Stephen Kings Doctor Sleeps Erwachen

The ever-beautiful Rebecca Ferguson and a favorite from the Fargo series, Zahn McClarnon team up to bring us some somewhat scary, but more so eerie/creepy moments in this adaptation of King's Doctor Sleep. For the most part, and with the help of Ewan McGregor who plays an alcoholic, grown-up version of The Shining's Danny Torrence, they pull it off.

While Doctor Sleep is a rather drawn-out and, mostly, slowish-moving film, it still has enough to it, to not lose one's attention. The story-line is solid and engaging, although those unfamiliar with the book and looking for outright horror and gore, will find little satisfaction. There are a couple of scenes which can be construed as "horrific", but in my opinion, Doctor Sleep is not really a "horror flick" by definition. To me, it is more like an intense drama about good vs evil, with a couple of well-done 'end-of-life' scenes thrown in. :)

What I most enjoyed about it, is that in this day and age where practically every story ever has already been made into a movie, this one's plot was just a bit off the beaten path and came across as slightly new and original in its approach, while still pretty seamlessly tying it in to the well-known classic: The Shining.

If I had to add one con, it would be a somewhat minor one, in that, at times, the girl who plays Abra (Kyliegh Curran), who also possesses 'the shining', and who can communicate with Danny, delivers her lines in almost a stone-like manner, and at other times as if she is rapidly reading. It occurred one too many times, and I found that it took me out of the movie for just a bit.

While good, the scenes leading up to the ending are a bit predictable, and the 'showdown' (remember, good vs. evil) leaves a little to be desired. For the most part, however, I can live with it, seeing as Rebecca Ferguson saves it by just being in it, and King and the creators do their best to come full circle. In short, like the entire film itself, it is satisfying-enough to where one can feel as if watching it, was time well spent.

What a surprise... That wasn't so bad actually! Now, hear me out. When I first saw the previews for this I felt disappointed by the visual look of the film, as it was all too green-tinted and lacked the Kubrick-esque framing I want from a film like this (it being a sequel to "The Shining" after all). Remember, I care too much about the visual aesthetics of these things sometimes. Especially when it was clearly supposed to connect right to the iconic classic. The green tint stays throughout the film, much to my displeasure. Worked great in "Joker" though. But once I got what the story was and paid attention I realized I was getting invested. This is a different type of film while still remembering to pay huge amounts of respect to the legacy of the original. Once you do get to the elements that carry over from Kubrick's film it felt well earned. Interestingly enough they kind of blend well together too eventually. We delve into the supernatural aspects of what Stephen King was going after in his book, and that's completely fine. I don't mind a chilling spookie once in a while. Recently I've felt done with most of the modern day horror film tropes, so it's such a shock for me to say that I had a good time with "Doctor Sleep".

The progression of where Danny Torrance's character goes to is a natural right step. They go for the 'father like son' kind of thing, and I was completely onboard with it. The ghost of Jack Nicholson's presence looms strongly over the story too, with Danny fearing not to follow his father's footsteps. The new story elements were able to grab my attention as well. Again, as soon as it clicked what type of plot/movie this was, then it worked. It's its own thing, and that's great. No "Shining" remake - except for some re-created imagery (handled with nice respect) - But most importantly: The story and characters moved forwards. Loved what they did with the character Rose the Hat. What a sinister yet oddly charming antagonist portrayed hypnotically by Rebecca Ferguson. Hope she gets the deserved credit. Ewan McGregor will always be Obi-Wan to me, but he was a fantastic choice to play Danny. He can convincingly make me believe that he's got the 'shine'. It surprises me how positive I feel about the movie! It's a neat little companion piece to the classic. Again, big props for them to go for their own thing. This is no "Force Awakens", if you know what I mean. You'll walk though memory lane here for sure. The difference is that it doesn't rely on the nostalgia to tell their story. It actually stands on its own. I'll say that if you're a big fan of the original, then it's worth taking a looksie

As far as Stephen King adaptations go, Mike Flanagan's DOCTOR SLEEP undoubtedly has to count among the small - but distinct - group of excellent ones. For a director to achieve this is a rare feat - as any Stephen King fan can sadly attest to after dozens of mediocre to downright terrible adaptations over the last four decades - and what's even more impressive is that it marks the second time Flanagan managed to pull this off, since he already knocked it out of the park with his Netflix adaptation of King's previously considered to be unfilmable novel GERALD'S GAME.

Now the reason why those two films work so well is actually quite simple: like Frank Darabont and Rob Reiner before him, Flanagan gets that the most intriguing aspect of King's stories is not the horror. He's the rare director adapting a story by the writer who gets that it's not the supernatural, not the gory thrills or creeping chills that make those books so immersive and so well loved (though of course those are elements that we King fans also greatly enjoy): it's the meticulous worldbuilding and the deeply human characters.

King's novels - and Dr. Sleep is no exception - are so immersive because they're usually less about the horror itself and much more about the journeys he sets his characters on in confronting that horror, the world they inhabit and the people they meet along the way - and the strong bonds and friendships they forge. So in order for the adaptations to work on screen, it's crucial to retain the warmth and the humanity the writer infuses his protagonists with. The director's cut of DOCTOR SLEEP (which is the only cut I've seen), perfectly captures that aspect of King's writing. It has that special "King tone" - for lack of a better word - which so rarely survives the Hollywood treatment of his works.

My only - minor - gripe is that Flanagan focused his considerable talent on what I consider to be a somewhat mediocre book. If latter-day King is what he had to choose from, I wish he had picked BAG OF BONES or DUMA KEY instead, as his storytelling instincts would have been perfectly suited for both of those (admittedly also flawed) novels. There's some great stuff in there that could make for fantastic, haunting, beautifully Gothic genre films if a writer/director with Flanagan's old-school approach to storytelling and deeply humanist sensibilities were to tackle it.

But never mind my nitpicking; DOCTOR SLEEP is a treat for King fans as well as genre fans in general, and it's a shame it wasn't a bigger success at the box office. The movie is beautifully photographed, the cast - especially Rebecca Ferguson, Kyliegh Curran and Zahn McClarnon - are wonderful, and the deliberate pacing works perfectly for the story. So let's give it up for Mike Flanagan (who's apparently already busy adapting King's Lovecraftian novel REVIVAL); in the absence of Rob Reiner and Frank Darabont, he's perhaps the greatest hope for us King fans.

It deserves a good rating because besides its slightly average story(imo), they still managed to make me watch the full 3 hours in one sitting without feeling bored for a minute and enjoying it. Good camera work too.

If you are going into this film expecting it to be a straight up sequel to the Kubrick film with the same horror tone, you'll be disappointed, however if you have an open mind, this movie is very well directed and acted and the story is very compelling. This is more of a fantasy thriller than a horror film and I really like that about this film. It also does quite a bit of homage to the 1980 film, but takes it into a new and interesting direction with a deep underlying theme direct from Steven King.