One of author Stephen King’s most beloved stories gets an updated reboot that attempts to take on the horror for a new generation. The long-gestating project at Warner Bros has been consistently pushed back and rumours of it potentially heading for the same fate as the studios uncertain films like Batgirl and Coyote Vs Acme, after author King tweeted that he had seen the film and was impressed, it was moved to Max and given a streaming release date for Halloween. The project has had two screen adaptations before, both in mini-series form, and this might just be why this two-hour film feels like it only scratched the surface of the story resulting in a mediocre film that’s best left for viewers wanting something new to watch this Halloween season.
The story follows Ben (Lewis Pullman) a successful author who moves back to the smalltown of Jerusalem’s Lot that he grew up in for inspiration for his next book. While there he befriends local Susan (Mackenzie Leigh) and starts to form a relationship with her while writing his next book, things don’t go to plan as the death of a child sparks concerns as more people in the town start disappearing. When Ben and a group of locals including Dr Cody (Alfre Woodward), Matthew (Bill Camp) and a preacher Callaghan (John Benjamin Hickey) figure out that the undead are responsible for the deaths and are intent on taking over the town. They must survive each night and eliminate the source of the outbreak to get their town back to normal.
The biggest part of the problem is the run time. Clocking in at just a little over two hours, there isn’t enough time to spend with any townspeople, so when they start disappearing, it is really difficult to be concerned about their wellbeing or even remember what they look like. It is probably important to remember that this was filmed in 2021 during peak COVID times, so having largely populated crowd scenes would not have been on the cards.
There are some great visuals used here and plenty of surprise deaths (although they do get less of a surprise as the film goes on). The drive-in scene in particular is effective as the sun is setting and the hoard of zombies emerge from the boots of the cars. As the survivors scramble to stay in the light, the undead emerge in spectacular fashion.
Salem’s Lot feels like a wasted opportunity, perhaps the subject matter of small towns being the epicentre of evil events is overplayed in 2024, or perhaps it was that the material from the novel and that of the two mini-series begs for a longer run time to fully dive into everything to allow for this story to be told well. There are some good performances here, Pullman is spectacular as the lead, able to carry the story when things rush by too quickly. The film does have some eerie moments, however it doesn’t let them linger enough to be anything scary.
Salem’s Lot is streaming on Binge from October 3rd.
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One of author Stephen King’s most beloved stories gets an updated reboot that attempts to take on the horror for a new generation. The long-gestating project at Warner Bros has been consistently pushed back and rumours of it potentially heading for the same fate...Salem's Lot 2024: A Mediocre Horror Reboot for Halloween