The Mist
is about monsters, leadership, human nature, religion and the
will to live. The story is fantastic, the acting is incredible and the
ending left me speechless.
Written
by The Horror Czar (BHM Editor Don
Sumner) November 21, 2007
Release: November
21, 2007 (U.S.) Directed by: Frank Darabont Written by: Frank Darabont (screenplay) and
Stephen King (novella)
Starring:
Thomas Jane as David Drayton Marcia Gay Harden as Mrs. Carmody Laurie Holden as Amanda Dumfries Andre Braugher as Brent Norton
I love Stephen King, and film adaptations of Stephen King
novels are among my favorite horror movies of all time. The thing about
Stephen King is, rarely does everyone live happily ever after. I never
know exactly how I feel about that. On one hand I love the
“feel good horror movie”; you know, the one where
the determined young lovely defies the odds to finally defeat the
mask-wearing slasher and live on…emotionally scarred for
life perhaps, but alive and basically well. On the other hand life
isn’t usually like that, and many of the best horror movies
are not like that either.
Enter, The Mist.
David Drayton (Thomas Jane) is working on a movie poster illustration
project when he notices a dramatic storm rolling in. He packs his wife
Stephanie (Kelly Collins Lintz) and son Billy (Nathan Gamble) into the
basement to weather the… weather. The family awakes to find quite a bit of damage
caused by fallen trees and such, along with a strange mist rolling over
the water toward the house. Assuming the mist is just a normal
after-effect of the storm David and son head off to town for supplies.
While in the grocery store waiting his turn for check-out David Drayton
witnesses several emergency vehicles roar by, a few determined military
vehicles and finally a bloodied and screaming man crying that
“there is something in the mist!” A mysterious
white cloud has enveloped the entire town, and all of the grocery
customers become trapped inside the store as venturing outside results
in certain death by mysterious monsters.
Imprisoned in close quarters and scared to death of terrible and
unexplained happenings, the group inside the store starts to
demonstrate primitive survival-type behaviors. Alliances form,
psychotic religious death-squads emerge…you know, the usual
human response to disaster situations.
The Mist is, in grand Stephen King style, a
treatment of the horrific in terms of monstrous happenings, the drive
for survival, social interaction in the face of adversity and the human
need for someone to lead and “fix things”. The
monsters are very frightening, but it is the people that are the most
horrifying. Add to the equation the town’s crazy religious
fanatic and suddenly you can see how women were burned as
witches’ years ago.
The acting is nothing short of stupendous. Thomas
Jane shares a depth of passion and emotion that is utterly
heart-wrenching, and Marcia Gay Harden as the fanatical Mrs. Carmody is
intense, believable and compelling. The entire supporting cast, from
the Stephen King staple Frances Sternhagen as the old school teacher
Irene to the young Nathan Gamble as the terrified child, plays their
part to perfection.
The effects in The Mist are near perfect as well,
as are the cinematography, music, lighting and screenplay. Overall this
film is very beautifully done, complete with scares, suspense, action
and drama.
Remember
what I said earlier about “feel good horror”? The
Mist isn’t it. I won’t give anything
away, but suffice it to say that I left the theater completely
speechless, and it took the entire drive home and 45 minutes sitting in
front of my computer before my head cleared enough to even consider
writing a review. I highly recommend this one, but be prepared for an
emotional ride. Questions
or comments about The Mist? Contact us!
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The family awakes to find quite a bit of damage
caused by fallen trees and such, along with a strange mist rolling over
the water toward the house. Assuming the mist is just a normal
after-effect of the storm David and son head off to town for supplies.
