By Robert Freese
“Masterpiece Stephen King Theater”
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Dimension/ 112 min/2007
Dir. Mikael Hafstrom
“The Dolphin Hotel invites you to stay in any of its stunning rooms.
Except one.”
John Cusack plays a jaded, burned out paranormal writer who is invited to spend
the night in a haunted hotel room. Laughing off the warnings from the hotel’s
staff, Cusack endures a long night of spectacular spook activity and comes to
certain revelations about his life. This is exciting, spine tingling horror that
delivers the goods.
Carrie
MGM/ 98 min/1976
Dir. Brian De Palma
“Take Carrie to the prom. I dare you!”
Nerdy girl discovers she has telekinetic powers and ultimately murders the entire
graduating class of Bates High after being the butt of an especially cruel joke.
This was the first of King’s novels to be adapted to the big screen and it is still one
of the best. Piper Laurie stands out from the uniformly outstanding cast as Carrie’
s psychotic, Jesus super-freak momma. Flick spawned a belated sequel (Carrie II:
The Rage) and a TV remake.
Children of the Corn
Anchor Bay/ 92 min/1984
Dir. Fritz Kiersch
“An adult nightmare.”
The children of Gatlin, Nebraska slaughter all the adults and follow Isaac, a bible
thumping crazy who preaches about “he who walks behind the rows.” A young
couple disrupts the harmony in the town, discovering the kiddie corn cult and their
ritual of self termination when they reach age nineteen. Based on a King short
story. Amazingly, this film (released by New World Pictures) spawned no less than
six sequels and a pretty decent made for TV remake. Lightweight but still an
enjoyable diversion when there is nothing else to watch.
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Columbia/ 110 min/1983
Dir. John Carpenter
“Some cars are born bad.”
Pimply faced career geek Arnie Cunningham (Keith Gordon) falls madly in love with a haunted 1958 Plymouth
Fury that slowly rejuvenates itself into pristine condition (all the while transforming Arnie from zero to hero
status). An intense love story about a boy and his car. Christine communicates her feelings via the moldy
oldies she plays on her radio. When Arnie’s friends try to intervene, all hell breaks loose. Carpenter delivers an
exciting, rock ‘n roll horror flick. One scene, where Christine tries to choke Arnie’s gal, takes place at a drive-in
movie theater showing a kung fu movie. Not to be missed.
Cujo
Lionsgate/ 95 min/1983
Dir. Lewis Teague
“Now there’s a new name for terror…”
A mother and her child are held captive in a stalled car by a slobbering rabies infected St. Bernard named Cujo.
This is a harrowing, almost painful experience and Teague wrings out every ounce of tension the premise is
worth. Kudos to Dee Wallace Stone and six year old (at the time) Danny Pintauro for delivering such powerful
performances. The ending is slightly altered from that of the source novel. The crazed canine is portrayed by
trained dogs, animatronic creations and a man in a St. Bernard suit. Delivers solid scares and shocks. Highly
recommended.
The Dark Half
MGM/ 121 min/ 1993
Dir. George Romero
“There are very good reasons to be afraid of the dark.”
When writer Thad Beaumont (Timothy Hutton) is ousted for using a popular pen name, he decides to go public
and officially lay his alter ego to rest. This doesn’t sit well with George Stark, his pseudonym made flesh, who
goes on a killing spree in an attempt to take over Thad’s life. Expertly adapted by King cohort Romero, who
stays very faithful to the source novel and takes the best parts and milks them for all the tension possible. In the
top tier of King flicks.
The Dead Zone
Paramount/ 103 min/1983
Dir. David Cronenberg
“In his mind, he has the power to see the future. In his hands, he has the power to change it.”
Johnny Smith (Christopher Walken) awakens from a five year coma with psychic powers that enable him to see
the future. After helping various people he assists the police in finding a rapist/murder. When he has terrible
visions involving a political hopeful, he has to decide what his moral obligation is to the human race. Easily in
the five best King flicks, Walken delivers a marvelous performance as the reluctant hero. Flick is rich in
character involvement, especially Johnny’s bittersweet reunion with his former fiancée. An absolute must see.
This flick spawned a TV series.
Firestarter
Image/ 115 min/ 1984
Dir. Mark L. Lester
“She has the power…an evil destructive force.”
Parents who took experimental chromosome altering drugs in the ‘60s spawn a child who can create fire with just
a thought. Fascinating premise delivers some major scenes of rambunctious pyrotechnics. Great soundtrack
by Tangerine Dream. Not the best King adaptation but certainly a fun movie. A horrible made-for-TV sequel
followed two decades later.
Graveyard Shift
Paramount/ 88 min/ 1990
Dir. Ralph S. Singleton
“Stephen King took you to the edge with The Shining and Pet Semetery. This time…he pushes you
over!”
A giant monster rat in a cotton mill causes several workers to die horrible deaths. They bring in a brain dead
exterminator to clean the place out, but he is snuffed too. The scumbag mill foreman puts a number of workers
on overnight cleaning duty and the giant mutant rat’s lair is discovered, along with a couple hundred human
skeletons. The best thing about this flick was the cool skull in the miner’s hardhat on the poster. Sloppy and
silly but may work if that’s what you’re in the mood to watch.
The Langoliers
Artisan/ 180 min/ 1995
Dir. Tom Holland
“Prepare yourself for the flight of your life!”
Travelers on a plane find themselves in a weird limbo where time is slowly being eaten away by Pac Man-like
creatures. They have to make it to the present before they are consumed into the nothingness. Very cool idea
is expertly played out by a great cast, especially Bronson Pinchot as a business man who suffers a severe
mental meltdown. Suspenseful as hell, you’ll be on the edge of your seat during the climax of this one.
The Mangler
New Line/ 90 min/ 1995
Dir. Tobe Hooper
“Escape is not an option.”
An industrial size laundry press chums up a lot of immigrant type workers while old man Robert Englund yells,
swears and cackles maniacally. The local law learns the press is possessed and tries to stop the satanic
machine. A total waste of time and talent. Hard to believe Hooper directed this mess. In my opinion this is one
of the worst King adaptations of all time. Unbelievably, two direct-to-video sequels have been made. I’ve
skipped both of them.
Maximum Overdrive
20th Century Fox/ 98 min/ 1986
Dir. Stephen King
“Imagine your worst nightmare- machines take over the world!”
A group of obnoxious rednecks are held hostage at the Dixie Boy Truck Stop by an army of semi-trucks brought
to murderous life. Emilio Estevez is the hero who tries to get everyone to safety. All the machines in the world
are affected and a bank ATM calls Stephen King an asshole in his amusing cameo. King’s lone foray into
directing resulted in what I consider one of the all time greatest “dumb-but-fun” movies ever made. It does drag
a little in the middle, but the action accelerates as it builds towards its big man versus machine climax. Great
soundtrack by AC/DC. Great cast. It is funny and gross but never really scary. Was later remade as a TV-
movie under the title Trucks (which was the name of the original short story on which this movie was based).
Misery
MGM/ 108 min/ 1990
Dir. Rob Reiner
“Paul Sheldon used to write for a living. Now, he’s writing for his life.”
After a brutal car accident way off the beaten path, writer Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is taken in by head case
ex-nurse Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) who proclaims to be his biggest fan. While nursing him to health, Annie
reads Paul’s new manuscript which kills off a beloved character. Annie goes a little crazy and holds Paul
hostage, until he writes a more fitting story for her favorite fictional heroine. Tense, nail biting suspense is
broken up by occasional laughs, but this lean thriller goes for the throat more times than not. One scene in
particular had the entire audience I first saw this with howling and screaming for several long moments. A great
adaptation.
The Mist
Dimension/ 126 min/ 2007
Dir. Frank Darabont
“Fear changes everything.”
A strange mist appears after a storm, trapping a group of people in a grocery store. Personalities clash as
bizarre creatures living in the mist prey on those who foolishly wander out from the safety of the store.
Extraordinary adaptation that Darabont takes one step further with a real dozy of a twist ending. (This ending
shocked audiences and possibly kept it from becoming a huge hit during its theatrical run.) Strong cast brings
credibility to the story. This is one of the best.
The Night Flier
HBO/ 97 min/ 1997
Dir. Mark Pavia
“Never believe what you publish…Never publish what you believe.”
Scumbag tabloid reporter Richard Dees (Miguel Ferrer) is tracking a supposed vampire who flies into little mom
‘n pop airports, slaughters everyone and drains the bodies of all their blood. Twisted characters, bloody scares
and some truly demented nightmare imagery make this one a real winner. The blood sucker’s revelation in the
final reel is both disturbing and amusing. Recommended.
Pet Semetery
Paramount/ 102 min/ 1989
Dir. Mary Lambert
“Sometimes dead is better.”
Although Churchill the cat came back as a zombie feline from the ancient Indian burial ground out back, the
patriarch of the Creed family decides to take little Gage Creed out to the burial ground in hopes that his son will
return normal from the dead. Gage comes back as a nasty little mean-assed zombie. A unique living dead film.
This was a huge hit and revitalized King’s cinematic name after a glut of mid 80s films. The title song is by the
legendary punk band The Ramones. Lambert followed it up a couple years later with a silly and redundant
sequel, with no carry over characters. It has long been rumored that a remake is in the works.
Riding the Bullet
Lionsgate/ 98 min/ 2004
Dir. Mick Garris
“The Dead Travel Fast.”
Outstanding horror-road adventure has a young artist hitchhiking 100 miles to get to his mother who is in the
hospital. On his journey he encounters a number of weird individuals, including a living dead hot rodder.
Stylishly told and well mounted, this one is touching and full of heart and feeling. Great cast and soundtrack. It
was a real shame that this one did not get a proper theatrical release. This is Garris’s finest King adaptation.
Secret Window
Columbia Tristar/ 96 min/ 2004
Dir. David Koepp
“The most important part of the story is the ending.”
Mort Rainey (Johnny Depp) is a down on his luck writer fighting depression and trying to cope with the failure of
his marriage. All of a sudden, John Shooter (John Turturro) enters the picture, accusing Rainey of plagiarizing
one of his stories. Shooter soon turns violent and the mayhem is blamed on Rainey. If you have not read the
original source novella, the twist ending will really catch you for a surprise. A terrific popcorn movie.
The Shining
Warner Bros./ 144 min/ 1980
Dir. Stanley Kurbrick
“A masterpiece of modern horror.”
Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) slowly loses his mind while playing caretaker to the Overlook Hotel during the off
season. Seems that ghosts on the premises are driving him bonkers and his wife and son are trapped with the
psycho. Nicholson pulls out all the stops in depicting his character’s descent into madness. Several images
from this film have become iconic to the horror genre, such as the elevators letting loose a tidal wave of blood
and the creepy little ghost girls. Film was the center of controversy at the time of its release because many did
not feel it was faithful to the source material, King included. (He was able to pen his own adaptation for a made
for TV mini-series in 1997.) Film delivers shocks and stark images that may haunt you for a good while after you
see it. It is definitely worth a watch.
Silver Bullet
Paramount/ 94 min/ 1985
Dir. Daniel Attias
“It started in May in a small town and every month after that, whenever the moon is full…It comes
back.”
Wild werewolf tale pits a crippled boy in a tricked out wheelchair, his prissy sister and their drunk as a skunk
uncle against a local lycanthrope. One great scene has Marty Coslaw (Corey Haim) firing a bottle rocket into the
beast’s eye and another depicting the ultimate werewolf nightmare. King adapted his own lean book and beefs
up the fun. (I mean come on- the flick begins with a meaty decapitation within the first five minutes.) A solid, fun
creature feature.
Sleepwalkers
Columbia Tristar/ 89 min/ 1992
Dir. Mick Garris
“They feast on your fear- and it’s dinner time.”
Ancient vampire ghouls who feed on the life forces of young girls move into town. Immediately, baddie Brian
Krause begins hitting on the local movie theater concession girl, Madchen Amick. There are a couple creepy
scenes, but nothing tops the mother and son ghouls sucking face and hitting the sheets together. Some fun
cameos from some of Garris’s friends (like Joe Dante and John Landis) keep this one from being a complete
dud. It was King’s first original screenplay and Garris’s first theatrical King flick. It’s okay if nothing else is on,
but ultimately it is nothing special.
Sometimes They Come Back
Trimark/ 90 min/ 1991
Dir. Tom McLoughlin
In an attempt to put his life back together after a career setback, Jim Norton (Tim Matheson) returns to the town
where he grew up and is forced to face the ghosts of his past. Very engaging characters and the trio of ghouls
are suitably menacing. The story builds to an exciting climax. This TV movie was actually shown theatrically
overseas. It spawned two better than average direct to video sequels.
Thinner
Artisan/ 92 min/ 1996
Dir. Tom Holland
“Let the curse fit the crime.”
Obese lawyer gets off the hook for the accidental slaying of an old gypsy woman and incurs a curse that literally
melts the pounds away. Desperate, he seeks help from a mobster he helped with legal matters. He soon learns
that bullets are no match for the deadly curse. This faithful adaptation will give you the chills while also making
you question your own stance on capital punishment. Extremely creepy.