Alexandre Aja plans to direct 'Pet Sematary' remake: Let sleeping dogs lie?
The last time we heard about the remake, with the project, having secured a .
Now we learn that the studio has a director in mind for 鈥� one who is well-versed in the challenge of horror movie remakes.
Alexandre Aja, the director behind horror remakes like The Hills Have Eyes, Piranha, and Mirrors, is reportedly Paramount鈥檚 choice for the Pet Sematary remake. Aja is a French filmmaker who has arguably achieved auteur status thanks to his signature style, which involves lots of horrific gore and disturbing imagery, shot in uncomfortably long takes (see: The Hills Have Eyes).
Given the nature of Stephen King鈥檚 Pet Sematary story 鈥� A couple moves from the city to the country with their kids and discover a burial ground that can restore dead things to quasi-life 鈥� one could see the potential advantage of having someone like Aja at the helm. The guy dwells in gore so deeply that rotting demonic dead things would be right up his alley. Anyone who鈥檚 seen his breakout film, , also knows that Aja can do some鈥reative things using a limited setting (say, a remote house in the countryside).
According to , Paramount is 鈥渁ctively trying to sign [Aja] up.鈥� The director had another project called Cobra: The Space Pirate in the works, but that film is reportedly still looking to secure financing, with a 2013 shooting date planned. That would leave late 2011 and 2012 wide open for Pet Sematary.
As for the question of whether or not it鈥檚 worth remaking this film? The 1989 adaptation of King鈥檚 novel (which was adapted by King himself) has a kitschy, cult-semi-classic reputation (its sequel with is even more kitschy), but it鈥檚 not one of those films that鈥檚 so well-crafted (not by a long shot) or so beloved that a new generation should be denied a new vision of the story. While having Greenberg instead of King handling the script might be looked at as a minus, having Aja in the director鈥檚 chair would be a plus, in my opinion.
We鈥檒l keep you updated about whether Aja signs on the dotted line or not, and in the development (and inevitable casting) of this Pet Sematary remake as a whole.
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