- July 29, 2022
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Why Pet Sematary II Was Actually the Best of the Stephen King Series – CBR – Comic Book Resources
The sequel to the 1989 Stephen King adaptation was poorly received, but Pet Semetary II stands out by being creepier than the other films.
This year, Paramount+ will debut a prequel to Pet Sematary, the 2019 adaptation of the classic horror novel by Stephen King. However, unlike the 2019 and 1989 film adaptations of the novel, the new movie will not be based on an actual prequel written by King. Some might consider it risky to go forward with an installment without actual source material from the horror master, but it is not the first time it has happened in the Pet Sematary franchise.
In 1992, moviegoers got to revisit the franchise's iconic burial grounds in Pet Sematary II, a sequel that also was not based on a previous King novel and received negative reviews. However, time has been kind to the film, which celebrates the 30th anniversary of its release later in 2022. Today, Pet Sematary II arguably comes off better than the 1989 and 2019 adaptations, thanks to the filmmakers' willingness to make the movie scarier and be more bold and wild in its execution.
One of the ways that Pet Sematary II came off as creepier and bolder was by giving audiences a lead character who became an outright villain: young teen Jeff Matthews, played with a cold detachment by Edward Furlong of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. At the beginning of the film, he watched his movie star mother, Renee, die in an accident. After he and his father moved to his mother's hometown of Ludlow, Maine, where he made friends with Drew, a troubled young boy whose stepfather, Gus, was the town sheriff.
After the death of Drew's dog Zowie, the two boys took the dog to the burial grounds, which brought it back to life. This planted the seed in Jeff's mind to take his mother to the burial grounds, which he became dangerously obsessed with. Over the course of Pet Sematary II, his innocence and morals became more eroded, to the point where he even seemed pleased when his undead mother killed a woman who had an eye for his father. Although Jeff survives the movie, he is far from anything close to a hero.
Pet Sematary II also upped the ante over the other two films with meaner villains who were bad people when they were alive — and even worse when resurrected. This included Gus, played with considerable gusto by Dexter veteran Clancy Brown. When Gus was alive, he taunted Jeff's dad about how he once dated his late wife, was mean to his stepson and even shot Zowie. When Gus was brought back to life, he gave the appearance that he might have changed for the better — but that was not the case.
Instead, Gus assaulted Drew's mother and later murdered his stepson and wife in a car crash. He also killed and resurrected Clint, a teenage bully who tormented Jeff, stole his pet kitten, staged a prank that mocked his mother's death and even tried to disfigure the boy. When Clint came back to life, he attacked Jeff with the intention of killing him. All in all, the movie created an environment with toxic characters that only make the viewer feel more uncomfortable.
Pet Sematary II also followed the tradition of movies that are superior to their predecessor by being willing to be more playful. For example, the film added surrealism to its mix with wild dream sequences and gave more personality to its undead villains, particularly Gus. The zombified sheriff had many scenes that were successfully played with an equal balance of menace and over-the-top dark humor.
In the end, Pet Sematary II came off as a more daring film than the others in its franchise by being willing to switch things up and take chances. Hopefully, the upcoming prequel will be willing to be just as adventurous while also honoring King.
Alan Dorich is a freelance writer for Comic Book Resources and a lifelong movie fan.
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