Stephen King on Film

A subforum to discuss film culture and criticism.
Message
Author
User avatar
barryconvex
billy..biff..scooter....tommy
Joined: Fri Aug 24, 2012 10:08 pm
Location: NYC

Re: Stephen King on Film

#76 Post by barryconvex » Thu May 31, 2018 2:08 am

Murdoch wrote:
Fri Mar 30, 2018 11:15 am
I'll have to try my hat at one of his many other books that are collecting dust on my shelves.
Can i recommend The Stand? It's King's magnum opus and the godfather of every "plague kills off the entire world" story we've seen over the past 15 years or so. King wisely eschews the zombies, instead going for archetypes (or at times cliches, the book's not perfect) with his choice of characters.

User avatar
Big Ben
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2016 12:54 pm
Location: Great Falls, Montana

Re: Stephen King on Film

#77 Post by Big Ben » Thu May 31, 2018 3:12 am

barryconvex wrote:
Thu May 31, 2018 2:08 am
Murdoch wrote:
Fri Mar 30, 2018 11:15 am
I'll have to try my hat at one of his many other books that are collecting dust on my shelves.
Can i recommend The Stand? It's King's magnum opus and the godfather of every "plague kills off the entire world" story we've seen over the past 15 years or so. King wisely eschews the zombies, instead going for archetypes (or at times cliches, the book's not perfect) with his choice of characters.
It also features of King's best recurring characters, the villain Randall Flagg. Won't spoil anymore than that. He's worth it!

User avatar
colinr0380
Joined: Mon Nov 08, 2004 4:30 pm
Location: Chapel-en-le-Frith, Derbyshire, UK

Re: Stephen King on Film

#78 Post by colinr0380 » Thu May 31, 2018 3:28 am

barryconvex wrote:
Thu May 31, 2018 2:01 am
A redemption for being a somewhat aloof husband at least, if not a murderer...
I always thought the redemption was Red's. He transforms from an embittered, world weary convict into a man who has some hope for the future by the end. Hope, being the movie's big theme...
That's true, its really his story as the narrator of Andy's tale to the audience and from whose perspective we are shown the action. Even Andy's escape scene has Red commenting that he cannot really imagine what it must have been like to have crawled through the sewer pipe! Suggesting the slightly detached, less visceral nature of the reminiscence (as with the relatively discreet recounting of the gang rape scenes early on). Andy is a 'larger than life' character in some ways, somewhat unknowable although he seems to take pride in a job well done and sharing the joy of learning. Perhaps he has to be larger than life, as he is the only 'innocent' person there and, as you say, it seems telling that instead of the audience totally identifying with Andy we are placed more in the slightly outsider perspective of (actually guilty, though paying a heavy price for his juvenile crime) Red, which is perhaps a more believable perspective! (It is also perhaps something that emphasises the Biblical allegory sense running through the film, as instead of following the Jesus-figure directly we are shown his goodness through the perspective of his Apostles and the effect that he has on them! Much as in The Green Mile we are shown John Coffey's tormented by taking on the burden of all the evil and disease in the world Jesus figure filtered through the perspective of the guards who have to execute him, like the Roman soldiers in the crucifixion)

Red's story in some ways is probably the bigger tragedy too as a 'normal' prisoner, not having escaped from jail just lived almost his entire life there (and got an actual valued place in that prison society) until the parole board seems to see that they have broken him down completely, at which point he is released! That is probably why we get that extended digression into Brooks's tragic, hopeless, friendless and purposeless post-prison life which ends in suicide, and why it plays out almost exactly the same as Red's (even to the extent of having the same job and getting on that chair!), suggesting that in Red's recounting that he equates himself with Brooks to some extent, just is able to keep going slightly longer. But he probably would have ended up the same way if he did not have a bigger goal in life to focus on and carry him through the otherwise uncaring and occasionally callously brutal world. The horror of having to endure without the possibility of end or respite seems like a big Stephen King theme, and it shows up here both in its most tragic forms and eventually in its hopeful one.
Last edited by colinr0380 on Sat Jun 02, 2018 11:44 am, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
Murdoch
Joined: Sun Apr 20, 2008 11:59 pm
Location: Upstate NY

Re: Stephen King on Film

#79 Post by Murdoch » Fri Jun 01, 2018 1:43 pm

barryconvex wrote:
Thu May 31, 2018 2:08 am
Murdoch wrote:
Fri Mar 30, 2018 11:15 am
I'll have to try my hat at one of his many other books that are collecting dust on my shelves.
Can i recommend The Stand? It's King's magnum opus and the godfather of every "plague kills off the entire world" story we've seen over the past 15 years or so. King wisely eschews the zombies, instead going for archetypes (or at times cliches, the book's not perfect) with his choice of characters.
I'm working through a few of King's short stories to start, like The Raft. His prose style is the big sticking point for me so I'm trying to ease in slowly rather than jump into the massive tomes, but thanks for the recommendation! I may someday tackle The Stand but I'm not in a rush.

User avatar
domino harvey
Dot Com Dom
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm

Re: Stephen King on Film

#80 Post by domino harvey » Fri Jun 01, 2018 1:47 pm

The Stand is one of two King books I read when I was younger that I thought about revisiting as an adult, but I didn't get very far in it when I tried to reread it, and my experience successfully rereading IT was underwhelming

User avatar
Lost Highway
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 7:41 am
Location: Berlin, Germany

Re: Stephen King on Film

#81 Post by Lost Highway » Fri Jun 01, 2018 1:51 pm

I wouldn’t start with The Stand, it’s good but rather unwieldy and an odd mix of horror, science fiction, fantasy and Christian allegory and the end is rather corny (even more so in the mini series which has to visualize a silly concept). I think The Shining and Salem’s Lot are his best early novels and Misery is great mid-period King. The Green Mile was the last of his novels I read all the way through.

User avatar
Rayon Vert
Green is the Rayest Color
Joined: Wed Jan 08, 2014 10:52 pm
Location: Canada
Contact:

Re: Stephen King on Film

#82 Post by Rayon Vert » Fri Jun 01, 2018 3:35 pm

I read everything King wrote (up to that time) in my teens , between 82 and 86, including the Bachman books. The last one I read was Skeleton Crew. Then I remember starting It, not being able to get into it at all (I think I started reading literature around then) and never reading anything from him afterwards. I remember The Stand as a favourite, but also having a particular fondness for Christine.

Even at those early ages I remember being struck by the fact that the paranormal horror was always accompanied or mirrored by a depiction of regular middle-class, suburban life ‘horror’ (messy divorces, alcoholism, etc) and of course the horrors of life as a teenage misfit.

User avatar
Lost Highway
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 7:41 am
Location: Berlin, Germany

Re: Stephen King on Film

#83 Post by Lost Highway » Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:04 am

Amy Seimetz got cast in the Pet Sematary remake and I'm suddenly mildly excited about it. The Mary Lambert movie from the 80s is utter trash. Like the IT mini-series it has an undeservedly good reputation due to a generation of kids being traumatized by one aspect of an otherwise threadbare Stephen King adaptation. In this case the scary thing everybody is still talking about, isn't even related to the main plot line of the movie. After reading a lot of online praise for it, I even gave the movie another try not too long ago and it hasn't improved. This was always a prime contender for a remake which doesn't even have to be very good to improve on the previous film.

One of the baffling decisions of the 80s movie was to cast the most wooden actress of her generation in a role which should be emotionally demanding. Casting Seimetz is a good move, I've liked her in everything I've seen her in.

I wasn't a fan of Starry Eyes, the movie which put the remake directors Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer on the map. It promised to be a showbiz take on Rosemary's Baby and had an intriguing first 30 minutes, only to give up on narrative momentum to become a repetitive slasher movie, with nobody to invest in. Hopefully with a decent screenplay, that won't happen here. They managed to display flashes of style in their previous movie.

https://variety.com/2018/film/news/amy- ... 202825487/

User avatar
Big Ben
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2016 12:54 pm
Location: Great Falls, Montana

Re: Stephen King on Film

#84 Post by Big Ben » Sat Jun 02, 2018 10:25 am

I only ever saw the original version on Television and it sure spooked me as a kid. Revisiting the novel however revealed certain aspects, particularly the Native American angle had been left out. Hoping to see an appearance of that (Minor) Wendigo in the new film.


User avatar
Monterey Jack
Joined: Fri Jan 12, 2018 1:27 am

Re: Stephen King on Film

#86 Post by Monterey Jack » Tue Apr 02, 2019 8:54 am

Surprisingly high Tomatometer for the Pet Sematary remake, so I'm fairly excited. The 80's film was garbage (re-visited last week, and it's aged horribly. Only Fred Gwynne's impeccable performance works in a garish film that plods), but King's book is one of the scariest he's ever written, so I've been dying for a proper take on it for decades, even if this new version takes a few more liberties with the text. I greatly enjoyed the directors' last film, Starry Eyes, and it's always a treat when Christopher Young gets to score a horror movie.

User avatar
DarkImbecile
Ask me about my visible cat breasts
Joined: Mon Dec 09, 2013 6:24 pm
Location: Albuquerque, NM

Re: Stephen King on Film

#87 Post by DarkImbecile » Thu Apr 18, 2019 4:31 pm


User avatar
DarkImbecile
Ask me about my visible cat breasts
Joined: Mon Dec 09, 2013 6:24 pm
Location: Albuquerque, NM

Re: Stephen King on Film

#88 Post by DarkImbecile » Wed Apr 24, 2019 12:19 am


User avatar
Lost Highway
Joined: Thu Aug 29, 2013 7:41 am
Location: Berlin, Germany

Re: Stephen King on Film

#89 Post by Lost Highway » Thu Jun 27, 2019 5:10 am

This year’s Pet Sematary wasn’t much of a step up over the wretched Mary Lambert movie. Despite a decent budget for this type of film, it looks like a tv episode. I never understood why anybody liked Starry Eyes but it gained some traction with the horror crowd and landed its directors this job. Yes, it took two directors to make something this bland.

One of the most baffling choices was to create much of the forest digitally, the poor compositing of the actors against the background is often noticeable. There is little atmosphere or sense of place. The only plus points are a more talented cast of actors to play the family and a score by Christopher Young.

The plot changes in the second half ultimately don’t make that much difference. One thing I remember about the novel is that much of it is an agonising drama about the loss of a child with the Monkeys Paw inspired horrors mostly being held in check till the climax. Like the previous movie, this gets to the horror action fast and as a result the film feels rushed and insubstantial, nothing has much emotional weight.
Last edited by Lost Highway on Thu Jun 27, 2019 10:21 am, edited 1 time in total.

User avatar
Reverend Drewcifer
Joined: Sat Mar 09, 2013 5:16 pm
Location: Cincinnati

Re: Stephen King on Film

#90 Post by Reverend Drewcifer » Thu Jun 27, 2019 10:15 am

1+ for the Christopher Young praise.

User avatar
domino harvey
Dot Com Dom
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm

Re: Stephen King on Film

#91 Post by domino harvey » Mon Jul 08, 2019 8:03 pm

The 1994 miniseries of the Stand is getting a Blu-ray release from CBS in September. This is very surprising, as it was edited and finished on video and no one expected it to ever make it to Blu as a result, so this means they're going back and rescanning everything for this release

User avatar
dwk
Joined: Sat Jun 12, 2010 6:10 pm

Re: Stephen King on Film

#92 Post by dwk » Mon Jul 08, 2019 9:14 pm

Odd. In recent interviews Mick Garris has said that this wasnt going to happen.

User avatar
Ovader
Joined: Wed Nov 03, 2004 1:56 am
Location: Canada

Re: Stephen King on Film

#93 Post by Ovader » Mon Jul 08, 2019 9:23 pm


User avatar
DarkImbecile
Ask me about my visible cat breasts
Joined: Mon Dec 09, 2013 6:24 pm
Location: Albuquerque, NM

Re: Stephen King on Film

#94 Post by DarkImbecile » Thu Aug 08, 2019 3:15 pm

Julianne Moore says Pablo Larrain will direct an 8-episode miniseries adaptation of King’s Lisey’s Story, adapted by King himself

I read the novel long ago, and it has both a melancholy tone and enough fantastical/psychedelic elements to make this an intriguing choice for Larrain.

User avatar
domino harvey
Dot Com Dom
Joined: Wed Jan 11, 2006 2:42 pm

Re: Stephen King on Film

#95 Post by domino harvey » Sat Sep 07, 2019 10:07 pm

DVDBeaver's review of the Stand reveals that CBS went through all the effort to rescan all six hours of this... and then shoved the entire thing on one disc with an average bitrate of less than 16!

User avatar
Adam X
Joined: Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:04 am

Re: Stephen King on Film

#96 Post by Adam X » Sun Sep 08, 2019 12:54 am

Not only that but they apparently had the same crew remaster/recreate the visual effects, who’ve been working on the Star Trek releases. What a waste, though no wonder they didn’t bother getting Mick Garris involved. This is a weirdly expensive cash-in on the new adaptation.

User avatar
Big Ben
Joined: Mon Feb 08, 2016 12:54 pm
Location: Great Falls, Montana

Re: Stephen King on Film

#97 Post by Big Ben » Sun Sep 08, 2019 1:16 am

Adam Grikepelis wrote:
Sun Sep 08, 2019 12:54 am
Not only that but they apparently had the same crew remaster/recreate the visual effects, who’ve been working on the Star Trek releases. What a waste, though no wonder they didn’t bother getting Mick Garris involved. This is a weirdly expensive cash-in on the new adaptation.
It's weird that you mention this because he showed excitement on his Facebook page which is really active and full of great tidbits. A real shame.

User avatar
Adam X
Joined: Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:04 am

Re: Stephen King on Film

#98 Post by Adam X » Sun Sep 08, 2019 2:08 am

I’m only going by what he’s mentioned on his podcast. Paramount may well’ve gotten him involved in the end to some degree - I’ve not seen his facebook page (can’t, as I don’t have an account) - but he has mentioned that the release being announced was the first he knew about it; and that one of the restoration team contacted him about the work they were doing, though not as I understood it, in an official capacity. I got the sense he was enthused as it was a film of his he, at the time, rightly assumed would never escape it’s analogue master, and that this turned out to be untrue; not that Paramount respected Garris’ involvement enough to bring him onboard.

User avatar
movielocke
Joined: Fri Jan 18, 2008 12:44 am

Re: Stephen King on Film

#99 Post by movielocke » Sun Sep 08, 2019 2:20 am

It’s not as expensive as the studios want everyone to think. Particularly for assets finished to SD video, there’s already insurance requirements to modernize shot on film assets with HD transfers so they can continue to be monetized via TV and international sales.

Since it was probably edited on a tape to tape non linear system, there is likely very good documentation as to what pieces of which negative they needed to access. Basically the bigger effort isn’t in recreating the edit but in having some underpaid intern do careful database/excel information management. Since the actual negative rolls are likely uncut and barcoded, they were probably able to online just the pieces they needed with minimal excess.

There is Probably a good opportunity for a region B Blu-ray done with more discs that would reveal a higher quality to the new masters that the single disc won’t show.

User avatar
The Narrator Returns
Joined: Tue Nov 15, 2011 6:35 pm

Re: Stephen King on Film

#100 Post by The Narrator Returns » Wed Dec 11, 2019 2:34 pm

It seems like that won't be happening, but only because Perry is adapting The Dark Half instead.

Post Reply