A doctor dabbles in magical resurrection with horrific consequences in this supernatural thriller adapted from the novel by Stephen King. When Dr. Louis Creed ( ) and his family move from Chicago to an old farmhouse in rural Maine, their only concern is the busy highway that flanks their new home. Louis' family -- wife Rachel ( ), daughter Ellie ( ), and toddler Gage ( ) -- soon meet kindly old duffer Jud Crandall ( ), who introduces them all to the local attractions, including a pet cemetary built on the remains of a Native American burial ground. When Rachel and the kids head off to visit Louis' in-laws, Ellie's cat gets flattened by a truck. Jud counsels Louis to bury it in the old Indian portion of the cemetary; the next day, it returns from the dead, carrying with it the stink of the earth and a decidedly bad attitude. Shortly thereafter, Louis is tempted to use the cemetary's magical powers again when his son suffers a tragic accident. A snarling kitty, it turns out, is nothing compared to the horror of a little boy with no soul and a taste for scalpels. In addition to adapting his own novel for the screen, writer King appeared in a brief cameo as the minister presiding over Gage's funeral. Director would return with .