Salem’s Lot hits Max on October 3rd.
The new reboot of Salem’s Lot is finally set to be released, after the New Line production sat on a shelf for two years and waited for a debut date. As if being based on a popular Stephen King novel wasn’t enough, the highly publicized delays helped Salem’s Lot gain a ton of attention from horror fans, all of whom have been waiting to see how the new movie actually turns out. If King is to be believed, it’s a quality, faithful adaptation of his work.
On Wednesday night, the review embargo for Salem’s Lot lifted, bringing about the first wave of reviews from critics. The results have been mostly mixed, but none of them overly negative, hinting at a film that could prove to be a solid addition to the pantheon of well-liked King adaptations.
At the time of writing this article on Thursday, Salem’s Lot has a 59% score on Rotten Tomatoes, just one point below the 60% “Fresh” threshold. A little more than half of the critics who have turned in reviews so far have liked the film. None of those who gave Salem’s Lot a negative score were particularly harsh on it, which is usually a good sign.
Those counted reviews include the one published by ComicBook.com, which gave Salem’s Lot a 3 out of 5. Our review indicates that Salem’s Lot does have some flaws when it comes to its rushed plot and inconsistent characterization, but that it makes up for that with its charm and some wonderful performances.
“As frustrating as the narrative elements (and overall lack of scares) can be, I wouldn’t call Salem’s Lot a bad movie by any stretch of the imagination,” the review states. “Where Dauberman fell short in scripting, plotting, or characterization, he makes up for in staging and shot selection. If judging by looks alone, Salem’s Lot is one of the better King adaptations we’ve seen. It definitely looks more like the IT films than the beloved Salem’s Lot miniseries.
“There’s also a bit of a ’90s/2000s throwback to the structure of Salem’s Lot that I really enjoyed, especially in the first act. Some quick scare scenes that jump cut to softer sequences, meet-cute character introductions, and a few cheesy-but-funny one-liners give Salem’s Lot a feel we don’t experience much anymore. It feels almost cozy, in a way, like many comfort horror films from that era do”
Salem’s Lot is set to debut on Max October 3rd.
