Cheap Salem's Lot (DVD) (David Soul, James Mason) (Tobe Hooper) Price

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Customer Reviews of Salem's Lot

David Soul ("Starsky and Hutch") plays Ben Mears, a writer who returns to his hometown to write a novel about the local haunted house, and ends up dating Susan Norton (Bonnie Bedelia, future star of "Heart Like a Wheel"). Then evil James Mason comes to town, and pretty soon 70s character actors like Fred Willard, Geoffery Lewis and Elisha Cook, Jr. are dropping dead due to... mysterious circumstances. Okay, enough phony suspense. It's a vampire movie. Vampires... in modern-day Maine. And it works better than it has a right to.

Soul's not exactly tortured enough, and Lance Kerwin's a little too old to play a monster-obsessed youth, but the supporting cast, which includes Ed Flanders ("St. Elsewhere"), Lew Ayres (Paul, from the classic 1930 "All Quiet on the Western Front"), Kenneth McMillan ("Ragtime," and "Dune") and George Dzundza (everything else) more than make up for it. They're sincere, and that counts for a lot. James Mason makes a perfectly urbane villain; he's suave and dangerous, and much smarter than his undead master, who's something of a disappointment in the chills department when finally revealed.

This disk contains the entire miniseries, which manages to maintain a level of suitable creepiness, despite some dated sexual innuendo and a some "made-for-tv" scenes that aren't quite as menacing as they could be. Still, a few sequences are effectively chilling, and it's well worth your time, especially around Halloween.

Mason shines in this one
"Salem's Lot" is one of the better Stephen King-based films, though it suffers from excessive length (three hours in the original TV version) and a lead performance by David Soul that brings new meaning to the word "limp." Soul virtually sleepwalks through his role of middle-class fiction writer who returns to his home town to investigate the "haunted house" of his childhood, and finds, instead of ghosts, a mysterious antique dealer and his Nosferatu-like colleague. The devious and clandestine exploits of the latter gradually lead to an outbreak of vampirism that threatens to bring the entire town within its clutches.

The film boasts a good seasoning of veteran actors in supporting roles, several of whom ---- Elijah Wood, Jr., Lew Ayres, and Marie Windsor ----- appeared in a number of film noir classics of the forties and fifties. (For a treat, see Windsor in the 1952 version of "The Narrow Margin"). But while it's fascinating to see these old pros in their various roles, it's James Mason who truly impresses.

Indeed, "impressive" may be too mild a word for Mason, who plays the recently-arrived antique dealer with such impeccable style that he single-handedly transforms "Salem's Lot" from an overextended B movie into something worth remembering. Observe his reactions, for example, when informally interrogated by the town constable as suspect in the killing of a small child. Or later, when he meets Soul during a gathering in his antique shop and the former broaches the question of "evil." Says Soul: "Do you believe a house can be evil in its very boards and windows? In its stone foundations? Evil?" "Oh, you're the writer," answers Mason with mocking insouciance --- the words are neutral, but his entire manner and inflection create a devastating put-down. Here is an embodiment of "cool" that would do justice to any jazz musician, but Mason does it quietly, slowly, with the limitless patience of a man who knows he can do anything.

The other outstanding element in "Salem's Lot" is Reggie Nalder as the vampire under Mason's control (though just how this control came about, and how it is sustained ---- is never explained). Some older fans of the Karloff-hosted "Thriller" series may recognize Nalder from that TV anthology, most notably in the episode, "Terror in Teakwood," where he played the sinister "Kaffke." Here, by contrast, his face is half-buried in makeup, but Nalder's cadaverous bone structure assists the illusion and makes his image of the vampire "Barlow" one of the most frightening since Max Shreck. He's not on-screen more than a few minutes, but, as Mason's character amusingly prophesizes in an early scene: "I'm sure you'll enjoy Mr. Barlow. And he'll enjoy you. Oh yes. Oh yes."

"Salem's Lot" is not a great horror movie, since, along with the problems mentioned, it's burdened by lack of originality. Some scenes are atmospheric, such as those where child vampires are shown floating and beckoning through moonlit windows ---- hackneyed, but effective. These are offset by many sequences that are silly or adventitious (e.g., the one where students are acting out a historical play, so poorly directed it recalls Ed Wood or Bert I. Gordon). The film could have been better with a good lead actor, as well as more conviction from the supporting cast generally. Otherwise, it's more than worth watching for the tour-de-force performance of James Mason and the sheer scare-value of Nalder.

RC in Dallas
I was 9 when Salem's Lot first aired. It has always been the prototype of a scary movie to me. For years I could give myself the willies thinking about those glowing eyes, that kid at the window, and Mr. Barnes. Buying the VHS about 10 years ago was a bit of a disappointment. The editing is terrible and leaves many holes. Was it that bad on TV, or was it shortened for the VHS? The effects are a bit hoakie and look really old in these days of CGI. I also understand that a new DVD is less butchered.

But let's give this fun movie the credit it deserves. For network TV, this had to be pretty racy material. Who else but Steven King would kill all those kids? And what's creepier than that kid scratching on the window? Plus, it's fun to see how much things have changed in 25 years. Its a hoot to look back at all the funny clothes, cars and phones.

If you watch the TNT remake, you see that the new version is a little closer to the novel and goes deeper into detail. But the original is still the best and gives more goose-bumps for the buck. Enjoy it on a night you want to feel a little creeped-out and revel in it's 70's TV charm.