The Mist

If, two years ago, you told me that within a couple of years two excellent Stephen King film adaptations would be released, I would probably have laughed it off. Films like The Shining, Shawshank Redemption, Stand by Me, The Stand and 1408 are usually pretty far between (Note that I consider The Green Mile and Carrie to be the most over-rated King adaptations, so they do not appear here). I like most of the films that have been made from Stephen King novels, novellas, and short stories mainly because I like Stephen King, but I do not recommend many of them as truly good films.

Frank Darabont's (writing and directing) The Mist adapts a horror novella of the same name. King's horror work has been the most difficult material to adapt, but this film is comparable to other genre stand-outs such as The Shining and 1408.

A brief, dramatic thunderstorm is followed by a freak mist that descends on a small New England town. As the mist permeates the town, people congregate in the local supermarket and hardware store to stock up and gather supplies. David Drayton (Thomas Jane), his son (Nathan Gamble), and his neighbor (Andre Braugher) are among them. Tension builds as a steady stream of military vehicles pass through the mist headed south from a nearby base. But serious concern doesn't start until one of the locals runs to the supermarket with blood spatters on his clothing and talking of monsters in the mist.

Indeed, there are horrors outside in the fog, but there are also horrors inside the market - as paranoia, irrationality and religion come into conflict with practical issues of survival.

Unlike many horror films, The Mist examines fear and its effects realistically, looks at the horror created by forces beyond human control and the even more terrifying horror that fear creates through forces that are completely within our grasp - our own fears, our beliefs and our treatment of each other. It does so using a classic formula which is comparable to films like Night of the Living Dead and, more recently, Feast.

The cinematography, editing and directing are all excellent. The acting is quite good - Marcia Gay Harden and William Sadler stood out for me - and the script is exactly where it needed to be for this adaptation.

Highly recommended for King fans and horror fans. Recommended for Sci-Fi fans. Weakly recommended for average cinema-goers who are not generally interested in horror.

This is one of the most heart breaking and depressing horror movies I have ever witnessed ,I still have trouble stomaching the ending. The characters and acting were great and creatures were creepy. This is definitely not for the faint of heart.

sometimes you have to catch a film on a big screen, while it is still in movie theaters. "The Mist" is clearly in that category. I will be thinking about this scary, moving, smart, and original work for days. I would like to say nice job for the screenplay, and direction, to Frank Durabant. He obviously understands the genre, and how to keep an audience engaged for a few hours, in the dark. There really is not much more to say about "The Mist." The cast, lead by Thomas Jane and Marcia Gay Harden, is brilliant. Some of the camera shots are amazing. The look of the supernatural creatures is stunning. The sound design in this film is creepy, and beautiful. The production design, art direction, is great. Every aspect of film making comes together here.

To summarize the story-in a small town in Main, VI, a man/David Drayton/and his son, join a big group of people hiding from supernatural creatures in a supermarket. These bug like creatures are brought to the town by a mist, which envelopes the town, and everyone there. I would describe "The Mist" as a cross between "8 Legged Freaks," and "War of the Worlds." It is original, scary, dark, serious, smart, and moving.

I have one large problem, though. The ending, which I will not discuss in detail with my comments, is in my opinion to realistic. We go to the movies to escape reality, not to visit reality. However, please do not wait for this film to appear at the DVD store. You might miss out on the chance to get real close to your date, when you get scared and you want him or her to protect you.

In closing, I will be brief. Do not miss this film. Go. I am real happy I had the chance to see "The Mist" in a theater. My hope is that you all get that chance as well.

I won't go into details as I don't want to ruin this film for everyone, but I will highly recommend it! One warning: Do not watch this film expecting a cheesy/entertaining horror, or even a high-quality entertaining slasher as this film is -all- about the characters and how extreme circumstances can bring out the extreme sides of human nature.

By the end of the film I was literally on the edge of my seat - cider forgotten - with my hand over my mouth.

Masterfully written screenplay (from the original short story by Stephen King) and masterfully directed, anyone who is generally sceptical about adaptations of Stephen King "horrors" will be rewarded by watching this, Frank Darabont has done a typically marvelous job (see Shawshank and Green Mile) and well and truly delivered.

I'll start out by saying that I'm a Stephen King fan and thus I may have some bias. I've watched many Steven King movies but have never given one a rating this high. Most of his horror movies are in the 4-6 range with classics such as The Shawshank Redemption, The Shining, and The Green Mile ranking 8-10 (although two of those aren't technically horror movies). In most modern horror (like the Saw series) there is a greater emphasis on gore than the horror of the human condition and this movie, kudos to the actors, help weave a tale that disgusts you inside and out without the pure reliance on blood spatter (although granted there is a fair amount of that).

Thomas Jane (leading male and well known from The Punisher) has a brilliant and emotional portrayal of his character in a mind-blowing situation that we feel intimately associated with thanks to his acting and great directing. Laurie Holden (of X-Files and Silent Hill fame) has a more subdued performance but plays her role well and for any X-Files nut (such as myself) it's fun to see her in another movie. The cast is chock full of well known actors and some unknowns that really see and express the writer and directors vision. It pays off: They succeed in pulling you into a traumatic situation made worse with a mixture of religious zealotry, military conspiracy, and small-town ignorance that explodes in your face wondering if your humanity is worse off facing The Mist or the human condition.

There is no spoiler here but I will say this about the ending: It's what makes the movie and makes it so much better than most of the crap put out there in horror land. Yes, yes, getting cut in half and having limbs ripped-off is horrible. However it is the decisions we have to make that concern those we love and respect that can really drive one mad. The ending makes you look at yourself and wonder, if given the same situation, what you would have to do with the information you have available. It makes you think hard about your humanity and your soul and about what is right or wrong in any given situation involving our mortality.

I would suggest this movie to anyone that likes horror or science fiction and wants something a little more intense than, say, Army of Darkness (one of my personal favorites for totally different reasons). This movie deals with serious issues we hear about daily. The mist is just a piece of Science Fiction thrown in to bring out the best...and worst in us.

Enjoy!!