Netflix and Thrill Remakes: The Blair Witch Project, The Crazies, and Pet Sematary

Netflix and Thrill is a feature where I review horror movies I've watched recently.

I have decided that I want to watch original horror movies and their remakes so I can compare and review and talk about which I like better. So here is the first post of remakes. 

Title: The Blair Witch Project

Release Date: July 30th, 1999

Stars: Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, Michael C. Williams

Watched on: Vudu (Can also be found on Prime if you have Starz)

 

Three film students vanish after traveling into a Maryland forest to film a documentary on the local Blair Witch legend, leaving only their footage behind.

Title: Blair Witch

Release Date: September 16th, 2016

Stars: JamesAllen McCune, Callie Hernandez, Corbin Reid, Brandon Scott

Watched on: Vudu 

After discovering a video showing what he believes to be his vanished sister Heather, James and a group of friends head to the forest believed to be inhabited by the Blair Witch.

What I thought:

So bits and pieces of these movies are the same. They both are found footage films, which is good because if the remake wasn't then it would be absolute crap and not really a remake. Anyway, they both deal with an urban legend of the blair witch. They both have teens/adults whatever going into the woods and getting lost, and they both have crazy possessed or haunted houses.

So in theory these movies are very much the same. But not really.

In the original Blair Witch Project it was very slow. They get lost, but nothing really actually happens to them up until the end. It was really very slow, and boring. I can't believe so many people loved that movie.

The new one is so fast paced and has things happen almost from the beginning. I was actually pretty freaked out when watching the new one, and that's not easy to do anymore. The acting is better, I feel like the story line was better, and the jump scares are pretty legit. 

I also just figured out that it's more of a continuation, than a remake. But I'm still counting it. 

Title: The Crazies 

Release Date: March 16th, 1973

Stars: Lane Carroll, Will MacMillan, Harold Wayne Jones
Watched on: Amazon Prime

The military attempts to contain a manmade combat virus that causes death and permanent insanity in those infected, as it overtakes a small Pennsylvania town.

Title: The Crazies 

Release Date: February 26th, 2010

Stars: Timothy Olyphant, Radha Mitchell, Joe Anderson, Danielle Panabaker

Watched on: Amazon Prime 

After a strange and insecure plane crash, an unusual toxic virus enters a quaint farming town. A young couple are quarantined, but they fight for survival along with help from a couple of people.

What I thought:
I couldn't even get through the original, I found it to be really slow and boring. I'm thinking movies from the 60's and 70's were much slower than newer ones. Either way, I said nope. 
So I watched the remake and it was decent. I watched it years ago and thought it was meh. From what I watched of the original the remake is quite different.
I don't think I really care for either of these, and because I didn't watch the original I can't really compare. 

Title: Pet Sematary
Release Date: April 21, 1989

Stars: Dale Midkiff, Fred Gwynne, Denise Crosby
Watched on: Prime

After tragedy strikes, a grieving father discovers an ancient burial ground behind his home with the power to raise the dead.

Title: Pet Sematary

Release Date: April 5th, 2019

Stars: Jason Clarke, Amy Seimetz, John Lithgow, Jete Laurence

Watched on: Hulu

Dr. Louis Creed and his wife, Rachel, relocate from Boston to rural Maine with their two young children. The couple soon discover a mysterious burial ground hidden deep in the woods near their new home. 

What I thought:

I have been a Pet Sematary fan for quite a few years. I read the book and I loved the original movie a lot. So when I found out they were doing a remake I absolutely had to go see it in theaters with the Hubby.
The original is closer to the book, however I found it to be just a little slow. It didn't have many jump scares, which I love in my movies. It was more of a slow burner.
The new one however scared the living daylights out of me. There was a lot more fast paced action, jump scares, and honestly more "scary" elements. It was just all around creepier. 
I also really loved the twist in the new one. A lot of people didn't like it, but I think it's great that they made the daughter be the one who died. I feel like it made it creepier and more intense.
Some of the differences I found were first of all like I said above that it was Ellie who died not Gage in this one. The way that she died was a bit different, a bit less graphic than with Gage. They had a bit more backstory about the Pet Sematary. And also more about her sister, which was the scariest part of the whole movie I swear.
I love the original but I definitely love the new one more.