing 17.2 million in comparison to the the 1989 original which grossed 57.5 million and received better reviews. Pet Sematary Two is a 1992 American horror film directed by Mary Lambert.The screenplay was written by Richard Outten.It is the sequel to the film Pet Sematary which was based on Stephen King's novel of the same name.The film stars Edward Furlong, Anthony Edwards, and Clancy Brown. Taking this film solely on adaptation bases and not comparing to the original film, this is an alright adaptation it has moments of tension, and good moments of horror in the first two acts. Based on the Novel by Stephen King. Comparing the original story line, the movie did not change that much the course of events. In my opinion, there in no ending in this story. Pet Sematary deserved to be revisited, but it should have been a more loyal offering. Clarke plays an understated fish-out-of-water who takes more to Seimetz’s slice of … I was excited for this remake the second I heard it was coming out! Awards However, the second half is just a meaningless movie of walking dead. In this movie he just made you feel like he didn't care about anything. Better having this insight with a cat, rather than with a person. Directed by Mary Lambert and written by King, it stars Dale Midkiff, Denise Crosby, Blaze Berdahl, Fred Gwynne, and Miko Hughes as Gage Creed. No! Pet Sematary is a perfectly functional little horror movie. I understand why they changed which child was killed, you'd be hard pushed to find a toddler that can act as the living dead, but it didn't work with the older child either. Don't waste your time. NOT zombie like but actually something worse. A chilling supernatural thriller, Stephen King's Pet Semetary is adapted for the silver screen once again. If you're expecting it to be an updated version of the original movie,I think you might be disappointed. The book and the original movie drew believable and flawed characters, which are now replaced by cardboard cutouts. 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