“The Shining” is one of my favorite books. I loved the
characters that Stephen King put together, and the flow of the novel, and
ending was great. There’s a lot of tension built into the book, and it is not
like the movie. In fact, from what I’ve read, King though the movie was not as
good as the book and took too many liberties. That caused friction to the point
where King had a mini-series made that was closer to the books more dramatic
moments.
There’s not much more that can be said about the movie that
hasn’t been said already, but then again, the point of blogging about cinema is
not always so cut and dry. I am well aware that there’s plenty of reviews of
this movie, so what my thoughts are, well, are my own and therefore worth
posting right? I don’t know, I’m rambling.
The plot is very simple for The Shining. A hotel requires someone
to keep watch over the winter months, and so a family moves in. The movie
follows Jack Torrance and his family in a peaceful, serene, isolated location.
He’s a writer and he is looking forward to getting to work on his novel, and
getting time away from the big city. Through the course of the movie however,
he begins to go mad. The hotel has a history, and a tragic past, leading to the
hotel to be haunted with the past. This causes Jack to go nuts, and try to kill
his family.
Jack Nicholson puts on one hell of a performance in this
movie, making it one hell of a visual throughout. He really resonates on
screen, and Shelley Duvall does great as Wendy. I found myself glued to the screen,
even though I’ve seen this movie many times over. Stanley Kubrick’s direction
is great too, pushing the cinematic scope to the limits, making every shot, and
visual design flow look perfect. There’s great cinematography on this one, and
it has stellar sound to boot.
“The Shining” can be a little slow for some, but the way
that it is presented, and the overall story captures the imagination and doesn’t
let go. It’s a solid movie that deserves the praise it gets, and is definitely
worth your time if you haven’t seen it in a while. I highly recommend it.
There are a lot of modern horror movies coming through the
woodwork, but none of them have garnered as much attention as some of the ones
coming from Blumhouse Productions, and once again they put out a film that is
getting a lot of attention. This time around it’s an adaptation of the story
from Joe Hill, son of Stephen King. Adapted and made into a full length could
very well mean trouble as there have been some misses in the past when adapting
stories, ala “Thinner” for example. But here we are, the movie “The Black Phone”
has come out and it garnered quite a bit of attention and movie goers went to
see it, including myself and my girl Lynette.
The plot of the film revolves around a mysterious psychopath
that is abducting and killing children. When he targets a kid named Finney, and
puts him in a basement, a broken phone starts to ring, and a supernatural
element comes through when the dead begin to talk. Meanwhile, there’s a
secondary character having dreams about The Grabber (the psycho), and we get
that thrown into the mix for good measure.
“The Black Phone” was slowly paced, and difficult to stay
awake in if you’re not ready for it. I was beginning to get bored during the
movie, but I stuck with it and throughout the movie there are moments that
speak volumes to the ending, which is satisfying. I won’t reveal it, but it
takes you on a slow moving trip, and then punishes your senses with some
stellar moments. The acting is good, the movie tightens up a lot, slowing the
pace just when you think things are going to speed up, and then brings forth
quite the impact in the end.
While I didn’t like the pacing of “The Black Phone” I appreciated
the villain, the pay off, and the overall cinematography. It is a well made
film, and something that is going to haunt some for sure. If you can get past
the slow moving process, you’re in for a treat, as this movie does well as a
whole, not in pieces. I thought it was good, and well worth price of admission,
albeit lacking in gore. That’s just a nitpick of course, otherwise this is a
tight thriller of a horror picture that is sure to delight horror fans of all
backgrounds.
“It” by Stephen King is a 1200 page behemoth of a book. I couldn’t finish it within 21 days. I borrowed it from the library, and couldn’t finish it fast enough, and I’m now on a waiting list to get it again. In the mean-time, I was able to see the new movie that is based on the film. The movie of course is a remake of the mini-series, and is now split into two movies, one focusing on the youth of the characters and one that focuses on the adults. So here we are in 1989, and we are introduced to the main characters, and follow through fast pop culture references, and horror infused elements starting with Pennywise showing up and showing his true colors.
The visual design of this movie is great. Don’t get me wrong. There are some great elements of modern computer graphics throughout. There’s a lot of elements that just bring the nightmare to reality, and Pennywise this time around is far more devious than anything you’ve seen on the screen. However, it’s in that piece that you start to feel left out by the book’s creative alluring clown, and start to just get a creepy vibe that was fueled within “American Horror Story”.
Throughout the movie I kept thinking that this was just “Stand By Me 2”, because it felt that way a lot of the times. Furthermore, it felt like watching Stephen King’s version of the “Goonies” which is what The Los Angeles Times agreed with in their review. The complexity of these characters that were found in the book is gone, and you don’t really care about them. I cared the most about Bev, but that’s because her reality was far worse than the clown’s sinister behavior.
This movie felt a lot like “Monster House” mixed with “Stand By Me”, and that’s not a good thing. While I found myself lost at times in the nostalgia, I couldn’t shake the fact that there was a lot missing from the book’s central themes, and truly horrific scarring as children, that turned into adults. These kids don’t seem that scarred, and it makes me think that their future is just fine, because they honestly overcome Pennywise like a boogeyman, which he’s not supposed to be.
Omissions aside, this movie isn’t what you think. It’s a slick, Pg-13 level movie, with a rating of “R”. I don’t know why it’s rated “R”, it doesn’t showcase a lot of elements that the movie “Drag Me To Hell” didn’t show, and I hated that movie. “IT” is not a great movie, it’s lackluster at best, if you read the book. If you didn’t read the book, if you didn’t see the miniseries, than it suffices with a lot of jump scares and random moments that seem horrific, but I found myself laughing more often than not. This is not a scare fest, it’s actually long and boring at times. Oh, and it’s only the first part of 2 movies.
This is not something I’ll revisit. It’s just not that good. I’m not being contrarian, I am just being honest.
Carrie is one of those movies that people claim is a classic. Recently, I purchased it on Blu Ray, and wanted to watch it again. The previous time I saw it was when I was a teenager. I picked this up and watched it with fresh eyes, and realized that there are some very interesting ideas pushed forward. Brian De Palma directs this movie, and while it definitely does well to introduce the world of Stephen King to the masses, it doesn’t hold up the way I thought it would. De Palma’s direction is on point, but other than that, I found myself reconsidering some of the ideas pushed in the movie.
There is no real reason why people hate Carrie. Maybe in the book they explore it a bit more, but in the movie, things are just no good for 17-year old Carrie. People seem to hate her, her mother is bad, and she is just trying to navigate high school like anyone else. It’s very odd to me, but you get through the movie with the set up that no one likes her.
Sissy Spacek is a lovely girl, but when watching the opening for this movie, I found De Palma over sexualizing things. The camera goes through like a porno movie from that era. If you have seen any adult cinema from the 1970s you immediately get notes from the many movies that were of the era. What I didn’t like here is that the viewer is looking into a teenage locker room, with full nudity. You’re supposed to be seeing underage girls naked? I found the notion a bit odd. Yes, it’s a movie, and all the actresses are over 18, but they are playing underage, it’s a bit unnerving.
Aside from the sexual tones of the movie, there is a quality revenge coming through. Just when you start to like Carrie, she breaks because of the swerve that happens to her. The blood, her telekinetic powers, and the ultra-revenge comes through. Not as bad as “They Call Her One Eye”, but nothing can be so graphic. Carrie gets her revenge, the movie goes into disaster, her mom gets it too, and then it just ends. I didn’t like the sudden ending and nothing else.
Overall, the movie is stated to be a Stephen King classic. Carrie from 1976 isn’t half bad. I don’t think it’s as amazing as some people say. I don’t think it’s as grand, but Spacek’s acting, and the over sexual tones make this a nice glimpse of the 1970s and how many changes have come to movie making. De Palma’s work is good here, even though it’s far from his best movie. If you’re going to pick this one up, get the Carrie Limited Edition Blu Ray, otherwise, meh, I can go without seeing it again for a long time.
I admit, I haven’t read nearly as much Stephen King as I’d like to pretend that I have. I have worked on several of his novels, and listened to a lot of different audio books. This is a movie that I didn’t really search out until now. I had some free time and wanted to see what it was all about. While I cannot speak to the collection of “Full Dark, No Stars”, I can at least talk about the movie as a whole, and well, it wasn’t what I thought. The marketing made it seem far more sinister than it really was, and while this is classified as a “psychological thriller”, I wanted it to be a full-fledged horror movie.
The lines are blurred in regards to horror movies today. “A Good Marriage” was marketed as something of a horror movie, but it’s ridiculous how neutered this movie seemed. The movie is a tightly wound film that really is fascinating at first glance. I tried to give it a lot of attention, and some serious thought, but it was a slow moving train that led to nowhere.
The premise is interesting enough. A wife finds out that her husband has a creepy secret. She figures out that he’s a serial killer and now must do one of two things. Tell the authorities or keep it in and just roll with it. The movie moves slowly into a psychological push, and eventually the climax reveals so much more. The most interesting part of this movie was the private eye that is on to the wife’s secret, or rather the husband’s secret.
The movie parts of this movie are slow. The processing seems a lot like a “lifetime” movie, rather than something that is supposed to be for theaters. Even though this was released to movie theaters, it isn’t really on par with the best in the business. This is NOT Stephen King’s best adaptation. “A Good Marriage” has some good moments, but more than ever, this seems like cash grab.
You can take your chances with “A Good Marriage” blu ray, or you could pick up “Full Dark, No Stars” for cheap. Either way, you can figure this one out on your own. I’m not a big fan of this movie. It just didn’t hit me like I thought it would. Joan Allen, Anthony LaPaglia, and Kristen Connolly do well enough, but there just seems to be something missing, and I can’t really put my finger on it. It happens from time to time.
The year was 1975 and I was not even a zygote yet. I wasn’t a fathomable idea in the human mind, and therefore this book came out far before I was born. That’s not a bad thing, as I would learn about this book in 1988, when I was merely a child (5 years old). I didn’t read the book then, instead opting for other reading materials, mainly paperback books from the local library about ghouls and ghosts and goblins. It wasn’t until I was an adult that I read this one, and as far as a fantasy horror novel, it most certainly is an interesting one, especially since the characters have a little bit of a resemblance to the author himself, and notably so. Salem’s Lot by Stephen King is a different kind of vampire tale, one that teenage girls wouldn’t really scream about, and that’s probably why this best seller continues to gain sales and republishing time and time again.
The story is essentially a look at community and the relationship it has when outsiders come into a close knit area. Centering in Maine (of course), we meet an author that is going to be writing about a haunting, but ends up having to deal with more than meets the eye when he has to battle vampires that are taking over the area. The course of the novel finds Ben Mears and his wife fighting off the villains, and eventually taking out the head vampire in this modern Dracula inspired work.
Synopsis aside, Stephen King has stated many times that this was and is his favorite book. In fact, one Playboy article mentioned that he wanted to move forward with a sequel, and of course the movie rights were sold and we have two of those these days. Salem’s Lot is not too long, it has some filler, but overall has a great amount of action, and some terror laden moments leading up to a climax that you’d expect from vampire horror film today. Even though this is literature, you find yourself watching it all play out in your head, and that’s something that I’ve always admired about King’s story telling.
Sure, it’s not the most scholarly of books, but it has enough gusto to make me enjoy it and recommend it. You owe it to yourself to pick up this one, it’s well worth your time. Even if you just get the audio version of it, it’s far better than you probably remember. Pick it up by clicking below:
Whether you are reading traditional format books or you have an electronic device that you can scroll through, you most likely can appreciate a good horror novel. A lot of the movies that are revered, as the greatest scary films of all time have been first created by someone with a literary dynamic first, than converted to the visual medium. When speaking on this subject several names come to mind, but which ones are going to give you the most bang for your proverbial buck? The following 5 horror novelists you want to read today is just a quick write up of names that came to mind this morning while drinking my morning coffee.
5. H.P. Lovecraft
Despite the fact that he was deathly afraid of women, this guy can creep you completely out with some of the most lingering and slow burning horror elements known to writing. He creates a very educated sprawl of weird and horrific moments and at times does so in a very short and condensed manner. You’ll be surprised at how quickly your spine tingles, and your mind starts playing tricks on you. The absorbing writer is seen as one of the greatest of all time. Suggested reading: The Call of Cthulhu (buy it here)
4. David Wong
Some might find this guy to be annoying, but he makes horror fun with a very cool and interesting way of describing certain matters. Much like my sense of humor, Wong creates a tapestry of references that you would only make with your friends or to your cats. I for one talk to my cat friends as they look at me appalled. Sometimes I tell my girlfriend and she just looks at me appalled too. I guess you just can’t win, unless you’re writing horror novels. I wish I had more time. Suggested reading: John Dies At The End (buy it here)
3. Clive Barker
Someone once told me that Clive Barker was a poor man’s Stephen King, and they couldn’t have been more wrong. Barker creates a world rich with an aural sin element that is almost like eating fried chicken when you’ve got a heart condition. His way of creating madness and chaos into a sensual feast is really something to behold. While all his books aren’t as nightmare filled as other novelists, he can sure take something as simple as taking a nap and turn it into an insane asylum within a few hundred pages. Suggested reading: Books of Blood (buy it here)
2. John Saul
John Saul is one of those writers that has been churning away stories of pure evil and while he has garnered a great bit of success, you probably haven’t heard of him. He has created a lengthy list of thrillers and horror novels that deal with a variety of human and supernatural elements all the same. He continues to build upon his success, jumping into the comic book world with “The God Project” but his novels have been bestsellers for many years now, and there’s something about the way he writes that will have you believing that things aren’t what they seem in your neck of the woods. Suggested reading: Sleep Walk (buy it here)
1. Stephen King
Did you really think I’d pick someone else? The king of horror novels (pun intended) once said he was the literary equivalent of a Big Mac and Fries. Sure he may be an easy pick for the #1 spot and some might argue that he’s overrated, but with a legion of fans, and books that sell out their first printings within hours of being released, you gotta give the guy some credit. He might be a little longwinded in his story telling, but time and time again he brings out the horror with the greatest of ease. Suggested reading: The Stand (buy it here)
If you love horror movies, than it is an easy transition to move to reading horror novels. The aforementioned authors are just a handful of the best that you’ll find when you’re exploring the bookshelves that are left in your town. If you are going to shop online for any of the books mentioned above or for just about anything else, check out the selection online through amazon, you’ll be surprised what you’ll find.
The Dead Zone is one of the books from Stephen King that lives on due in large part to the movie, and long time cable series that ran for 80 episodes. When it came out, I’m sure enthusiasts were all about it, as his name truly was one of the big time names in horror literature at the time. This book, is often times noted as being very much a tightly wound thriller with elements of horror, and more leaning on dramatic story telling than gore or violence. I agree, it’s definitely heart felt in many ways.
The Simpsons did a parody of this story in a quick capsule of an episode during Halloween, and I found it hilarious, as many people did, and if you remember the plot from that short cartoon, than you already know what to expect. John Smith gets into a serious accident that keeps in a coma for many years and when he wakes up, he has a serious psychic ability, one that he didn’t desire or want. The pendulum of duality swings heavy in this book, as Smith has to cope with the blessing of knowing what’s to come and, well, knowing what’s to come. As the book continues he ends up finding himself seeing a future where the wrong political party is in charge, creating a nightmare world that he must figure out how to stop before it happens.
Another Big One, No Pictures
For those that are completely enthralled with the work of King, this is another winner. A long drawn out tale that really can be summarized rather quickly, but if you consider the style and who’s the writer, you will note that it’s another piece to the bigger horror puzzle. With The Dead Zone, Stephen King creates a big “what if” scenario that has haunted many every 4 years when election time comes in.
I give this book a 4 out of 5, not necessarily great, but fun twisted political thrills done dirt cheap. Speaking of dirt cheap, you can pick this book up via amazon.com and get free shipping on orders $25 and above by clicking here. If you want to support this site, donate $1 and help me get a cup of coffee by clicking the donate button on the right of the page. What are your thoughts on this book? Drop me a line.
The book that eventually scared my mom about the end of the world.
The Stand by Stephen King is one of the most popular books to come out from the master of horror, and it is one of the highest searched terms on the Internet, to this day. I’m surprised to see how many people are continually looking for this novel even though it’s been a long time since the original release, and it’s been a while since the television series first aired.
This is definitely a large book, with a great deal of pages, as King does tend to write a great deal of text to create his works. Often times comparing himself to McDonald’s in terms of literature, you can definitely get a good feel for his work with this one as he takes a great deal of time to labor the points that he wants to make across several storylines that intertwine often. The hardcover is worth getting, and if you find The Stand Hardcover in new condition, buy it for your bookshelf, it looks great.
As if readers were surprised, the end of days occurs through another pandemic. Much like swine flu should’ve made this book another Nostradamus classic, King takes us through a tale of a deadly plague that has caused the country to go from happy go lucky to scared and afraid. Everyone around the country is turning up dead and survival seems to be quite difficult as the plague is swiping anyone that breathes.
You are introduced to a lot of characters in the first half of the book, and if you are keen on taking notes, do it, because you are going to get lost with the sheer amount of people that get thrown at you fast. You get little background stories for each one, then you are thrown into a scenario that is not unlike other similar plots where a group bands together to hopefully make it out alive!
You are given two sides of the coin, with some holy rollers (as I envisioned them) having to cross paths with some sinners (going to Vegas) and making sure that the world comes out alive is definitely on the mind of each party, whether they show it or not through the text.
A Big Book With No Pictures
This is not a hard book to read, it’s an easy one. However, there is a LOT of writing. If you are a fan of the writer you already know this, and you’ll probably be prepared for what is to come. However, if you’re not familiar this is going to be a daunting task because it’s that big. However, it’s well worth the investment.
Amongst the best dystopian stories, this one seems to be a good epic one that is definitely going to provide readers with hours upon hours of entertainment. This is a great example of why you want to invest in books, they are far more entertaining than movies, and King does his best to add so much description and plot to his characters that you truly feel that you’re getting your money’s worth.
Is this truly how the world Ends?
I ended up asking a lot of questions about the end of times, and it is apparent that King thinks about it in a religious sense after reading the book. There is no way to condense all the plot, all the stories into a quick review, so I’ll just have to say that it’s about a flu, two groups of people, and a juxtaposition of good and evil set in what may just be the near future.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. If you are in the market for a horror novel to read, this is a good one, and you can buy it by clicking here today, and if you buy some other books along the way you can get free shipping. If you’re looking for something cheap, buy The Stand for as low as a penny by clicking here.
Here at Scary Film Review, I spend a lot of time talking about horror movies. I also talk about video games, and television shows from time to time, but recently I’ve started to read a little more into the genre of the horror novel. Maybe it’s because I just finished an outline for my first fictional horror book, or maybe it’s just that I need to unwind a little after writing so many words per day. One horror writer that you’re never going to run away from is going to be obvious to you. With the advent of digital books and media, you’ll often find people ditching the dictionary sized paperbacks, and hardcovers for Stephen King on Kindle.
The master of horror writes a lot, and that’s an understatement. If you’re looking to get some of his work on your e-reader, consider my list of must own books from Stephen King on Kindle.
The Shining by Stephen King – Forget what you’ve seen on film, forget what you think you know, and forget the story that you saw parodied on the Simpsons, this is the book that I’m told will scare you to death. A fascinating journey into desperation is found here and the page count is much easier to manage in digital format.
11/22/63 by Stephen King – What would happen if you could go back in time and prevent a tragedy? One man tries in this time travel book of historical proportions! If you want hours and hours of material, here are 866 pages of storytelling for you to sink your teeth into.
Salem’s Lot by Stephen King – Vampires and the King of horror? (No pun intended) This is a story that is deep with symbolism and it doesn’t take an English major to see the many layers that get peeled away for you to explore. If you haven’t read it, or you aren’t sure, then at least consider that Eminem created a simile in a song about his life about this book. So if it’s good enough for a #1 song, it’s good enough for you to read.
If you’re looking for some reading, and you want to get scared or you simply enjoy the rich tapestry and rambling that the most prolific horror novelist creates, I recommend the aforementioned Stephen King on kindle selections. If you haven’t purchased the device and you are going to be doing so, click here to purchase the device and get yourself some books while you’re at it.
The year was 1991, I was only 8 years old, and a made for television movie came through the screen and it completely derailed many people’s view of scary movies on tv. Ok, maybe it didn’t hit as hard as I would have liked it to, but the 1978 short story became an awesome television movie, and I for one was completely caught off guard by how good this movie was. Today, we will talk about “Sometimes They Come Back” from the master of horror, Stephen King.
The plot is an easy one to manage, and something that I had a few doubts about at first. Two kids walking in their hometown are roughed up, one of which dies, and that sets up the future. In the future, the surviving kid has to deal with something that is happening in his past, and is haunted by the memory of his fallen brother. All this and something odd begins to happen, the original villains are back, this time they are killing off students at a high school where the surviving teacher works, and are coming back to haunt the other kid (now an adult) in order to finish him off too!
What’s Good?
The acting is above par for a made for television movie. The greasers that are coming back from the dead are not just random zombies that they put make up on, they are done up quite well. I was surprised how well they acted and how the reaction of the teacher was in contrast. Tim Matheson is not a great actor, but given this role he actually does it well, making you believe that he is in legit fear and trouble, determined to make it to the final scene.
The car, the camera angles, and the music all do a great job in showcasing the terror here. I loved the phantom car chase sequencing, as the camera angles changed dramatically, and were more “artful” than much better movies that would come out even a decade later. The small attention to details on such things, makes this movie stand out against other made for television movies.
What’s Bad?
The movie has a very “light” tone. This is not a gore fest, it is not a rated R scary movie, and feels like you’re watching an episode of Goosebumps. Don’t get me wrong, I love toned down horror, but there were points here that really made you question whether or not this was even a scary movie. Things turn out well in the third act, as you start to get far more reveal, and you eventually get the pay off, which is definitely a Stephen King classic moment.
Lots to Love
This movie really did strike me, as I used to live in a small town, and sometimes wonder what it would be like to go back there to become a High School teacher. There are things that would haunt me, nothing like that in the movie, but still, it makes me think. Sometimes the best horror movies are not the ones that have exploding guts, but rather the ones that make us think about our own lives, and careers. That “What if” moment happens often, and when we see it, those movies become our favorites. This is definitely one of mine. I highly recommend “Sometimes They Come Back”; it’s an awesome adaptation of a short story. You will like it, I hope.
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Ah yes, 2003, the year I started college and found out that my future would be a mixed bag of technology, blogging, and whatever else I could do for money legally. This adaptation of Stephen King’s novel seemed to be an interesting thing, but since I didn’t read the novel, I assume that the two are polar opposites, and while some fans were all over this as a positive thing, I was not so receptive to the idea that this was the best that could be done with the source material. Dreamcatcher is the movie I’m going to try and talk about, even though my thoughts on the matter are relatively short, to say the least.
The movie’s plot starts with a group of kids getting telepathic powers from a young boy. They save the kid from a bully and their whole lives change for the future. The audience is then taken to the present where a hunting party has gone awry, and we get thrown into a full blown scary piece of film making. For most people it took a moment to realize what was going on, and then things really get out of control as the gore starts to turn up. Essentially we have an alien invasion on our hands, and things are not looking too good. Not just any aliens, cannibal aliens, making for an interesting turn of events.
By the time we get to the end of the movie, I got bored. Sure, I can buy into a lot of things, but worm aliens seemed to be far better in other movies. I liked the visuals, don’t get me wrong, the visuals were really nice. The library sequences were well placed, well done, and worth checking out. The action is broken up between military trying to stop the invasion, and the companions playing “Stand By Me” amidst possession by worms.
The most exciting things in the film are pushed forward swiftly, making for an entertaining piece, albeit tiring in the way it’s delivered at times. It feels like a shorter film than it is, and that’s the best thing about the movie overall.
I don’t recommend Dreamcatcher, but it fans of Stephen King might love it. It’s available now, so check it out and see if it’s better than I remember it.
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Maybe I’m just late on finding out the news, or maybe I knew all along and didn’t want to say anything because I’m a jerk sometimes, but did you know that Stephen King had a literary son? Well, physically too, Stephen King has a son that is also a writer. However, instead of resting on his father’s name, he used a pen name to write his books and before you know it, the media is out and everyone knows.
If you aren’t familiar with the name Joe Hill, well you better get yourself familiar with his work. He is the biological son of Stephen King and his long time wife, and they raised quite the chip off the old macabre block. Other than his work on the comic book series “Locke & Key”, Hill wrote 3 acclaimed horror novels, and is working on another to be released in 2013.
I thought with all the Stephen King stuff I was writing lately, I might as well mentioned junior. The following are two novels that you should pick up today, and support this blog by doing some shopping.
Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill $10.19 Click here – This book haunts all the rockers that dare to read it. The premise of an aging rock star and his final collection piece, the dead man’s suit with the spirit of that which it belonged to, much like you might find in these modern times online. The premise sets up a nice haunting story that is deep in macabre after a set up that is not too unlike what you might consider someone like Rob Zombie to be. However, this doesn’t just sit well on the laurels of his father, he punches you in the gut late in the game and makes you understand that Joe Hill is all on his own and the taste of horror is not just subtle, it’s blatantly obvious.
Horns by Joe Hill $10.40 Click here – What if you had one of the wildest nights ever, and woke up with horns? What would you do? That’s the premise of this third novel from Joe Hill in which a man wakes up from debauchery and has to deal with what is going on in and outside of his head. A rare mix of comedy and horror makes this a romp worth checking out.
I know, this site is “Scary Film” review, but I thought it was appropriate to talk about Joe Hill for a moment before I got back on the movie train. I would like to ask anyone that uses amazon to patronize our links so that I can continue to pay for the lights to be on, and what not. If not, that’s ok, I’ll make it somehow.
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They call him the master of horror for a reason, he is the most prolific American horror writer in history and he continues to put out classics each time he settles in for a writing session. While many people will argue that his recent works aren’t as good as some of the classics, it is fun to read and watch the stuff that has come out of his brain and delivered from the hands of others. In this list, I’m going to give you a top 5 of Stephen King Movie adaptations that I feel are the best ones. There’s a ton to sift through, but I’m comfortable with this top 5.
#5 Pet Semetary – The concept of bringing back your dead son at all costs, is a notion that pulls at the heart strings of all parents. I’m not a parent, but I know some that have lost their children due to illness, or miscarriage or even as teenagers, and it’s just a sad state. There are no words to comfort them, and all you can do is stand by. Well, in this movie, that is not good enough, and we get treated to what happens when the dead come back, even if it’s a child! This creepy adaptation works on many levels, especially if you lose yourself in the premise, and are a parent. They made a sequel, but this initial romp is an instant favorite. You can always read the novel if you really want to get into t he story more, but the film is adequate in my view.
#4 The Mist – Thomas Jane puts on one hell of a role here, and the story is so bleak, so terrifying that it certainly deserves a moment in the spotlight of my list. The Mist is about a town that is covered in a deep haze and there is something happening that is killing people. We don’t see all of the evil, but we see how humanity always turns into a sinister and godless place. The ending is so bleak that many people think the movie should have an alternative, happy ending, but no can do boss; this one ends with a…well…bang.
#3 The Dead Zone – This movie starring Christopher Walken really pushes you to the limits, and it’s quite good. A man sees the future by touching others and he sees that there is going to be an assassination attempt on a big time official, so the main character must try to stop it…or does he? This awesome look into what being able to tell the future is like really sits well with me, as I’m not exactly thrilled with the notion of being able to find out what happens next.
#2 The Shawshank Redemption – Ok, this is not a horror movie, but hear me out. There are some scary moments, specifically in the heat of passion where you are caught up and subsequently put into prison. Prison is no joke, as you might know, and this film really plays on the mind in such a way that you only get hope at the end of the film. All the things leading up to it is just savage, specifically the escape.
#1 Misery – I read this book on my first trip to Alaska and it blew me away. The book is sinister enough, but the movie just blew everyone away. One of the hardest things to watch, to this day, is the scene where James Caan gets his ankles blown away with a sledgehammer. This tedious thriller is seriously scary, especially for those that aspire to be great writers, entertainers, or even bloggers. What if your #1 fan trapped you? That’s the premise that we get to run with in this one and it works on so many levels it, well, hurts.
There you go, 5 of the better ones. There's been a lot of crap adapted from the works of Stephen King, which is why lists like these are necessary, if you ask me.
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This movie follows a simple plot. A group of mill workers have to come to grips with a horror that is occurring in the mill’s basement. During the graveyard shift people are dying and they are all connected to the infestation of rats in the mill. As the movie progresses we meet with not only rats, but head honcho rat that will take out anyone that moves.
The 90-minute romp is not exactly the scariest of things that has come out of Stephen King’s mind, but it’s got some points of interest. The scary parts are really not shown on film, as much as they are part of the mind of the viewer. If you’ve ever worked the night shift of any job, you most likely will hallucinate. Whether you like it or not, the body just doesn’t want to be awake at that time, and even if you keep yourself busy, your mind wanders whenever it takes a break. The daydreams you have won’t be insane, although they could be, but they will definitely change your perspective on sleep and being awake. The horror I find in the film is having to work the job and rats being there, as I’m not a fan of the creatures. Imagine your workplace full of rats, then having to discover that there’s underground tunnels that lead to death and despair, now we’re talking.
The execution of the film feels a lot like a made for television movie, and doesn’t really flow with modern movies. There are some memorable characters, but they aren’t in the film enough for me to care. You’ll most likely fly through this film and then be relieved that it’s over, but not before discovering what lurks beneath the mill and through the tunnels!
Graveyard Shift is going to be for diehard Stephen King fans. The movie isn’t great, but it’s adequate for an adaptation of a short story. I recommend it for those that want to see it all, and don’t care about the quality. It’s not terrible, but it’s not the greatest ever. Check it out on dvd and let me know what you think.
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I tend to stay away from the Stephen King made for television stuff, because it is usually tame. However, I had a good 3 hours to kill and decided to check this one out in its entirety. Now, I had seen it in the past, but never with the lens of a reviewer so today I will try to condense a large amount of information into a review for the adaptation of The Langoliers for television.
First and foremost, you are going to notice that this was in fact made for television. This was the 90s and the budget, even if it was large, is no match for what film looks like. This looks and feels a lot like a television show, and you’re not going to escape that no matter how hard you try. If you can get past the looks and feel of the film, you’ll be just fine, but if you’re one of those people that can’t look past the lackluster quality, then you’re going to have a hard time dealing with this miniseries. It doesn’t get better as time goes on either, as the more you watch the more you catch the amateur hour that is this movie. This is highlighted by the way the world kind of “ends” in the third act, leaving you to laugh at the computer imaging that was done all those many years ago.
The movie moves into introducing characters, as there are several people that you have to meet to understand what is going on. The characters are all-different and feature a wide variety of experiences, and drives the subplots later on. The plane has gone through a rift in time, and there’s some insane things going on. They all discover that things push themselves in awkward ways, where electricity doesn’t work, food doesn’t taste good, matches don’t light and all sorts of weird stuff goes on. Meanwhile, one of the characters is telepathic and is driving yet another subplot. As one passenger goes nuts, the rest of the group has to try and calmly get through this rift as they all end up in an alternate universe of sorts.
The movie gets really boring, and you start to realize that this thing is on rails, headed for something obvious like going back to the flight path and going through the rift in the time space continuum. The short story that this was based on must have been far better than this because it really lags in the third act. While there are some nice plot points and interesting moments, you really don’t get many answers and you just want to sleep after a while.
Stephen King might be the king of the written word in the genre of horror, but this is not his best work. I take that back, this is a bad example of adaptation from print to screen, and it shows terribly. I do not recommend The Langoliers miniseries, unless you absolutely just want to watch something Stephen King related. I’d prefer reading his work than watching this one, that’s for sure.
The master of horror, Stephen King, created an interesting view of his own nightmares in a book called Misery. That book would become an instant classic when Rob Reiner took the helm to direct one scary woman, Kathy Bates. The film has not only scared millions of audiences, it has become one of the most recognizable pieces of horror for anyone that aspires to be a professional writer.
Misery's plot is very simple on the surface. A writer crashes amidst a snow storm and looks to be on his way to kicking the bucket, but is rescued by a woman that claims she is his biggest fan. The woman takes the author to her cabin, and unravels hell on earth for the writer, and wow, does it get worse before it gets better.
There are a lot of scary moments in this film, and it's not what everyone thinks. The best part of the movie is the pacing. The pace is deliberate, and for some a bit tedious, but right when you're ready to stop the movie, something bad happens, and every few minutes the level of fear gets higher, and louder and eventually all hell breaks loose. This film really feels like a play, that is until Annie (the antagonist) breaks Paul's ankles with a sledge hammer. Sadly, it's what most people remember.
Desperation, that's what I remember most about this film. There is a great deal of desperation expressed by the trapped author, as he can't go anywhere. Most people would say that he should've just pulled out his cell phone or gotten to a phone in general, but that's not possible when you're not living in 2011, you're int he late 80's or early 90's. Yes, you have to place yourself in an era where communication is not very easy, and your life could end in a car crash somewhere. I'm not sure what is sadder, the fact that most people that will see this movie can't recall a time when they weren't online 24 hours a day, or available via cell phone all the time, or even in communication with the rest of the world at all hours, or that this movie won't scare most audiences in 2011. The desperation found in this film by James Caan is classic, and a testament to how good his performance was in this film.
There's no gore, no sex, and no major sickness in this movie. The majority of this film's scary points all focus on psychological terror and the pain and desperation of being isolated, alone and without contact to the outside world.
When I first saw this movie, I didn't really like it. I was a kid and couldn't imagine how it could be scary. Then as an adult I read the book and rewatched the movie, and boy oh boy, it is scary notion to have a fan claim they love you, to the point of madness. There is a sure fire horror to this film that lasts through the facade of a three character act. You'll be hard pressed to find a better acted horror film, with such psychology in modern horror. The film works on a variety of levels and really is entertaining. You'll have to think a little more than usual to get the horror elements, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. If you haven't seen Misery, you're missing out, it's a high quality flick.
They call him the master of Horror, and in some regards, he really is. He's one of the best horror writers, but his work doesn't necessarily make a great film adaptation. John Carpenter adapted the Stephen King's (i was referring to King in my opening sentences) Christine. The film was made in 1983 and it is well...today's topic of linear monologue.
The plot is easy to follow as it feels like a 1980's coming of age movie. The main characters are bullied in school and find that life is not so grand for the nerds and the geeks, even if you're friends with a jock. The movie moves forward and our main star Arnie Cunningham purchases an old beat up car, and as he fixes it up, he changes into a more suave and attractive guy, getting the hottest girl in the school and gaining a sense of envy from his former bullies. What he doesn't realize though, is that his car...it's supernatural and haunted!
The movie turns into a revenge flick as Arnie starts getting revenge on his antagonizers, but ultimately loses the battle when he is thrown through the car and impaled on glass. The car dies too...well...not really, it is turned into a cube, and then starts to regenerate and that's that.
The movie looks good, it's paced fine, but it's not an amazing flick. I read the book, and while there are some strange things in the book, the movie just doesn't make the text work well in visualization. There's no major nudity, which is missed in this 80's horror movie, but it manages to maintain a few moments, and some surreal scary points.
The scariest of points has to be when Arnie's new girl is being killed by Christine at the drive in theater, which was rad to see visually, but other than that? This movie is like watching a "Goosebumps" made for tv special (or tv show) and nothing more. Sure, it's got some gore,but overall, it's not as good as other adaptations of King's work.
Is Christine A Scary Film?: No.
This film is not scary. It's actually quite boring in the first half, but comes to fruition in the end, with some nice driving and explosions. I didn't hate the film, it's just not scary at all to me. The idea of a haunted car is ok, but the execution of the film just doesn't work well compared to the book.
I don't recommend multiple viewings of this film, but out of curiosity, check it out. It lacks a lot, and while it looks ok, it just is lacking something....that "it" factor that makes older horror films into classics. Christine has a few interesting points, but not nearly as good as 90% of the 80's horror classics.
John Carpenter has an impressive array of film credits, this isn't one of them, in my book.
I'm still unpacking a bunch of things here in my new home. I have also started a new exploitation film review site, as well as a complete kungfu site, so things are moving. As for this website, I'm working on new updates, they are just slower than usual because of the move. Please hang on though I will get back to good posts and even a podcast...I will keep you posted.
One of the worst things about horror are adaptations of Stephen King books, short stories, and novellas. No one really gets it right, and while I don’t think that there is a definitive greatest Stephen King movie list, I think that Silver Bullet is a strong contender for one of the better adaptations, even if I’m alone in thing this sort of thing. Stephen King’s Silver Bullet is a scary werewolf movie, even if you’re not a fan of the execution of this film.
The movie revolves around a small town, and a new string of murders that are plaguing the area. These murders are often covered up by the coroner and are never truly revealed as happenings of a Werewolf…until a kid discovers a deep dark secret, and then things go into high gear!
One of Gary Busey’s less psychotic roles, playing a good intentioned, unbelieving uncle (who happens to be an alcoholic), he actually looks young and sane. The rest of the cast play their roles well and I enjoyed it on an entertainment level. The initial set up takes some time to play out, however it isn’t really scary at first. We are introduced to the cast of characters with ease, as the murders play out as a back drop, you suspect a few people before the story turns on a dime and shows you who the culprit really is. I don’t know if you will catch it right away, but it is not exactly something that I was expecting, at least not the first time I saw it.
The main protagonist is bound to a wheelchair. One cool scene, that has nothing to do with horror, is that the kid gets an awesome upgrade thanks to his uncle. He gets this sweet looking, super wheel chair! That’s right, it’s awesome, and something that was most likely inspired by the imagination of a young child, rather than an adult, but then again, this film was made in the 80’s and these outlandish paleo-future ideas were the norm amongst Hollywood writers and director’s at the time. (Main example, Back to the Future and the hover-board)
The antagonist of this film is a werewolf, but who is the wolf? That’s the crux of these types of movies, and it’s not something that is done in movies often. Usually the occult is the vocal point of animalistic rage, or monster movies in general. If the occult is not named right away, it is implied through various sequences, and this film relies on a Judeo-Christian tinge to frighten viewers, and proclaim that people should watch out, lest wolves truly be in sheep’s clothing!
Just like in “The Howling” we get a combination of first person action and third person action. As a fan of video games and even online bingo at poshbingo, I really love the first person shots from the werewolf’s perspective where the hands are extended and the action is being followed through your television. It’s really a cryptic and weird camera perspective, and is done well for the time.
As far as its place in history, this film came out in 1985, meanwhile “The Howling” came out in 1981, and the camera angles and sequences seem stolen here. However, there aren’t a lot of scholars of horror that argue the intricacies of such a notion. Wes Craven’s “Cursed” and the Jack Nicholson movie “Wolf” also borrow subtle motions from the 1981 cult classic, but it can easily be said that they are all borrowing elements from MGM’s “The Wolf Man” from 1941 or dare I even say 1920’s? Or even the John Landis film “An American Werewolf in London”, which is regarded as one of the better werewolf movies since it was one of the first movies to film a long form transformation scene.
While on the topic of visuals, the formation of the silver bullet is done in quite the throwback to professional iron working, or maybe I’m just giving it too much credit. There are also great plays with the shadows as we see the main antagonist rise from beneath them, almost romanticizing the werewolf as a sexual predator, as we are seeing an abuse of power.
Why Silver Bullet is scary: Stephen King has been noted as being somewhat religious, and if not religious completely at least well versed in religious iconography and notion. In his novels he uses Christianity as the focal point to his villains madness (The Shining, The Stand, Misery), and in this film he really pushes the envelope to the extreme. The scary part of this film is not just the usual that no one believes the kid about the werewolves, but more over the fact that the most trusting person is the villain and the most obvious villain is not the villain!
Ok, let me settle down a little. Gary Busey plays a drunk. He shouldn’t be trusted, and he uses the drink as a crutch to somehow muster up enough courage to fight off the werewolf. However, the fight is not just his own, as Marty gets in on the action and we get a very exciting final fight of sorts. Seriously, the final fight is teased for so much of the film that when it finally goes down you get into it, if not initially, then definitely when Gary Busey gets thrown through a book shelf, creating a stand out point to get up and yell at your screen!
In regards to scary notions, this movie presents a Pastor as the villain. The Pastor is well trusted and the community is not quick to believe that he is doing anything wrong, let alone being a Werewolf. This is timely in many ways. We hear stories from victims of child abuse ranging from Catholic Priests to Youth Pastors, and that’s just religious sectors. Abuse is a sad thing, and this movie plays up the religious leader role to a tee, and if you’re reading into this a lot more than usual (like me) you’ll notice that this film sometimes parallels the notion that religious leaders are not only sometimes involved in criminal acts, but when accused, they aren’t always found guilty by the community or the leaders. I know, I’m reaching far for this one, but it seems to me that Stephen King has made a somewhat cautionary tale about abuse of power and how scary it is that those that we have trusted have caused so much pain our lives and the lives of others.
If that’s not scary, and it just seems too outlandish. Then the Cryptozoology aspect of the werewolf mythos is scary enough for you. Sure, I’m not exactly too scared about wolves coming to get me. However, we can all relate to the idea that sometimes the most trusted people screw you over the most.
I admit, Silver Bullet is not the greatest werewolf movie in the world. In fact, for some, Corey Haim’s over acting, Gary Busey’s under acting and Stephen King’s obvious jab at religious figures is just not the makings for a great horror film. Stephen King’s Silver Bullet offers a good enough thrill and scare for fans of Stephen King adaptations, but might be a little shallow in the true horror department. This movie is not gorey, doesn’t really have a lot of sexuality, and really swings the pendulum between disbelief between the notions of who is more righteous: the drunk uncle or the Baptist minister. I would recommend Silver Bullet to some fans, but not everyone is going to enjoy the obvious meddling with werewolf traditions and some blatant rip-offs of previous werewolf films like “The Howling”, but maybe I just like that film too much. I’m not sure.
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Stephen King has to be the most prolific writer of our times that doesn't get enough credit in the horror community. At least not in the adaptation department, and that's due in large part to some serious stinkers in the past. However, recently, Hollywood has really done a good job trying to fix that and with The Mist, we get a bit of everything that makes Stephen King great. We get a small setting, a confined location and an incredible look into humanity, with some stellar effects and a little help from stormy weather.
This weekend I was tired. But I managed to watch this two hour fright film, and I really enjoyed it. At least a little bit...
The movie opened up with a cool artistic throwback to Stephen King's book covers. An artist is in his home and a storm has hit his community. This storm is incredible, and begins the story for a such a great mood. The movie then moves towards the main plot. A mist comes through and it's a deep fog, as a majority of the city goes down to the local market to pick up goods a nightmare begins. They see what appears to be an alien outside, and they all stay in doors and the second leg of this film commences.
The subplot, and some might argue the main plot of the film involves a group of townspeople trapped inside the market. The market splits into two sides. One side believes that this is the beginnings of Armageddon, and calls with somewhat of a biblical basis. The notion really starts to divide people as the fanatical Mrs. Carmody calls for blood! The butcher at one point stabs a military man as the cause for the onset of the evil, and is thrown outside of the store only to get sucked up by a giant alien like creature. The story then gets really bad when a group of skeptics want to make a great escape, and as they try to make their way out, the crazy woman calls for human sacrifice! As the group is ready to sacrifice a young boy, shots ring out and she is killed with a shot to the head and the skeptics escape.
Let's rewind. Why is there a strange occurrence? The answers that you have to stick to is that the Military had opened a portal and had something go wrong. Bringing forth the mist and creating the mess for the rest of the film. This comes to the surface amidst the townsfolk throwing out a military personnel.
The creatures are made even more creepy because you can't really see them. You only see small pieces of them, and you hear the sounds of them. By the time you see a full complete monster the cgi isn't overboard and they look somewhat believable. I'd say almost as believable as the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park. These creatures are eating people alive and it doesn't get too gorey, but there are some sick sounds that come across in this film.
I'm not a fan of this "trapped" inside a location horror premise. However, this one is done somewhat well. The length of the films lends itself incredibly well overall and I'm impressed that though I was bored at times, I really admired the attempt to make these characters worthwhile. One of my complaints about horror in general happens to stem on the fact that the characters are nothing more than disposable teens or disposable dead bodies. This movie attempts to reverse that, and really tries to get a psychological twist to the horror department rather than relying on cheap death scenes and random kills to equate the scary part to an already scary literary work. (meaning that the film is a representation of that literature) All that to say that this film, by being over two hours long, creates enough balance between horror and character to elevate itself higher than the traditional horror movie.
Things get really bad for me and most viewers of this film in the final act. After the skeptics escape, losing some of their friends to the monsters in the parking lot, Our main character David Drayton, drives his car as far as he can go until he loses gas. He happens to have a hand gun with 4 bullets...he makes one of the hardest decisions possible, and this is one of the hardest parts of the film...until the mist starts to clear.
Is The Mist Scary?: Yes. There are a lot of different things working in the favor for this film. I think the majority of viewers of this film will probably get scared. There is enough tension to really make for a good scary film. The monsters aren't the scariest part of the film. The monsters are almost secondary to the major crux of the scary moments of this movie.
The scariest portion of this film for me started with the mist. The mist is so thick that you can barely drive. I for one am scared of deep fogs as I nearly died in a car accident involved with some thick fog. Anytime I see fog or mist as thick as there was in this film I get scared. So I immediately felt the sting of fear with the mist descending and overtaking the city. The smaller the city the worst the fear can become in many instances.
The second part of this film is the amount of religious undertones and overtones for that matter that become evident in the market. The market divides between super religious and skeptics. Things get bad when one side becomes near cult like in nature and the other doesn't. The reality of cults, and religious bigotry is huge. I don't think that people realize how seriously people take their faith at times, and this film puts it into your face to judge. As a viewer you really are forced to take sides, and it becomes evident that this thing is a powder keg, and it takes you to the edge of your seat until the climax, which I found dumb.
There are some harsh moments in this film, including killing a child. However, you never see the actual gore, which makes this film rest on the border of going too far. The science fiction elements allow this film to carry a lot of weight on visuals, but the religious template set inside the grocery store is what really made this film worthwhile to watch.
Overall, this film takes a long time to set up the closing moments. I really was looking forward to having no answers at the end, but for some reason the film takes you to a near definitive conclusion and really doesn't explain a whole lot. It just sort of shows you the aftermath, and well...the end. I found that the movie played on too long, that's my major complaint in this film. I didn't read the novella, so I can't really compare the two. Check out The Mist, for a somewhat interesting take on science fiction monster film and religious characterizations and thought. If you're not a diehard, you might find this movie a bit too boring, and that ending really made me question a lot of different things.
Maybe the best thing to do while watching The Mist, is to ask yourself: "What Would I Do"? That will carry you through a lot of this film.
I would've stayed inside the market, cause I'm scared of a lot of stuff. In fact I'm scared of writing this review...cause I know I'm a terrible writer. (sometimes)
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