Remaking My Childhood (Pt. 1)

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

I've decided, in addition to my series of therapeutic letters (check out my profile for more information on that. Hint: Shameless Plugging), I've also decided to take on the remakes of my childhood favorites.

Book

I'm starting with one of my favorite horror movies and Stephen King books Pet Sematary.

Originally published in 1983 and written by horror legend Stephen King, Pet Sematary is a story focused on the Creed family: Louis (dad), Rachel (mom), Ellie (daughter), Gage (son), and Church (the cat, an IMPORTANT CHARACTER IN THE STORY).

The Creeds move to Ludlow in Maine so that Louis can take a job at the campus health center as a teacher. Trouble starts from the get-go with Ellie hurting her knee and Gage being stung by a bee. However, a kind elderly neighbor named Jud comes over to help the Creeds and warns them about the highway in front of their house. Trucks constantly speed down and with two young children and a cat, it could be easy for someone to get hurt (FORESHADOWING).

Jud and Louis instantly become friends and Louis even sees Jud as a father figure. Which is hindered a bit when Jud shows them the local secret: Pet Sematary (misspelled because children spell like a high school graduate on Facebook). This sparks an argument between Louis and Rachel. Rachel feels uncomfortable with death due to being present when her sister, Zelda, died years ago. Zelda is shown in flashbacks to have spinal meningitis (an acute inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord that can be fatal) and have been left alone with Rachel at the time of her death.

Unfortunately for Louis, death is a part of life and he experiences it in the form of one of his students: Victor Pascow. Pascow is killed in a car accident and his dying words are directed to Louis subsequently haunting him. The following night, Pascow haunts Louis in what Louis believes is a dream, telling him to not go to the Pet Sematary especially the section that is believed to bring the dead back. He tells him not to go there even if he feels the need. Louis discovers that his "dream" has somehow left mud on his pants.

Louis quickly finds out what Pascow means when Jud's wife, Norma, has a heart attack on Halloween. She is okay thanks to Louis, but Jud decides to repay Louis for his quick acting help with Norma when Church is killed by a speeding car on Thanksgiving. Jud and Louis go to "bury" Church, but Jud takes Louis to a darker place: The real cemetery, a place used by Micmac Indians. Jud instructs Louis on exactly how to bury Church.

To Louis's surprise, Church comes back. To further his surprise, he doesn't come back quite the same. Church used to be a friendly and vibrant cat who enjoyed hunting and being by Ellie's side. Now, he rips small animals apart and acts "dead." He also smells which causes Ellie not to want him in her bed at night or by her side as much. Louis asks Jud about the new Church and Jud simply tells him this is the way animals come back. Louis instantly regrets Church's resurrection and wishes he would've let him stay dead.

Louis, however, is grateful a few months later when his two year old son, Gage, is run over by a speeding truck. He buries him in the graveyard, knowing it will work its magic soon. Jud figures out what Louis is doing and tells him the story of Timmy Baterman, the last man buried in the real cemetery.

Timmy died on his way back from World War II and his father, Bill, buries him. Timmy comes back as a zombie-like creature and terrorizes the town. Jud and his friends go to the Baterman's to deal with this thing once and for all, but gets the shock of his life when Bill burns down the house, destroying Timmy's corpse and killing himself. Jud concludes that "sometimes dead is better."

Turns out Jud is correct and Gage comes back like Jud said he would, a reanimated terror possessing a child's body. Jud and Rachel are killed and Louis is left with the hardest decision of his life. He takes a syringe and puts Gage to sleep before burning the Crandall residence down.

He buries Rachel in the same spot as Gage, hoping for different results. She comes back to him and calls him darling with a mouthful of mud as the book ends.

1989 Movie

There are a few differences in the movie and book.

• Pascow is dying jogger hit by a bus instead of Louis's student. He warns Louis about the cemetery despite not knowing Louis.
• Norma is not in the movie. Jud lives by himself.
• The Creeds have a housekeeper named Missy Dandrige that kills herself. It was revealed that she had cancer and would likely die a horrible death.
• Gage looks more like a reanimated corpse in book; in the movie, he looks like a normal toddler. One with a scalpel and the temper tantrum to end all temper tantrums. But still a normal toddler.
• Rachel is an annoying nag in the book. Not so bad in the movie.
• Movie shows a horrific kiss between undead Rachel and Louis at the end.

While the basic story is the same, the movie has a greater cult following due to the terrific performances of the cast and the image of a toddler holding a scalpel.

Gage Creed (1989)

In all honestly, this is probably how most people who are childless (the ones by choice) my age (30s) see toddlers. Kind of makes me think twice about having kids myself now. Anyways...

The cast includes Fred Gwynne (Herman Munster from The Munsters) and Denise Crosby (Lt. Yar in Star Trek: TNG). The little boy is played fantastically by Miko Hughes (great Instagram—suggest following because he's HILARIOUS).

The movie spawned a sequel starring Edward Furlong (John Connor from Terminator 2). The sequel focused on 13-year-old Jeff Matthews (Furlong) and his father, Chase, who is a veterinarian. The two recently moved to Ludlow which was Jeff's mother's hometown and they meet town sheriff, Gus Gilbert, and his stepson, Drew. Gus abuses his stepson and even shoots his dog, Zowie. The plot is similar to the first one and even references the Creed family. However, the kill count is higher and both Jeff and his father survive.

2019 Movie

While the movie has not been released, the trailer has, and it is interesting to say the least. I don't believe the original cast is returning. I know Fred Gwynne won't be, as he passed away in 1993 from complications of pancreatic cancer (RIP Herman).

His role will luckily be assumed by John Lithgow (Arthur Mitchell from Dexter and Dick Solomon from 3rd Rock from the Sun) and, in my opinion, it is definitely one of the draws to this remake.

Jud and Ellie (2019)

The movie itself is going to have a few new changes including the child being resurrected.

Instead of a two-year-old Gage wielding a scalpel, it will be Ellie now getting buried and coming back wrong. Ellie is the eldest Creed child and is about eight years of age in both the book and movies. Fans have reacted to this with mixed emotions. When I saw the trailer, my mouth even hung open after this was revealed. My husband, who has never read the book and hasn't seen the 1989 (his birth year funny enough) movie, was confused by my reaction as well as the reaction of the people old enough to have enjoyed the movie around us. It lead to a rant. And hopefully the only time I will utter the phrase, "Why isn't the two-year-old the one who dies?"

There are also many other changes shown in trailer, such as Church's look, although it is more accurate than the original movie's Church, as shown as the original Pet Sematary book cover.

Church on the 1983 'Pet Sematary' Cover

Church in the 1989 Film

(Church in the new film is shown above as the main picture for this article.)

And possibly the other infuriating change besides the killer child is the creepy children in the animal masks. According to Jud in the trailer, the masks are a part of the ritual when burying an animal, but later in the movie, the mask may be something more sinister as it is shown on Ellie when she stabs Jud in the achilles heel.

This all leads to the question: Why?

Why change the killer child character? It is way more of an emotional rollercoaster to watch a two year old being run over. Although the eight year old isn't exactly drawing retirement or prepaying for her own funeral, Gage just hits you where the feels are.

Why the children with the masks?: They're nowhere to be found in either the original movie or book so just why? Do they really add anything to the plot other than an extra creep factor?

Why go with more of an accurate portrayal of Church? The gray hissing demon in the 1989 movie was good enough to scare anyone with gatophobia (fear of cats). Although for this one, I probably can cite that as the old "let's fix it" mentality of this movie generation. If it's wrong or not politically correct by today's standards, then it must be corrected. This will definitely be a longer explanation with Dumbo (2019). Way longer.

Why even REMAKE this one? Aren't there enough original books and ideas out here to avoid remaking classics? Answer: Hollywood just likes to capitalize on that nostalgia cash. Even so, the original movie also had its haters and was reviewed by many critics with varying degrees of issues with King himself and the movie's more disturbing images. I'm sure this one won't be different.

My opinion on this movie's potential: Surprisingly, I cannot wait to see it. I love John Lithgow in everything he does and I cannot wait to see his portrayal of Jud Crandall. I also weirdly am curious to see just how much they've changed and how far they've departed from the original material. Also, I cannot wait to see the children's performances in this as children are often seen as terrible actors. The original Gage (Miko only being two) was really creepy and a huge bright spot in the 1989 movie.

I say GO SEE IT on April 5, 2019. I know it'll be an early 31st birthday present to me.