I guess they are remaking Pet Sematary now

[shootemindehead]

What they should have done... What they should have done was give Rob Bottin any amount of money he wanted to come out of "retirement" and helm the effects crew. They did release some behind the footage of the film which received high acclaim for it's high quality practical effects. It's probably still around on Youtube somewhere. I can't 100% vouch for the 80's comment tho, but I don't think the practical effects were shit. Well, while they might not have been shit, they weren't working, which is what matters at the end of the day. There was a making of on the DVD I remember watching and the filmakers said they had the best intentions of doing the effects from a practical standpoint and it was one of their main goals. But, time, money and studio patience were running out and the decision to basically rotoscope CGI overlays onto the practical stuff that was completed had to be taken, if they were going to meet their deadlines. Personally, I would have kept the animatronics and shot them in shadow, like a thousand other directors did before them. Show just enough and let the audience fill in the rest. Of course, this would have probably coincided even less with fans of the original, which boasted very in your face effects both at then time and now. Bottin's work still stands up today really well and it doesn't hide from the audience. I spose it's just one of those decisions that have to be made during the making of a movie.

[beat_truck]

Decent? *faints* It's a hell of a lot more than that, beat, it's a cinematic landmark. So I keep hearing. It just didn't do much for me at the time, but that was years ago. I might love it this time around. There have been a lot of movies that I wasn't crazy about until I watched them more than once.

[bassman]

When I was younger I just found it to be a scary movie. It wasn’t until I gave it a watch as an adult that I truly fell in love with it. It’s now one of my top horror films of all time.

[MinionZombie]

Personally, I would have kept the animatronics and shot them in shadow, like a thousand other directors did before them. Show just enough and let the audience fill in the rest. Of course, this would have probably coincided even less with fans of the original, which boasted very in your face effects both at then time and now. Bottin's work still stands up today really well and it doesn't hide from the audience. I feel the lighting in JC's was much better. Some of those scenes in the pre-make are in such brash and clear lighting, while in JC's movie even when things are 'in your face' there's still much more interesting lighting going on that helps hide a few things, or give a better 'texture' to the practical materials on-screen. Some scenes are shot much murkier, or with roaming light (e.g. the dogs scene, or the 'two heads are better than one' scene during the blood test sequence). Animatronics are a tricky thing. You've got to only ask so much of them and keep things much simpler as, it seems, you can't get too complicated with the movements otherwise you end up with a 'herky jerky' look. Sometimes animatronics can be excellent though and the preferred choice, but you've got to be very careful about how and when you deploy them. So I keep hearing. It just didn't do much for me at the time, but that was years ago. I might love it this time around. There have been a lot of movies that I wasn't crazy about until I watched them more than once. When I was younger I just found it to be a scary movie. It wasn’t until I gave it a watch as an adult that I truly fell in love with it. It’s now one of my top horror films of all time. I've always loved the movie, but as bassman says, with each viewing over the years I've found more and more to love about it, more and more things that creep me out. It wasn't until I was in my 20s that I recognised just how oppressive the sense of isolation was, and it wasn't until more recently that I picked up one something that was really getting my skin to crawl - there are a handful of scenes in which you see people sitting with their backs turned to an open door. Considering the context of what's going on in the movie, that's really disquieting.

[bassman]

And I’m still learning new things about the movie. Thanks MZ!

[MinionZombie]

And I’m still learning new things about the movie. Thanks MZ! Next time you watch it, look out for those moments. It's like a mafia boss sitting with his back not against a wall where he can see who's coming and going. Shivers up my spine, dude. You see, for instance, MacReady with his back turned to an open door, and you see an inversion of that with the infected dog staring at the shadow of one of the men in his room - the dog walks off and the shadow turns, having sensed something was there ... silence ... fade to black. *chills* Friggin' love that film!

[JDP]

Next time you watch it, look out for those moments. It's like a mafia boss sitting with his back not against a wall where he can see who's coming and going. Shivers up my spine, dude. You see, for instance, MacReady with his back turned to an open door, and you see an inversion of that with the infected dog staring at the shadow of one of the men in his room - the dog walks off and the shadow turns, having sensed something was there ... silence ... fade to black. *chills* Friggin' love that film! Fuchs also has his back turned on an open door while he is deeply into trying to solve the problem. MacReady then walks in and talks to him. Notice how Fuchs instinctively reaches for the nearby flask with acid or some other dangerous chemical in it. Notice his initial expression of doubt and concern (is MacReady really human? can I really trust him?), and then he starts to talk to him. The movie injects this great sense of paranoia and incertitude as it becomes increasingly unclear who is still human and who is not. This movie does not rest on its laurels regarding gory make-up and special effects, it is also a great psychological horror piece.

[MinionZombie]

Fuchs also has his back turned on an open door while he is deeply into trying to solve the problem. MacReady then walks in and talks to him. Notice how Fuchs instinctively reaches for the nearby flask with acid or some other dangerous chemical in it. Notice his initial expression of doubt and concern (is MacReady really human? can I really trust him?), and then he starts to talk to him. The movie injects this great sense of paranoia and incertitude as it becomes increasingly unclear who is still human and who is not. This movie does not rest on its laurels regarding gory make-up and special effects, it is also a great psychological horror piece. Damn straight. Couldn't agree more. So many subtle layers of paranoia and isolation strewn throughout the movie ... I think that's what unnerves me the most about the movie.

[bassman]

MZ, did you ever catch Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight? It takes some pretty heavy inspiration from Carpenter’s The Thing...

[MinionZombie]

MZ, did you ever catch Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight? It takes some pretty heavy inspiration from Carpenter’s The Thing... Aye, I've seen it twice now. Really enjoyed it. There's various 'unused' tracks from Morricone's score to The Thing on there, which are deployed very effectively. Snowbound location, paranoid misfits wondering who is responsible for deaths and where certain people are - delicious!

[ProfessorChaos]

not a big fan of all the "little kids in creepy masks" bit, john lithgow is no fred gwynne, and it looks like it might be saturated in dumb-ass jump scares (like the ninja truck that roars by the house when they first arrive). ....but i guess it looks decent enough and director is claiming it's closer to the book than the original film, hinting things that didn't make the original film might be incuded (fingers crossed for a proper wendigo appearance), and will probably be rated R. https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/pet-se...ark-adaptation i'll probably see it without setting my expectations too high and hopefully be surprised.

[ProfessorChaos]

so....not a lot of discussion on this one since i posted the last trailer. here's trailer 2, full of spoilers, including the big unnecessary twist that has pretty much killed my interest in seeing this. oh and more of the stupid "kids in creepy masks" thing. as for the huge plot change, uh, so much for sticking closer to the source material...not a fan of the update, at all. the woods looked creepy and they even showed a picture of the wendigo in a book at one point, but other than that i'm barely interested in this now.

[shootemindehead]

Yeh Prof. Not feeling that at all. While the original film has huge flaws and is ripe for an update, I don't think that this is it at all. I can hear Fred Gwynne in my head..."Sometimes the original is betta..."

[bassman]

I was more on board with the first trailer. Sadly, this appears to be one of those cases where the trailers closer to release start to put me off. I’ve been thinking for years that I need to stop watching trailers after the first one is released....

[ProfessorChaos]

well, i managed to view this over the weekend (for free, no way i was shelling out hard-earned cash for this), and it was about what i expected. while some of the atmosphere and cinematography was better, along with some of the acting, overall, the whole thing fell flat. the pacing was way too fast, they skimmed over some of the best moments from the source material and original film, there was never any sort of connection or bond between any of the characters, and it just never really felt like it was even worth the time it took to sit down and watch it. immediately after watching this travesty, i ordered the anniversary edition blu ray of the 89 film (maybe it's a bit of nostalgia on my part, but leaps and bounds superior in my book), and started re-reading the novel. forget the 2019 version, only view it if you don't have to pay for it and have some time to kill on a rainy day or something. perhaps i went in with the wrong expectations, but i'd probably give it a 3/10....maybe a 4 at best....and seriously, who the fuck thought it was a good idea to reveal the big twist in the trailer? if i'd gone in blind, it may have really got me to sit up in my seat and drawn me in, but talk about letting the cat out of the goddamn bag.