Pet Sematary Review

 RParamount Pictures. Di Bonaventura Pictures1 Hr and 40 MinutesDir: Kevin Kölsch, Dennis Widmyer | Writers: Jeff BuhlerCast: Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, John Lithgow, Jeté Laurence  
  Based on the novel by Stephen King, Pet Sematary follows Dr. Louis Creed (Jason Clarke), who, after relocating with his wife Rachel (Amy Seimetz) and their two young children from Boston to rural Maine, discovers a mysterious burial ground hidden deep in the woods near the family’s new home. When tragedy strikes, Louis turns to his unusual neighbor, Jud Crandall (John Lithgow), setting off a perilous chain reaction that unleashes an unfathomable evil with horrific consequences...  
  As someone who just recently turned 21, I’ll admit that I had absolutely no connection to this Stephen King story. I’ve never seen the original 1986 film or read the book. The only connection I’ve had with the title is the Plain White T’s cover of “Pet Sematary” for the Frankenweenie movie soundtrack.
The first thing you need to understand about this modern adaptation is its tone. Many will have a problem with this movie’s tone because, honestly, it is very much uneven, for it’s surprisingly a dark horror comedy. Hell, it was one of my issues while watching the film even though I caught myself laughing several times. Then, upon reflecting the morning after, I came to the realization that THIS IS THE TYPE OF TONE KING ADAPTATIONS FROM THE 80s HAD! All of the unevenness and awkward laughable moments were entirely intentional. If you’ve ever seen any King adaptation from the 80s, such as Children of the Corn or Creepshow, one of the central aspects that relates to them all is the unevenness, and Pet Sematary wears that on its sleeve. While it is very much a dark horror, the film is more funny than scary. The film delivers well-earned laughs through its narrative and has fun, for it’s self-aware of how absurd the narrative is. Directors Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer add an invigorating life (ironically so) to this adaptation by not having the tone be taken so seriously. When I say Pet Sematary is like a cartoon, I mean it with every fiber in my body. This bears more similarities to a Treehouse of Horror story.   
  
One of the main factors that keeps Pet Sematary’s adrenaline at a high is the cast and their performances. Jason Clarke has always been a great actor, but some of the films he’s been in as of recent, such as Winchester and Serenity, haven’t used his abilities to their true potential. Here, he’s fantastic as this father who has to keep the natural concept of death away from his family, but when unprecedented events revolving death occur, we see the distress of denialism flowing through his bones. The shift of character and progression Louis goes through is chilling and Clarke’s performance is perfect. Then, you have John Lithgow as his neighbor who forms a charming relationship with the family. Throughout the film Lithgow puts a snarl in his dialect and, at times of vulnerability, slivers of his recognizable voice comes out. Amy Seimetz is great as Rachel, the wife with the traumatic past which links to her fear and relates to her withholding the idea of death from her family. The standout performer amongst all of these adults is Jeté Laurence who portrays Ellie. In a time where child actors who portray antagonistic kids go over-the-top in their performances (Deric McCabe of A Wrinkle in Time), or are given piss poor dialogue that requires them to say the most absurdly mature lines in order to come across as threatening (Jackson Robert Scott of The Prodigy), Jeté Laurence comes in and shows these kids how it’s done. Towards the last act, Laurence shines as she becomes menacing and threatening. A kind of benefits how she has some of the same facial features of Chucky (which till this day scares the shit outta me)As I said, I have no connection to the source material and had to talk to different people in order to understand which changes were made, and honestly those liberties screenwriter Jeff Buhler took did make it a tighter narrative. By the time the third reel begins, when the change of narrative occurs, it becomes a damn near perfect horror film because of the energy, violence, and style. I was okay for the first hour, but the final 40 minutes is an absolute blast which all happens once a twist occurs. If you’ve seen the second trailer, then you know what I’m talking about, and honestly I wish they wouldn’t have put that in there because it would’ve been a genuine surprise for King fans.
Similar to Frankenweenie, which was pretty much Pet Sematary for kids, the film does a great job handling the themes of death and grief. What at first seemed like coddling tactics the parents use to prevent their 8-year-old daughter from learning about the natural end of life is actually developed and put to the test for the parents themselves when tragedy strikes. While the family might make stupid choices at times, they’re all really likable people, so when the supernatural strikes and they’re all getting terrorized, your nerves are always on edge. Another aspect of the film that rocks is its visual imagery. The cinematography is very much standard studio quality, especially in accounts of lighting. Yet, the visuals integrated compliments the writing of a King novel where the tense descriptions are displayed and the reactions and movements of the characters correlate well with your reaction. There are visual techniques integrated through the framework that immerses you into the story and the insanity the family faces. Whether Louis is transported to the cemetery just by a glance at a dark doorway or Rachel’s PTSD of her childhood, the imagery reflects the internal conflicts of these characters. It correlates to the themes of the film.Plus, Church the cat rules. While the original only makes his eyes glare to signify his resurrected look, I love the choice made here where Church is roided out and looks like he’s seen some shit during his time with the deceased. Granted, all Church needed was a cat whisperer, but he is truly a major scene stealer, like Goose the Cat from Captain Marvel. As a cat dad, I’m glad a lot of these studio films are integrating some great cat content into their movies.
  
  Tonally, the film is uneven and, while it’s part of its charm, it’s also a major detriment. Prior to the climax, I felt the horror elements lacking significance because most of the focal factors it aims and succeeds in is humor. The characters are well-developed and the tension is natural, but when it comes to delivering thrills and chills in the first two reels, it’s not so present. When shit hits the fan by the climax and chaos ensues, true terror is delivered, but it takes a bit too long to get there.
I talked to fans after the film to get some more insight about the source material and they told me it mostly relates to Rachel’s backstory. Though it does a great job developing that aspect and relating to Rachel’s fears, it’s sporadically placed. It elevates the tension when incorporated, but at times it feels out of place and deviates from the main plot. To retread back to my praise of the imagery and how great it correlates to the story, I kind of wish there was more theatricality to the cinematography. I get the bright lighting is supposed to ground this world in realism and the family’s carefree life and safety once they move out to their new house in Maine. That said, I wish there was a bit of a dimness to the palette, especially through the horror elements. But because most of it aims for a comedic route, I spent most of the film not feeling that genuine tension. With IT, there was a grim look to the world that complimented the fears the kids faced in their town long before Pennywise shows up. Hell, I wasn’t a big fan of IT, but the film did have a bit more balance in its tone. With Pet Sematary, a lot of fun is to be had, especially with this being a horror movie that is dark and comedic, but its flaws are truly forgiven once that last act kicks in.  
  Uneven in tone, but unnerving in story, Pet Sematary continues the streak of decent King adaptations by providing tension, humor, great performances, and a strong, tight story. This makes it one of the better Stephen King feature adaptations of the past decade.Rating: 3.5/5 | 74%Super Scene: Ellie goes OFF!