Down with the King: Our film critic discusses his lifelong Stephen King fandom
Still from 'The Life of Chuck.'
NEON
There have been so many movies made from King's work, yet filmmakers haven't scratched the surface of his prolific oeuvre. Even with the numerous miniseries and television movies, there always seems to be more King to consider.
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Even King himself has taken a crack at adapting his work, something most authors shouldn't do. See his directorial debut, 'Maximum Overdrive' for a great example as to why.
Anyway, King's screenplay for Mary Lambert's 1989 version of 'Pet Sematary' was pretty good, though the film was far less disturbing than what I'd consider his darkest book (and one of his best). As an added bonus, the movie gave us that awesomely absurd Ramones song.
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King's most recent screenplay was for 2016's 'Cell,' an adaptation of the 2006 horror novel set right here in Boston. The movie was the second pairing of Samuel L. Jackson and John Cusack in a King story, after the superb '1408.' Fans of the novel were really mad about the movie's changes, but
My affectionate reaction surprised me, as the book served as my reunion with King — I'd given up on him after several disappointments — so it holds a place in my heart. That uber-violent Boston Common opener won me over big time. I've read everything he's written since.
Stephen King
Photo by Alex Gotfryd/CORBIS via Getty Images
While we're on the topic of books, some of my favorite novels include 'Night Shift,' 'The Stand,' 'The Eyes of the Dragon,' 'Different Seasons,' 'Pet Sematary,' and a few others I'll get to shortly. On the flipside, he hasn't written a book worse than 'It.'
Here's a list of 10 movie favorites. You should know by now that 'The Shining' isn't going to be here.
'Misery' (1990)
My favorite King book of all time became one of the best adaptations of his work. One of the best books about the art of writing and the evil of fandom becomes a showcase for
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Sissy Spacek and Piper Laurie in the 1976 film "Carrie."
Photo by FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty Images/FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives via Getty Images
'Carrie' (1976)
Back when I was too young for R-rated movies, my two older cousins would act them out for us after they saw them. This was one of the movies they 'performed.' They were surprisingly thorough — their version of the PG-rated 'Mommie Dearest' deserved Oscars. When my aunt took me to see 'Carrie,' I pretty much knew the entire movie. And I still jumped at the end! I've never heard an audience scream louder in my entire movie-going career. My favorite De Palma, easily.
'Cat's Eye' (1985) and 'Creepshow' (1982)
King wrote the screenplays for these short story-based movies that were directed by two of the best helmers of his work, Lewis Teague and George Romero. Romero tackled the better of the two, the gory and fun tribute to EC Comics that gave Ed Harris one of his first roles and had Ted Danson murdered by Leslie Nielsen. That particular tale disturbed me so much that I was almost sorry I snuck into that R-rated movie. Note I said 'almost.'
Teague directed Drew Barrymore's second run-in with King (after 1983's 'Firestarter' — sue me, I like that one, too). Tied together by a cute cat, the film gives a shout out to 'Night Shift' by using two of its stories, 'Quitters, Inc' and 'The Ledge.' It's rather brutal at times for animal lovers, but the cat not only survives, it takes its revenge. For a far nastier tale of King kitty cat revenge, try 'Tales from the Darkside: The Movie.'
'Cujo' (1983)
Teague also directed this tense, suspenseful adaptation of King's novel about a rabid killer St. Bernard. Dee Wallace and Danny Pintauro are trapped in a car while the rabid dog goes on a tear. Scared the hell out of me as a 13-year old — and I'd read the book! Thankfully, the movie changes King's ending.
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'Christine' (1985)
You can make an argument that this is lesser John Carpenter, but you can't deny it's a damn gorgeous looking piece of widescreen filmmaking. Plus. the titular killer Plymouth Fury is really, really cool. It gets set on fire and still manages to run over its victim.
Wil Wheaton, Corey Feldman, River Phoenix, and Jerry O'Connell in the 1986 film "Stand by Me," directed by Rob Reiner.
Columbia Pictures
'Stand by Me' (1986) and 'The Shawshank Redemption' (1994)
'Different Seasons,' the four novella book King wrote in 1982, produced two of the top five cinematic adaptations of his work. These two have a companion piece in 'The Life of Chuck,' as they're also not horror films. Before Rob Reiner met Annie Wilkes, he directed this bittersweet, controversially profane tale of four boys who take a trip to see a dead body. All four actors — Jerry O'Connell, Wil Wheaton, Corey Feldman, and the late River Phoenix — give excellent performances, and I haven't met a guy yet who didn't identify with one of their characters. (I'm a combination of Wheaton's King stand-in and Feldman's brutalized kid.)
Before he directed his almost-as-good take on 'The Mist,' Frank Darabont made the Tim Robbins-Morgan Freeman prison movie that keeps topping the rankings at IMDb. Not bad for a movie that originally flopped at the box office. Freeman should have won that Oscar.
Christopher Walken in 'The Dead Zone.''
Paramount Pictures
'The Dead Zone' (1983)
My favorite David Cronenberg film gets dismissed by his fans as a mere work for hire, but he gets a career-best performance out of Christopher Walken. Better than any actor, Walken nails the heartbreak of so many King characters possessed with a power they do not want. It's also a perfect movie to watch in today's political climate. Though it's Cronenberg's tamest movie, he still reminds us he's the king of body horror. Those scissors — shudder!!
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'The Dark Half' (1993)
Romero directed Timothy Hutton in a dual role in this adaptation of one of my favorite King books. Both book and movie require a large suspension of disbelief, but once again, King traverses the mind of a writer with fascinating results. Inspired by his Richard Bachman revelation, King gives Romero plenty of gory mayhem to put onscreen. I didn't think the director could pull off the novel's most disgusting moments, but he does. He even outdoes Hitchcock in the murderous birds department.
Odie Henderson is the Boston Globe's film critic.
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