Pet Sematary
Movie, 1989, Pet Sematary, Set in The Creeds move to Ludlow
Pet Sematary is #12 of 42 in release order and #39 of 42 in chronological order in the Stephen King Universe.
The story
After the Creed family's cat is accidentally killed, a friendly neighbor advises its burial in a mysterious nearby cemetery.
Pet Sematary recap
Pet Sematary (1989) follows the Creed family, who move to rural Ludlow, Maine, beside a highway and near a burial ground that brings the dead back wrong. Mary Lambert directs from King's own script, with Dale Midkiff as doctor Louis Creed, Denise Crosby as his wife Rachel and Fred Gwynne as elderly neighbour Jud Crandall. When the daughter Ellie's cat Church is killed on the road, Jud leads Louis past the children's pet cemetery to an old Mi'kmaq burial ground, and Church returns, foul and violent. The ghost of Victor Pascow, a student who died in Louis's care, warns him against the place. Rachel is haunted by her sister Zelda, who died of spinal meningitis. Then their toddler Gage (Miko Hughes) is killed by a truck, and Jud tells the story of Timmy Baterman, a boy who came back as a monster. Louis digs up his son anyway.
Pet Sematary ending explained
Pet Sematary ends with Rachel returning from the dead. Gage comes back, kills Jud and then his mother with a scalpel. Louis kills Gage and Church with morphine and burns the Crandall house. Despite everything, he carries Rachel's body to the burial ground. She walks back into the house, bloodied, and as they kiss she reaches for a knife; the screen cuts to black on Louis's scream.
Post-credits scenes
No. Pet Sematary has no mid- or post-credits scene; the Ramones song plays over the credits.
Where to watch Pet Sematary
Pet Sematary is streaming on Paramount+, Philo, AMC+, Kanopy, Hoopla, and YouTube (free) in the US. You can rent or buy it on Amazon, Apple TV, and Google Play.
Ratings
IMDb 6.5/10, Rotten Tomatoes 55%
Where it fits
- Release order: after The Running Man, before Misery.
- Chronological order: after Pet Sematary: Bloodlines, before Pet Sematary.
What to watch before Pet Sematary
Nothing. Pet Sematary (1989) doesn't continue an earlier version, so it stands on its own.
Cast
- Dale Midkiff as Louis Creed
- Fred Gwynne as Jud Crandall
- Denise Crosby as Rachel Creed
- Brad Greenquist as Victor Pascow
- Michael Lombard as Irwin Goldman
- Miko Hughes as Gage Creed
- Blaze Berdahl as Ellie Creed
- Susan Blommaert as Missy Dandridge
- Mara Clark as Marcy Charlton
- Kavi Raz as Steve Masterton
- Mary Louise Wilson as Dory Goldman
- Andrew Hubatsek as Zelda
Directed by Mary Lambert.