The New 'Salem's Lot Fixes a Major Mistake (2024)

Stephen King's novel 'Salem's Lot not only ranks among the very best of the author's work, but among the very best vampire novels of the 20th Century. His homage to Bram Stoker's Dracula finds a vampire settling in a small Maine town, transforming its residents into creatures of the night and setting up a personal fiefdom in what was then the modern world. It proved every bit as terrifying as its predecessor Carrie, and helped pave the way for the likes of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire.

It's curious, then, that – for such a memorable vampire story – its vampire would be so forgettable. Though terrifying as a threat, Kurt Barlow struggles to make an impression as a personality, coming across as quite generic for much of the novel's length. The various adaptations of 'Salem's Lot have acknowledged that in their own way, and sought to address the problem by making changes to the character. Of the three, only the 2024 movie adaptation makes the kind of impression that a monster of his ilk truly deserves.

Barlow Is a Blank Slate in 'Salem's Lot

In the afterward to the book's special edition, Stephen King openly speaks of his love for Bram Stoker's Dracula, and how 'Salem's Lot was intended as a New World variation of the theme. The residents of his fictional small town would be regular Americans, hard-working and neighborly, but with their share of petty sins such as gossip and infidelity. When the vampire arrived, he would become their new "Boyar" or Master, and transform them all into bloodsucking monsters.

While Dracula's heroes succeed in stopping the vampiric plague, his heroes are forced to leave 'Salem's Lot in the hands of the undead. Barlow thus bears a number of similarities to Stoker's legendary Count Dracula. At the same time, he wanted his vampire to be more actively gruesome than Stoker's, citing E.C. Comics stories as his inspiration: "These were pale, paranoid nightmares with gigantic fangs and fleshy red lips. They did not sip delicately, as Count Dracula sipped at the ever-more-wasted veins of Lucy Westenra; the E.C. vampires… were prone to tearing and ripping and shredding."

Their Grand Guignol excess came with another revelation for the author: E.C.'s vampires were American, not European. They drove modern cars, owned businesses, and looked like then-modern US citizens instead of desiccated 19th century aristocrats. Those concepts helped cement many of 'Salem's Lot's key themes, and as a monster poised to turn the town into his private fiefdom, Barlow is plenty scary. Unfortunately, his personality sinks into clichés amid the bigger ideas he's supposed to represent.

The book describes him as middle-aged, with dark hair, a mustache, and pale skin marked by high cheekbones. He's well-dressed, and he speaks with eloquence and erudition that mask a presumptive arrogance. He views his foes as sources of amusement until they actually harm him, when he responds with seething rage. Like Dracula, he grows younger as he feeds on the town, and he has the countenance of a young man when Ben Mears and Mark Petrie come to kill him at the end of the novel.

In other words, he's a lot like a thousand other vampires in a thousand other far more forgettable horror stories, with very little to distinguish him from the bloodsucking pack. That was easier to slide past in 1975. Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire was still a year away, and Bela Lugosi and Christopher Lee were more or less the only games in town as far as pop culture vampires went. Anything different from their model would be sufficient for King's needs, and while Barlow may be unmemorable as a character, the author's uncanny knack for frightening prose still makes him a terrifying vampire.

'Salem's Lot's Adaptations Tried to Make Barlow More Interesting

Despite his simple concept, Barlow did create a challenge for any television or movie adaptation, which needs a memorable and frightening villain despite comparatively little to go on as a personality. The 1979 film infamously rejected the notion of making him appear human, opting instead for a variation on Max Schrek's Count Orlok in Nosferatu. He has no dialogue and his familiar Richard Straker often speaks on his behalf.

In Cinefantastique magazine Vol. 9 #2, producer Richard Kobritz cited the need to make Barlow frightening rather than sexy. "I just thought it would be suicidal on our part to have a vampire that talks. What kind of voice do you put behind a vampire? You can't do Bela Lugosi, or you're going to get a laugh." The comment highlights how King could get away with sparse descriptors and still achieve the desired effect with the character.

Kobritz rightfully understood that making him too human would be anything but frightening. Whether or not his overtly monstrous Barlow works is a still a matter of strong debate, but it certainly constituted a big break from the book: leaning into King's E.C. side to escape the Dracula comparisons. The 2004 version goes back to a more human take on the character, and demonstrates the problems inherent in the equation.

Rutger Hauer plays Barlow very close to King's incarnation: all stylish clothes and Continental wit. Unfortunately, it has the same effect as the book, and while the actor has a certain presence, his Barlow is almost a cardboard prop. Donald Sutherland's Straker overshadows him completely, which is another issue inherited from the source material. In the latter case, King's bald, precise Straker is an absolute scene-stealer.

The New Salem's Lot Balances Different Versions of Barlow

The image of Barlow from the 1979 version has provided it with some distinction, and many people still tend to associate the story with his bald, blue countenance. The new adaptation of 'Salem's Lot appears to acknowledge that reality. At the same time, the concept comes with drawbacks that just wouldn't work with a modern audience, notably by making Straker do the talking for him. 'Salem's Lot 1979 director Tobe Hooper barely got away with Straker crashing his master's big showdown with Father Callahan (essentially serving as translator for Barlow's animal hissing) and attempting something similar just wasn't going to fly in the new version. Accordingly, Barlow gets to do his own talking in the new film.

At the same time, the pedestrian, human vampire of King's writing wouldn't work either, especially with vampires far more prevalent in pop culture than they were in 1975. Accordingly, the new film keeps his monstrous, otherworldly appearance – brought to life by actor Alexander Ward – but lends him more of the elegance and wit from the novel. He speaks as well, though his lines are limited. It has the effect of adding to his menace, and makes him feel of a kind with the source material, while still coming across as sufficiently frightening to scare modern audiences, many of whom already know the story quite well.

The 2024 movie solves one of the other big challenges in adapting the book: balancing Barlow against Straker, who either feels underused (in the case of the 2004 version) or essentially substituting for the vampire, like in the 1979 miniseries. The human half of the duo acts as build-up in the book, giving way to Barlow gradually in order to save the vampire's true menace to the end. That can confound the pacing of a feature film, and indeed, the first two Salem's Lot adaptations end up short-changing Barlow in favor of his far more prominent underling. The new movie finally provides the balance that both characters require, making Straker genuinely unsettling before upping the game with his master.

King himself appears to have recognized that Barlow as written works much better as a concept than as a character. In his sprawling fantasy series The Dark Tower, he spells out how vampires work in his universe. The Salem's Lot vampire is loosely classified as a "Type One," the smartest and most powerful, often with direct links to the cosmic evil of the Crimson King. The former townsfolk are the less powerful "Type Two." The lexicon stresses that Barlow is a more dramatic concept than a character, which explains why he can be so frustratingly vague in such an otherwise vivid story. The latest take on Barlow seems to have resolved the tangle as well as can be expected, bringing the character a little closer to the legendary vampire he should be.

Salem's Lot is now streaming on Max.

Salem's Lot (2024)

Horror

Thriller

Author Ben Mears returns to his childhood home of Jerusalem's Lot in search of inspiration for his next book only to discover his hometown is being preyed upon by a bloodthirsty vampire.

Director

Gary Dauberman

Release Date

October 3, 2024

Cast

Lewis Pullman , Alfre Woodard , Makenzie Leigh , Bill Camp , Spencer Treat Clark , Pilou Asbæk , John Benjamin Hickey , William Sadler , Jordan Preston Carter , Nicholas Crovetti , Cade Woodward , Kellan Rhude , Debra Christofferson , Rebecca Gibel , Mike Bash , Fedna Jacquet , Avery Bederman

Writers

Gary Dauberman

Runtime

113 Minutes

Main Genre

Horror

Studio(s)

New Line Cinema , Atomic Monster , Vertigo Entertainment

Distributor(s)

HBO Max

Character(s)

Ben Mears , Dr. Cody , Susan Norton , Matthew Burke , Mike Ryerson , Richard Straker , Father Callahan , Kurt Barlow , Mark Petrie , Danny Glick , Ralph Glick , Floyd Tibbits , Anne Norton , Mabel Wertz , Officer Taylor , June Petrie , Ruthie Crockett