Can evil dwell in a house and even call other evil-minded individuals to come
live in it and do naughty things? Well, the townsfolk of Jerusalem's Lot are
about to find out because the creepy old Marsten House has some new occupants.
The house has been abandoned for years, but the last owner was a
mass-murdering asshole who eventually killed his own wife and then hung
himself. The new owner is even worse: he's a goddamn shit-sucking
vampire...wait til mom finds out! (Yes, that was a
LOST BOYS
reference.)
At the same time, a writer, who grew up in 'Salem's Lot and even had a bad experience at the Marsten House as a child, has returned to write a book about the house. He meets an old teacher and starts romancing a young lady, but his courtin' days are cut short when numerous locals start turning up dead and their corpses disappearing.
Enjoyable (for a 1970's TV movie) adaptation of Stephen King's excellent
novel, but it's not all that great. The biggest problem is the main vampire
dude just doesn't have enough screen time and I could never get over the
made-for-TV feel of the movie. The whole thing came off as cheap and
watered-down. Still this version is definitely watchable with a truly
impressive cast, but the ending is pretty lame...especially that tacked on horseshit in Mexico.
It was really cool seeing Elisha Cook Jr and Marie Windsor in the same movie again. I just wish they had more scenes together.
Part 2 - A Return to Salem's Lot (1987)
