‘Salem’s Let Down: “‘Salem’s Lot,” a new adaptation of Stephen King’s novel, is a bland attempt to bring in new fans

Turning on HBO Max to watch the 113-minute horror movie, “‘Salem’s Lot,” I expected to be on the edge of my seat and eager to pick up the book it was adapted from. Instead, I found myself bored at times and outright cringing at others. I was left disappointed, yawning through the movie when I wasn’t cringing.

The adaptation of Stephen King’s novel of the same name iss set in Jerusalem’s Lot in the 1970s. Ben Mears, a struggling author, travels back to his hometown in rural Maine for inspiration. There, he somehow finds himself investigating vampires that infect and kill the townspeople.

One of the movie’s clear strengths is its lighting. In the opening scene, Kurt Barlow — the lead vampire — disposes of a vampire in the cellar, the staircase is lit bright red, reflecting across the dusty wine bottles. 

The pops of dominant colors even in suspenseful scenes create an almost theater-like feel that I enjoyed. You can imagine where the spotlights are hitting and letting the color fill the set. 

However, the performances felt stale, making me laugh at points where the director definitely didn’t want me to. Every time a supporting character made an attempt at an ominous remark about “the evils in our town” I Had to laugh. Faltering performances bled through for most of the cast, making the conversational scenes more brutal to watch than the deaths.

When Ben Mears and Susan Norton, a local college graduate, go on a date to a drive-in movie, you can practically see the script and stage directions on a piece of paper as they move through the scene. 

Even without reading “‘Salem’s Lot,” it’s noticeable that the 2024 adaption rushes through important plot points carelessly. Many times, I didn’t even know a character’s name before they were bitten by a vampire.

The director, Gary Dauberman, even acknowledged the missing pieces in the film during an interview with Den of Geek, admitting that the first cut of the movie was around three hours.

The half-hearted performances only made the lackluster script even more obvious. Between cliché lines and clear gaps in the storyline where chunks of the script were cut out, the movie feels like it wants to get itself over with.

The climax of the movie occurs in the drive-in theater where Ben Mears and Mark Petrie, a local kid, succeed in fighting off all of the vampires. The pair then drive off into the night, discussing plans to “make the escape” from their small town.

The lack of ingenuity in this ending should be shocking, but it isn’t even surprising in “‘Salem’s Lot”.

The ending was unfulfilling and unremarkable, leaving me with so many questions unanswered. Yet, as soon as I turn the movie off, all the questions immediately leave my mind, along with the paranoia that normally follows watching a good thriller or horror movie.

If the storyline gaps and insane amount of characters were the only issues with this film, I would be more concerned with the shorter run time. However, I can’t even say I would stay awake to watch after two hours. 

This movie deliberately attempted to repackage an old story for a new generation, it failed. When a movie adaption works it can be really great for both new and old audiences, but this nostalgia bait didn’t work.