Pet Sematary (2019)

Review

101min

Genre:       Horror, Thriller

Director:    Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer

Cast:         Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, Jeté Laurence…and more

Writers:     Matt Greenberg, Jeff Buhler and Stephen King

-Synopsis-

When a young family moves into a house on the edge of a foreboding forest, their idyllic new life is thrown into turmoil by the discovery of an eerie cemetery designated for pets, and the loss of their cat. But when their feline friend returns anew and personal tragedy strikes, the sinister regenerative power of their new home is unleashed to horrifying effect—in this 21st century adaptation of the classic Stephen King novel.

If there’s one genre that’s never been free of constant remakes, sequels and re-interpretations, it has to be horror, and the results have varied drastically in terms of quality, often veering towards the low when it comes to tackling the more classic established names in the genre. Now Paramount gets in the game and takes a crack at one of its own titles, recruiting the indie directing team of Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer (Starry Eyes) to take a new swing at the beloved Stephen King book . . . with refreshingly disturbing and memorable results.

Jason Clarke stars as Massachusetts doctor ‘Louis Creed’, relocated with his wife ‘Rachel’ (Amy Seimetz), nine-year-old daughter ‘Ellie’ (Jeté Laurence) and toddler son ‘Gage’ (Hugo & Lucas Lavoie) to a house on the edge of the woods, where they discover a creepy pet cemetery . . . and something more. When their neighbour ‘Jud’ (John Lithgow) begins to reveal the secrets of the neighbouring forest and the family cat ‘Jud’ undergoes a sinister transformation, unthinkable tragedy and grief triggers the full dark power of their new home, putting the Creeds slap bang in the middle of a waking nightmare—where the line between life and death is forever blurred.

Whether you see this as a remake of the 1989 film—which didn’t quite do justice to its source material—or a new adaptation of Stephen King’s novel, it’s undoubtedly a worthy, slicker and more dynamic introduction to the ‘Pet Sematary’ story for a new audience and a new generation. Nevertheless this version does make some major departures from both the book and the original film adaptation, including a major character change which might irk fans of both but makes it more palatable (if less disturbing) to a 21st century audience—only to then even things out with a different more implied ending, but ultimately staying fairly true to the basic narrative and dark spirit of the novel.

The film slowly but purposefully builds momentum and an ominous atmosphere, while ensuring the audience’s investment in the characters and the Creed family, slowly putting them  through the psychological wringer before fully unleashing the darkness on them in the third act. Yet aside from a couple of scenes, the film is neither particularly bloody nor gruesome—but it sure is macabre and quite disturbing. Kölsch and Widmyer make good use of strategic jump scares without overdoing it, plus bodies as they shouldn’t be, and über creepy versions of what they say you should never work with . . . children and animals.

‘Pet Sematary’ is as much a psychological thriller and family orientated human drama as it is a supernatural horror—not to mention a tale of a man’s fatal folly, brought on by grief and madness—and as such it relies as much on the performances to unsettle and leave a mark as it does on good old fashioned scares. Fortunately the directors can count on solid turns from a small tight knit-cast, with the dependably excellent Jason Clarke and John Lithgow carrying the weight of the film along with Amy Seimetz, leaving the space for young Jeté Laurence on double-duty to steal the show, as a nine-year-old who will both melt your heart and utterly unnerve you with nuanced creepiness.

Being an update on previously mined material, ‘Pet Sematary’ was never going to be groundbreaking, and it’s far from a new horror classic. The slow deliberate build towards the big finish might make the film feel uneven for some, and the lack of any real context for the dark magic at work here may be a narrative limitation for others, while the decision-making by some of the characters is a real head-scratcher. But this bleak and brutal tale about our fear of death and its finality works on many levels, without over complicating things or tripping over itself, and ultimately proves one of the best horror remakes or re-imaginings in a long while.

This is ultimately a parable and dark fable about man’s fear of death and the importance of letting go, delivered through an expertly crafted and well conceived story about a dark place which feeds on loss and grief, which itself is a metaphor for a bleak side of our collective psyche . . . which some find harder to manage than others. Most importantly it’s a simple but effective good old fashioned grim horror flick, growing progressively gloomier and offering no final moral reprieve or silver lining.

The Bottom Line…

A skilful blend of creepy cats, even creepier kids, and bags of psychological trauma, ‘Pet Sematary’ combines subtle supernatural horror with family drama to deliver a tense, engrossing and deeply unsettling parable about death, grief and letting go—doing justice to the spirit and  dark heart of Stephen King’s novel while proving one of the best horror remakes and re-imaginings in recent memory.

Similar films you may like (Home Video)

The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016)

When the body of an unidentified murder victim shows up at their small-town morgue, a father & son team of coroners try to unravel the mystery of her gruesome fate—only to get caught up in a frightening fight for survival themselves in this tense horror from the director of ‘Trollhunter’.

Directed by André Øvredal and starring Brian Cox, Emile Hirsch and Olwen Catherine Kelly among others.

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