Pet Sematary (1989) (Exclusive Series)

Initial release date: April 21, 1989

Studio: Paramount Pictures

Tagline: Sometimes dead is better

Plot: Dr. Louis Creed moves his family to Maine, where he meets a friendly local named Jud Crandall. After the Creed’s cat is accidentally killed, Crandall advises Louis to bury it in the ground, near the old pet cemetery. The cat returns to life, its personality changed for the worse. When Louis’ son, Gage, dies tragically, Louis decides to bury the boy’s body in the same ground despite the warnings of Crandall and Louis’ visions of a deceased patient.

Cast

Dale Midkiff - Louis Creed

Fred Gwynne - Jud Crandall

Denise Crosby - Rachel Creed

Brad Greenquist - Victor Pascow

Michael Lombard - Irwin Goldman

Miko Hughes - Gage Creed

Blaze Berdahl - Elle Creed

Susan Blommaert - Missy Dandridge

Mary Louise Wilson - Dory Goldman

Writer: Stephen King (screenplay and novel)

Director: Mary Lambert

Rated R (103 min)

Stephen King’s novel ‘Pet Sematary’ is one of the author’s most well-known novels ever. Over the years, the novel has been turned into a film which later spawned a sequel and a 2019 remake. For the “Halloween Edition,” I will only be checking out the 1989 film adaptation.

The 1989 movie (which was also written by Stephen King) delivers quite a few creepy moments and some really great scares. There are a couple parts that can be a tad cheesy and sort of badly acted. But, a lot of horror movies have those moments.

Throughout the movie, there are quite a few moments that will surprise you no matter how many times you have seen it. The scene where you get to see the cat return from “Pet Sematary” and startles the father character can also startle you a bit.

‘Pet Sematary’ is also very interesting to watch and can also be very suspenseful. It can also be kind of disturbing , especially after the untimely death of the young boy and later comes back after being buried at the “pet sematary.” The Gage scenes towards the end after he comes back from the dead are probably the creepiest scenes in the movie for sure.

You can check out this 1989 Stephen King movie on Amazon Prime. You can also rent it through YouTube, Google Play, VuduFandango and Apple TV.

FYI - ‘Pet Sematary’ is 32 years old!!!

Here are some interesting tidbits for ‘Pet Sematary’:

• Stephen King once mentioned that the only novel he wrote that really scared him was ‘Pet Sematary.’

• King was present on location for most of the shooting. The area it was shot in was only twenty minutes away from his Bangor home.

• In the novel, Judd mentions that a dog went wild in a nearby town and killed several people. This is a reference to the events of ‘Cujo.’

• The original screenplay featured the “wendingo” (a Native American demon) that was mentioned in the novel, but it was ultimately cut from the film. Its presence is implied only twice: First, in the scene where Louis is walking through the woods at night and hears something large knock down a tree, and second, when Judd first takes Louis up to the Indian burial ground, there is some kind of loud, almost feminine howl. Judd says that “it's only a loon,” but it’s clear that he doesn’t entirely believe it himself.

• George A. Romero was originally set to direct, but when filming was delayed, he dropped out and Mary Lambert stepped in and Romero went on to direct 1988s ‘Monkey Shines.’

• The film grossed $57 million in the US.

• A sequel, ‘Pet Sematary Two,’ was released in 1992 to poor reviews and a disappointing box office.

https://youtu.be/JMao8sg4DPA