Salem’s Lot (1979)
Posted on August 16, 2005
Filed Under Slashers, The Occult
I’m always delighted when I watch a film and stumble across a scene that has been parodied on The Simpsons but whose provenance has, until then, eluded me (I was a lonely child). If you’ve seen the Halloween special where Mr. Burns is Dracula (it’s one of the early ones, when they were still funny) you might remember the bit where Bart is bitten and appears outside of Lisa’s window one night beckoning her to join Burn’s burgeoning army of the undead. If you’ve also seen Salem’s Lot you’ll be aware that this is where Mr. Groening drew his inspiration from, though he went on to execute a brilliant bit of story-making which rather leaves Tobe Hooper’s ponderous tale behind.
The essential problem I had with this Stephen King adaptation is that it suffers from the same debilitating flaw as most other attempts to bring his books to screen – astonishingly bad pacing. Those who have seen ‘IT’ will know what I’m talking about here. This is further compounded for European audiences (i.e. me) in that the movie version that’s most widely available is an abridged version of the lengthy TV series that Hooper filmed to be screened in two parts. Though there aren’t any major jarring distortions you never really feel settled when watching the condensed three hour versions. The build-up of tension in the first two-thirds of the film is excellent, with James Mason especially effective as the enigmatic Richard Straker, who is a delight to watch and acts as real ballast to the plot. David Soul gives a more restrained performance as the hero, Ben Myers, but I think he slots in very well to his part in the story and the banter between him and Mason adds a welcome extra dimension to King’s formulaic New England horror story. Again he’s let down by the poor editing, with his character only partially developed and naturally failing to acquire the likeability that is essential in a lead role of this type.
Because of the poor cutting the story is never really allowed to breathe. For example, it is clear that the evil Marsten House is fundamental to Ben’s return to Salem’s Lot but it’s story is pushed aside astonishingly quickly, so that by the end it is nothing but a standard spooky backdrop for the showdown with the vampire. Some might think that the creature in question is a hackneyed Nosferatu rip-off but I think the over-the top effects work well in this context, especially when contrasted with the more subtle (but equally effective and more unsettling) appearance of his recently recruited minions. I’d certainly recommend Salem’s Lot but be warned that it uses its ample time badly and you’ll be frustrated at knowing that a fundamentally excellent little story is laying in tatters on the cutting editor’s floor. At the very least it’ll remind you of that excellent Simpson’s episode.
Comments
Leave a Reply