Pet Sematary | Rotten Tomatoes

Pet Sematary

R

Now Playing

1 hr. 39 min.

Horror

Mystery & Thriller

TRAILER

for Pet Sematary: Trailer 1

List

55%

38 Reviews

Tomatometer

60%

50,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Doctor Louis Creed (Dale Midkiff) moves his family to Maine, where he meets a friendly local named Jud Crandall (Fred Gwynne). After the Creeds' cat is accidentally killed, Crandall advises Louis to bury it in the ground near the old pet cemetery. The cat returns to life, its personality changed for the worse. When Louis' son, Gage (Miko Hughes), dies tragically, Louis decides to bury the boy's body in the same ground despite the warnings of Crandall and Louis' visions of a deceased patient.

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Watch Pet Sematary with a subscription on Max, rent on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

Critics Consensus

Pet Sematary is a bruising horror flick that wears its quirks on its sleeves, to the detriment of its scare factor.

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Thom G

The bad and unconvincing performances of the leading characters, with the exception of Fred Gwynne, and their unrealistic reactions to the unfolding events are somewhat redeemed by a truly creepy story. "Pet Sematary" may not be a good movie overall, but it delivers good horror!

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/26/24

Full Review

Kalin D

Very bizarre story that never came together. Also, I thought doctors had to be at least somewhat intelligent...

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/06/24

Full Review

Alec B

Sort of a collection of greatest hits from the book but few of those moments are truly earned. Also besides the perfect casting of Fred Gwynne none of the other adult performances really work.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/27/24

Full Review

Timothy P

One of the worst wooden movies I ever tortured myself to sit through. Bad acting, bad writing and a dumbass sorry.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

01/29/24

Full Review

Chris R

It feels like none of the actors put in any effort in their performances, the plot is predictable, but the saving grace for this film is that even now in 2023, some of the scenes in this movie still creep me out.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/19/23

Full Review

Aaron M

It's better than the new one. For what that's worth.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/11/23

Full Review

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Mary Lambert

Director

Dale Midkiff

Louis Creed

Fred Gwynne

Jud Crandall

Denise Crosby

Rachel Creed

Brad Greenquist

Victor Pascow

Michael Lombard

Irwin Goldman

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Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - Gage's Death

2:07

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - Deadly Warning

1:55

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - Killing Church

1:52

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - Rachel Comes Home

1:31

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - Dead is Better

2:13

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - Killing Gage

2:13

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - The Dying Sister

2:05

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - I Brought You Something Mommy

2:09

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - Killing Jud

2:04

Pet Sematary (1989): Official Clip - The Cat Comes Back

1:38

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Pet Sematary: Trailer 1

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Tribune

Reduced to its plot outlines, King`s work no longer functions; its meaning lies in the obscure tensions and anxieties that shape the fantasy, not in what happens, but why.

Rated: 2/4

Oct 4, 2019

Full Review

Anne Cohen

Refinery29

Overall, the acting in Pet Sematary is hit or miss. But when it hits, it's a bullseye.

Apr 8, 2019

Full Review

Ed Gonzalez

Apollo Guide

Aside from its blatant foreshadowing, the main problem with Pet Sematary is its hit-you-over-the-head approach to characters' inability to "let sleeping dogs lie."

Rated: 40/100

Jul 25, 2001

Full Review

Kristy Strouse

Wonderfully Weird and Horrifying

Genuinely scary and uniquely odd, Pet Sematary shocks and awes with its no-holds-barred approach.

Dec 9, 2023

Full Review

Justin Brown

Medium Popcorn

Keeping the time period in mind, this was a fairly enjoyable horror film. It is very unsettling and is one of those horror stories that you can't forget. It haunts you.

Rated: 3/5

Oct 31, 2023

Full Review

Brandon Collins

Medium Popcorn

This was a solid 80's horror film. Despite a weird performance by the lead, there are a lot of strong elements in this and it's creepy vibe was effective in making my skin crawl...

Rated: 3/5

Oct 31, 2023

Full Review

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Synopsis

Doctor Louis Creed (Dale Midkiff) moves his family to Maine, where he meets a friendly local named Jud Crandall (Fred Gwynne). After the Creeds' cat is accidentally killed, Crandall advises Louis to bury it in the ground near the old pet cemetery. The cat returns to life, its personality changed for the worse. When Louis' son, Gage (Miko Hughes), dies tragically, Louis decides to bury the boy's body in the same ground despite the warnings of Crandall and Louis' visions of a deceased patient.

Director: Mary Lambert
Executive Producer: Tim Zinnemann
Screenwriter: Stephen King
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Production Co: Paramount Pictures
Rating: R
Genre: Horror, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 21, 1989, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 1, 2013
Sound Mix: Surround
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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