Another look at the second TV mini-series of Salem's Lot with Rob Lowe!

I watched the mini-series of Salem's Lot with Rob Lowe a second time around last night. After having read the novel a week ago, I could see where the changes had been made in the movie version. I was also surprised at how close the film actually stayed with the novel, considering all the changes in it. I now think this version of Salem's Lot is by far the best.

Rob Lowe takes over the role of Ben Mears from David Soul, playing a writer who returns to his small hometown to write a book about evil and ends up having to fight it tooth and nail. Rutger Hauer plays the vampire, Barlow, and Donald Sutherland plays his assistant, Straker. Both of them take over the evil Marsten House that overlooks the town of Jerusalem's Lot, and it isn't long before people start disappearing. Andre Braugher was great as Matt Burke. He was literally the English teacher from the novel. The character of Susan Norton was changed quite a bit, especially with regards to her relationship with Ben. Samantha Mathis plays the role for what it's worth, but you don't feel any connection to her like in the book. James Cromwell plays Father Callahan, the priest who lacks the faith to destroy the evil that's taking over his town. Cromwell gives a good performance as the priest, but in the end it's Sutherland and Hauer who rule the roost with their over-the-top performances. Though Sutherland doesn't look like Straker, he still manages to carry it off, certainly much better than James Mason did in the first mini-series. Hauer, however, fits the role of Barlow perfectly. It's easy to see that the two actors are having a great deal of fun and are hamming it up to a certain degree. Finally, I believe Rob Lowe did a much better job as Ben Mears than he was originally given credit for. I was able to be less critical and more observant in watching play the role. He was pretty good.

There are some nods to other King books and movies with one of the performers singing "Stand By Me" in a bar, while one of the search dogs in the movie was called Cujo, though the dog wasn't a St. Bernard.

The mini-series runs three hours in length, and the last third is by far the best part, though there is one scene in the middle where a vampire in a jail cell squeezes into a tiny air vent in an attempt to get to Lowe, who's in a cell further down, hoping to drink his blood. That was cool!

While not a 5-star film, I would give Salem's Lot a strong "B" or four stars. I'm happy to have it for my "Stephen King" film library. It should be noted, however, that the DVD doesn't have any extras on it. It would've been nice if there had been an interview with Stephen King and maybe some of the cast and crew, explaining why Salem's Lot was being remade and what they hoped to accomplish with the newer version. No such luck. Still, I would recommend this mini-series for horror buffs.