Welcome one and all to part 35 of The 52 In 52. Last week I wrote about the fantastic Wild Rose go and check that out before reading on. The concept of the blog is simple. I have a large collection of DVDs and Blu Ray that sit gathering dust on my shelf. Each week this year I will pick one I have never seen and review it.
As always if you have any comments or feedback leave a comment in the section below or by following me on Twitter and Instagram.
I'm a little on the fence when it comes to remakes or re imaginings. Whilst there are points that can be made on both sides of the argument the horror genre has its fair share of not so great remakes. I am glad to say Pet Sematary is a remake that does not disappoint. Stephen King has a vast collection of stories and numerous adaptations from the great (both versions of IT, The Shining, Cujo, Stand By Me, The Shawshank Redemption) to the not so good (Bag Of Bones, The Mist) and Pet Sematary is one of 3 adaptations this year.
Pet Sematary was adapted for the screen by Matt Greenberg (Halloween H20) and directed by Kevin Kolsch and Dennis Widmyer. The story follows Louis and Rachel Creed as they move to small town Maine with their son, daughter and cat. Their daughter, Ellie, stumbles upon a mysterious ritual and pet cemetery on their land. After meeting neighbour, Jud, the Creed family experience loss in a major was and Louis resorts to extreme measures to bring his family back together.
As I've said Pet Sematary is a pretty decent re telling and should be held in high regard. The story is a little different with added elements and changing details of deaths but, I actually feel it works better. There is a pretty extensive and detailed story told in a timely fashion with little to no exposition. I loved the switch around of deaths with the more grown up daughter being killed. This allowed for a more eloquent and altogether more sinister story line when Ellie is resurrected. I wasn't crazy about the ending but, I can see why the film makers went with that ending rather than the alternate ending as it would have left the film on a real downbeat.
I really enjoyed the acting throughout the film. John Lithgow was fantastic as Jud and I felt that he was a little under utilised throughout the film. Jason Clarke was great as the tortured Louis Creed and I felt that he displayed a lot more emotion than Louis did in the original. Amy Seimetz is fantastic as Rachel and especially in the third act really drives the story. Jete Laurence puts in a great performance as Ellie and is really enjoyable to watch especially in the third act where she commands the screen.
There were a number of cheap scares that are common place in modern horror but, there was more than a few old school scares where the building of tension and suspense was done so through pacing and the use the score. There wasn't a huge amount of gore which I love as I find more than often in horror remakes over the top gore is thrown in to differentiate itself from the original.
Overall I was entertained throughout Pet Sematary. The story was told in a way that wasn't long and drawn out but, really explored the story in detail. The acting is decent throughout with each actor putting in a good performance. The changes and additions to not only the original film but, the source material were fine and didn't feel too jarring or out of place. This film is well worth a watch.
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