Dale Midkiff
Louis Creed
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Apr 9, 2019 · As creepy and effective as the character Zelda might be in the latest Pet Sematary adaptation, the original was better. The original interpretation managed to capture the severity of Zelda's illness, while also supporting Rachel's unbridled fear of her sister.
Rachel returns home and is lured into Jud's house by the specter of her dead sister Zelda, only to discover that she is actually seeing Gage, holding a scalpel. In shock and disbelief, Rachel reaches down to hug her son and he kills her. Waking up from his sleep, Louis notices Gage's muddy footprints in the house and finds his scalpel missing.
Pet Sematary: Directed by Mary Lambert. With Dale Midkiff, Fred Gwynne, Denise Crosby, Brad Greenquist. After tragedy strikes, a grieving father discovers an ancient burial ground behind his home with the power to raise the dead.
- Mary Lambert
- 31 sec
- Overview
- Plot
Pet Sematary (sometimes referred to as Stephen King's Pet Sematary) is a 1989 horror film adaptation of Stephen King's novel of the same name. Directed by Mary Lambert and written by King, the film features Dale Midkiff as Louis Creed, Denise Crosby as Rachel Creed, Blaze Berdahl as Ellie Creed, Miko Hughes as Gage Creed, and Fred Gwynne as Jud Crandall. Andrew Hubatsek was cast for Zelda's role.
A sequel, Pet Sematary Two, was released which was met with less financial and critical success. For the 2019 film adaptation, look here.
The Creed family (Louis, a doctor, his wife Rachel, their daughter Ellie and their infant son, Gage) moves into a new home in the state of Maine, close to a road where high-speed truckers often carelessly drive by. They meet their new neighbor, Jud Crandall (Fred Gwynne), who grabs their newly-walking son, Gage, who wanders into the road in front of their house where trucks, mostly from a nearby Orinco chemical plant, race by at high speeds. Ellie notices a path leading away from the house and into the woods and Jud promises to take them on a hike when they've settled into their new home.
Later, Louis Creed (Dale Midkiff), working at the University of Maine at Orono hospital, treats a car accident victim named Victor Pascow (Brad Greenquist), whose skull had been broken open when he was hit by a truck. Pascow dies in the examination room, but not before suddenly grabbing Louis and whispering a mysterious and cryptic message to him just before expiring. That night, in what is seemingly a dream, Victor visits Louis in his sleep, warning him about the burial ground that lies behind the "barrier", the deadfall at the back of the pet cemetery, a large pile of branches and brush that's dangerous to climb on. Louis dismisses the experience as a dream but wakes up to find his feet covered in dirt.
Rachel takes the kids with her to Chicago for Thanksgiving. Louis doesn't join them; he has a strained relationship with his in-laws and feels Rachel and the kids will have a better time without him. Church, a British Shorthair cat owned by Louis's daughter Ellie (Blaze Berdahl), is run over by a truck on the road in front of their house. Jud takes Louis to a burial ground a few miles beyond the pet cemetery they visited earlier. Jud shows him a way to walk on the deadfall without falling in. At the other burial ground, one constructed by the local Micmac Indian tribe, Louis buries the cat underneath a cairn while Jud supervises. Church is brought back to life, but is an evil shell of himself; he attacks Louis and reeks of decomposition. Jud tells Louis about the grounds. Louis asks if a person was ever buried in the grounds and a startled Jud says no and harshly suggests that no one ever would. Before he leaves, he tells Louis that the heart of a man can be "stonier", part of the same message that Pascow had given Louis when he died.
Not long afterward, Missy Dandridge, who'd been assisting Rachel with housework and helping with their children, commits suicide. Missy had been battling a terminal illness and leaves a note saying she couldn't stand the pain any longer. A funeral is held (Stephen King himself cameos as the priest overseeing the funeral) and Rachel becomes very upset. She tells Louis the full story about her sister Zelda, who'd died of spinal menningitis when Rachel was very young. Rachel had been left alone and in charge of Zelda by their parents the night her sister died and the experience scarred Rachel for life.
The following Spring, Gage is tragically run over by a truck on the road during a picnic and is killed. The entire family falls into shock and deep depression, particularly Rachel and Ellie. At Gage's wake, Rachel's father, whom never respected Louis or Rachel's wish to marry him, berates Louis for Gage's untimely death. The two fight in the funeral home and upset the casket.
Louis considers burying Gage in the burial ground. Jud tries to dissuade him from doing so, telling him about a young man from town, Timmy Baterman, who died in service during World War II. His father, Bill, placed his son's corpse into the Micmac burial ground, only to have it reanimate and terrify the townsfolk. Jud and three of his friends tried to burn down the house with Timmy trapped inside, but Bill was attacked by his son and both perished in the fire. Jud believes that the place made Gage die because he introduced Louis to it. Jud concludes by saying "Sometimes dead is better."
Jul 29, 2015 · Stephen King’s Pet Sematary (1989) revives the Gothic literature trope of the madwoman in the attic. This is not to say that it has not appeared in other facets of popular culture prior to his film but rather that Mr. King’s representation is arguably one of the most memorable.
Pet Sematary (1989) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more.
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Oct 12, 2022 · In the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s novel, “Pet Sematary,” Zelda (Andrew Hubatsek), the deceased sister of Rachel Creed (Denise Crosby), suffers from spinal meningitis. She is seen ...
