rating:
(out of
4 stars)United States; 2007
Directed by Frank Darabont; produced by Frank Darabont, Liz Glotzer; screenplay by Frank Darabont; novella by Stephen King
Starring Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, Laurie Holden, Andre Braugher, Toby Jones, William Sadler, Chris Owen
I do not really read Stephen King stories anymore, even though I used to think they were pretty entertaining. I might still think that. However, I do try to see what Hollywood makes out of them. In the hand of a capable director, starring the right actors, they often work on the screen, especially when the horror-parts are toned down. Admittedly, sometimes that works too. Brian DePalma ('Carrie'), Stanley Kubrick ('The Shining'), David Cronenberg ('The Dead Zone'), and Rob Reiner ('Stand by Me') already did it, and after 'The Shawshank Redemption' and 'The Green Mile', Frank Darabont does it again, at least well enough, with 'The Mist'.
For a film 'The Mist' has a clichéd premise, often ending in ridiculous examples. Certain creatures attack a small town in Maine, which is covered in a weird kind of mist. The hero is David Drayton (Thomas Jane), who ends up in a supermarket with his son (Nathan Gamble), his neighbor (Andre Braughter), and at least thirty other people. Among them is Mrs. Carmody (Marcia Gay Harden), a bible fanatic. Once the creatures start to appear she thinks herself as some kind of savior, while condemnig the unfaithful. She creates the tension inside, while the creatures, the first attacking by just his tentacles, deliver the suspense outside.
The film deserves recommendation for a couple of reasons. First of all, it really know what suspense is. Of course the usual scares are there, but some scenes really crawl under your skin (which the creatures appearing in it actually do for real). It also knows something about human nature, giving us some very uncompromising moments. The less convincing parts, including the explanation of it all and some of the events around Mrs. Carmody, are easily forgotten. Production values are good enough to convince the audience of the danger out there in the mist.
It's good to see a nice King horror-adaptation once in a while (this year's '1408' did not disappoint either). The King of Horror has given us some of the most famous stories in the genre, but they have turned into some of the worst film in the same genre. (Remember 'Graveyard Shift' or 'Sleepwalkers'?) He deserves better; 'The Mist' is better.