Oh the cat came back...

I finally got around to watching Syriana last night. It was quite good, although I can understand people who complained that it was difficult to follow; the characters tend to deliver large chunks of exposition (often involving unfamiliar names) in low-key, muted tones which, while thematically appropriate, make mapping out where everybody stands on one’s internal plot map a tricky business. Still, I felt my efforts were ultimately well rewarded, and I especially enjoyed the myriad of supporting performances. The film has no real “hero,” just a bunch of talented actors like Matt Damon, Jeffrey Wright, Chris Cooper, Christopher Plummer, Amanda Peet, Mazhar Munir and Alexander Siddig.

Oh, and George Clooney. Can’t forget him. He does fine work here, although I admit to being somewhat baffled by the Oscar nod; the movie as a whole is much too ensemble oriented for any one actor to stand out, so he most likely got the award in recognition of his other great achievement last year, Good Night and Good Luck. It ain’t the Academy Award if the system makes sense.

Clooney’s next project, though, is a bit different:

The who to the what now? George Clooney starring in a remake of Stephen King's PET SEMATARY? Sure it was an effective thriller back in the 80s and one of the better Stephen King adaptations but... George Clooney? He seems to be sticking to the Oscar-caliber material lately. But the boys at Bloody-Disgusting say the news of Clooney in SEMATARY is "100% confirmed" as being true.

If your unfamiliar with the novel, Pet Sematary is King’s meditation on death, a grim, surprisingly painful tragedy about a father who is led to a burial ground which brings the dead back to horribly life, and about just what he’s willing to bury there, regardless of the consequences. It’s not my favorite King work, but I’d say it’s one of his best books; part of the reason I can’t love it completely is that it’s so well done as to be almost unbearable.

The movie was, er, not a complete waste, although it came close. (Here’s my review.) It has its fans- I have at least one friend who considers it the most faithful King adaptation ever filmed, which makes me sad- but I definitely wouldn’t dismiss a remake of it out of hand. Especially not with Clooney involved. The official casting hasn’t been announced yet, and there’s a chance all of this is just somebody’s sick idea of a joke anyway, but the only person Clooney could really make a go at in the novel is the protagonist, Louis Creed. And I think he would be amazing in the part. Like Christopher Walken as Johnny Smith amazing. So, fingers crossed.