Certification: 'A'
Director: Kevin Kölsch, Dennis Widmyer
Cast: Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, John Lithgow, Jeté Laurence
Rating: 3/5
Ominous music. Check.
Remote location. Check.
Old scary legend. Check.
Choices that a normal individual would NOT make. Double check!
Pet Sematary has it all. Based on a Stephen King’s 1983 novel of the same name, this is the second one made by Hollywood. It is a Family drama-horror film with love, haunting past and thrill sprinkled in (No, this is not a 'K' drama)
Without a doubt, the film is scary and will give you nightmares for several weeks (more if you have a pet cat), but it does not offer the thrills that the novel encapsulates.
Kevin Kolsch’s adaptation is not fully like the older version or the novel really. There are some twists that you should watch to know. Kevin has directed the film to perfection and the screenplay by Matt Greenberg will scare you like any other horror film. You know where to expect the scares and you will also know you will jump when you expect the least. They have played the game of horror films well. Predictable, yet scary. Like the roller-coaster where you know when to expect the fall, still, you will scream your guts out because, well, you are terrified!
Who won’t be terrified at the idea of the resurrection of the dead? An ancient native swamp is a forbidden place to step on. You guessed it right, Pet Sematary’s characters visit the swamp, do the needful and behold! Things are set in motion. (Why can't people just listen?)
When Louis Creed (Jason Clarke is excellent as a loving husband and dad) and his wife Rachel Creed (Amy Seimetz) move to Maine from Boston with their nine-year-old daughter Ellie (Jete Laurence does a great job as a young girl battling with the idea of death) and toddler son, they expect to find a calmer, peaceful life. Things, however, take a turn for worse when their pet cat- Church- dies and their elderly neighbour Jud (John Lithgow) offers to help.
All said and done, one cannot dismiss the film as just another horror film as well. Pet Sematary won’t bore you in any part and will probably keep you on the edge of your seats, waiting for the next scare. It is gory and bloody with some psychological twists. Centred around the theme of letting-go, loss and death, Pet Sematary shows the limits one goes in desperation.
The film ends, as though, in a hurry to wrap it up and leaves you with some questions. Maybe there is a part 2 to answer them all (The Conjuring way, probably?).
But to end my adventure with Pet Sematary (and all the movies of this genre) if I may say, way too many wrong choices and a questionable way of coping with your loss, Mr Creed and family!