Unearthed And Untold: Pet Sematary doc fascinating look into filmmaking
By Billy Cripps
The novel Pet Sematary is one of Stephen King’s most personal stories. A tale of tragedy grief turning to madness. Let’s get unearthed and untold..
Pet Sematary is my second favorite of Stephen King’s work, just behind IT. So when I learned there would be a documentary of the classic 1989 film, I knew it would be a must see for me.
The novel Pet Sematary is one of Stephen King’s most personal stories. A tale of tragedy grief turning to madness, the corresponding 1989 film is arguably one of the best adaptations of his work. Now we get to take an inside look on what it took to bring the story to life.
Unearthed and Untold: The Pet Sematary Story — Courtesy of Ocean’s Light Productions
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Unearthed And Untold: The Path To Pet Sematary is a fascinating looking into filmmaking told by the cast and crew. Some things I already knew, some of them I didn’t. Seeing behind the scenes footage from the set was intriguing. Hearing how highly everyone spoke of Fred Gwynne brought some light and sweetness to the otherwise dark subject matter of the story the documentary was based on.
Every Pet Sematary fan knows that the scariest moment isn’t Church or even Gage, it’s Rachel’s sister Zelda. Most people know the role is played by a man. What they may not know is he had to be in makeup for 24 hours straight. When he tried to take the make up off, it took some of his skin with it.
The film is the 16th film adaptation of King’s work. It’s also the first to actually be filmed in Maine. Long time King fans will realize just how odd that is — most King stories takes place in Maine.
Behind the scenes, the film has ties to A Nightmare On Elm Street. David Anderson met Heather Langenkamp (Nancy) while working on the Wes Craven film Shocker. They began dating and he proposed while Pet Sematary was filming. Another interesting connection is Miko Hughes, who plays Gage, would go on to play Heather Langenkamp’s son in New Nightmare.
One thing is for sure. When it comes to Unearthed And Untold: The Path To Pet Sematary, the ground is not sour. If you’re a fan of the film or the book it is a must see experience.
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