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In Stephen King's "Firestarter," a child develops the ability to harness pyrokinesis. This kid, Charlie, is soon hounded by a government agency known as The Shop, who had conducted drug trials on her parents, Andy and Vicky, when they were young. Nefarious without limits, the Shop kills Vicky and kidnaps Charlie, but Andy is able to use his limited powers (known as The Push) to search for his daughter and flee with her. "Firestarter" fleshes out this perilous journey, honing in on Charlie's inner struggle and how everyone around her wants to control her powers one way or another. It's a novel about cultivating autonomy, which often takes root when one faces the brutality of the world firsthand. Although "Firestarter" isn't as thematically dense as, say, "Carrie" or "The Stand," it examines the making and unmaking of identity, with society forever ready to intrude if someone dares to stray from the norm.

“Firestarter”, the new science fiction horror feature, directed by Keith Thomas, starring Zac Efron, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Sydney Lemmon, Kurtwood Smith, John Beasley, Michael Greyeyes and Gloria Reuben, has fizzled out at the box office earning only 3.8 million domestic and 5.8 million worldwide over the weekend:

The original "Firestarter" feature starred Drew Barrymore as 'Charlie McGee', who develops 'pyrokinesis':

"...score 'Andrew' and 'Charlie McGee', are a father-daughter pair on the run from a government agency known as 'The Shop'. During his college years, Andy had participated in a Shop experiment dealing with 'Lot 6', a drug with hallucinogenic effects similar to LSD. The drug gave his future wife, 'Victoria Tomlinson', minor telepathic abilities, and him an autohypnotic mind domination ability known as 'the Push'.

"Both his and Vicky's powers are physiologically limited. In his case, overuse of the Push gives him crippling migraine headaches and minute brain hemorrhages,...

Of all of Stephen King’s literary children, none burns as brightly as Charlie McGee. She is the main character in his 1980 novel Firestarter and arguably his most powerful protagonist. The child of participants in a college experiment run by a government agency known as The Shop, Charlie was born with the unique ability to […]

The post ‘Firestarter 2: Rekindled’ – Unearthing the Ashes of a Forgotten Stephen King Sequel appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“Firestarter” is the new Blumhouse Productions science fiction horror feature, directed by Keith Thomas, based on the novel of the same name, rebooting the 1984 film adaptation, starring Zac Efron, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Sydney Lemmon, Kurtwood Smith, John Beasley, Michael Greyeyes and Gloria Reuben, with a new score by John Carpenter, opening May 13, 2022 in theaters with same date streaming on Peacock:

The original "Firestarter" feature starred Drew Barrymore as 'Charlie McGee', who develops 'pyrokinesis':

"...score 'Andrew' and 'Charlie McGee', are a father-daughter pair on the run from a government agency known as 'The Shop'. During his college years, Andy had participated in a Shop experiment dealing with 'Lot 6', a drug with hallucinogenic effects similar to LSD. The drug gave his future wife, 'Victoria Tomlinson', minor telepathic abilities, and him an autohypnotic mind domination ability known as 'the Push'.

"Both his and Vicky's powers are physiologically limited.

“Firestarter” is the new Blumhouse Productions science fiction horror feature, directed by Keith Thomas, based on the novel of the same name, rebooting the 1984 film adaptation, starring Zac Efron, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Sydney Lemmon, Kurtwood Smith, John Beasley, Michael Greyeyes and Gloria Reuben, opening May 13, 2022 in theaters with same date streaming on Peacock:

The original "Firestarter" feature starred Drew Barrymore as 'Charlie McGee', who develops 'pyrokinesis':

"...'Andrew' and 'Charlie McGee', are a father-daughter pair on the run from a government agency known as 'The Shop'. During his college years, Andy had participated in a Shop experiment dealing with 'Lot 6', a drug with hallucinogenic effects similar to LSD. The drug gave his future wife, 'Victoria Tomlinson', minor telepathic abilities, and him an autohypnotic mind domination ability known as 'the Push'.

"Both his and Vicky's powers are physiologically limited. In his case, overuse of the Push gives...

Blumhouse's "Firestarter," based on Stephen King's novel, has just dropped a new track as a part of the upcoming film's score, composed by none other than John Carpenter himself. Carpenter has created this original track alongside composers Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies, who have worked on the score for the "Halloween" franchise." 

King's "Firestarter" was adapted into a 1984 film, which was a commercial failure and criticized for being too uninspired in its tone and execution. A TV miniseries sequel titled "Firestarter: Rekindled" followed soon after, with Marguerite Moreau assuming the role of Charlene McGee, who happens to be, well, the firestarter. Blumhouse's "Firestarter" is...

The post Hear a Track From John Carpenter's Original Firestarter Score appeared first on /Film.

“Firestarter” is the new Blumhouse Productions science fiction horror feature, directed by Keith Thomas, based on the novel of the same name, rebooting the 1984 film adaptation, starring Zac Efron, Ryan Kiera Armstrong, Sydney Lemmon, Kurtwood Smith, John Beasley, Michael Greyeyes and Gloria Reuben, opening May 13, 2022 in theaters with same date streaming on Peacock:

The original "Firestarter" feature starred Drew Barrymore as 'Charlie McGee', who develops 'pyrokinesis':

"...'Andrew' and 'Charlie McGee', are a father-daughter pair on the run from a government agency known as 'The Shop'. During his college years, Andy had participated in a Shop experiment dealing with 'Lot 6', a drug with hallucinogenic effects similar to LSD. The drug gave his future wife, 'Victoria Tomlinson', minor telepathic abilities, and him an autohypnotic mind domination ability known as 'the Push'.

"Both his and Vicky's powers are physiologically limited. In his case, overuse of the...

Blumhouse Productions’ adaptation of the Stephen King novel “Firestarter” has gotten a release date and a first trailer. The film will hit theaters and Peacock on May 13.

Starring Zac Efron and Sydney Lemmon as parents Andy and Vicky, the story follows them on the run as they attempt to hide their daughter Charlie (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) from the government. Charlie has pyrokinetic abilities and, naturally, a sketchy agency wants to use her and her powers as a weapon.

Charlie’s powers tend to burst out in moments of anger or pain, but her father has taught her how to defuse it, at least temporarily. But as Charlie turns 11, her fire becomes harder and harder to control.

When Charlie accidentally gives up her family’s hiding place, a mysterious operative (Michael Greyeyes) is sent out to hunt down the family and take Charlie.

You can watch the first trailer for “Firestarter” in the video above.

Up and coming actress Ryan Kiera Armstrong has been cast as Charlie in the new adaptation of Stephen King’s classic sci-fi thriller “Firestarter” from Universal Pictures, Blumhouse and Weed Road Pictures. Armstrong is featured as Charlie in the picture above.

Armstrong joins Zac Efron and Michael Greyeyes who were previously announced.

Keith Thomas (“The Vigil”) is directing the film. Scott Teems (“Halloween Kills”) is writing the screenplay.

Jason Blum and Akiva Goldsman will produce. Martha De Laurentiis, who served as an associate producer on the 1984 adaptation of “Firestarter” starring Drew Barrymore, will executive produce.

The film will follow a young girl who develops pyrokinetic abilities and is abducted by a secret government agency that wants to use her powers as a weapon.

King’s novel was first published in 1980 and the following year, the book was nominated as Best Novel for the British Fantasy Award, Locus Poll Award and Balrog Award,...

Firestarter, the Stephen King novel-turned-film, is already cemented in pop culture history with the iconic 1984 poster image of child star Drew Barrymore, who’s seen ominously emotionless in front of a blaze caused by her unbridled pyrokinetic powers; an image that was a clear inspiration for Stranger Things’ Eleven. However, the current crop of King-adapting films and television will see a Firestarter remake, which now has a headliner in Zac Efron.

Studios Universal, Blumhouse and Weed Road are moving forward with efforts for a Firestarter remake movie, and have announced its first cast member in Zac Efron, who will serve as one of its headlining stars, although his character was not disclosed. He will be in front of the camera for appointed director Keith Thomas (The Vigil), who works off a script by Scott Teems (Halloween Kills), joined by producers Jason Blum and Akiva Goldsman (who was the originally-tapped director). The project,...

Zac Efron will star in “Firestarter,” the new adaptation of Stephen King’s classic sci-fi thriller of the same name.

Keith Thomas (“The Vigil”) will direct the film for Universal Pictures, Blumhouse Productions and Weed Road Productions. Scott Teems (“Halloween Kills”) is writing the screenplay.

Jason Blum and Akiva Goldsman will produce. Martha De Laurentiis, who served as an associate producer on the 1984 adaptation of “Firestarter” starring Drew Barrymore, will executive produce.

The film will follow a young girl who develops pyrokinetic abilities and is abducted by a secret government agency that wants to use her powers as a weapon.

King’s novel was first published in 1980 and the following year, the book was nominated as Best Novel for the British Fantasy Award, Locus Poll Award and Balrog Award, and in 1984, it was adapted into a feature film that also starred David Keith and Martin Sheen. A mini-series follow-up, “Firestarter: Rekindled,...

We have a little update on the status of the Firestarter remake. Stephen King is one of the hottest brands in all of entertainment right now, in no small part thanks to the massive success of both It and It Chapter Two. King's 1980 novel has been on Universal's to-do list for some time now. As revealed to us by screenwriter Scott Teems, the movie is, or at least was, eyed to begin production sometime this year.

I recently had the chance to speak with Scott Teems in honor of his new movie The Quarry being released digitally. During our conversation, I asked about the status of Firestarter. According to Teems, Universal and Blumhouse Productions are eager to get this one going. Here's what he had to say about it.

"I'm still the writer. We just got a new director named Keith Thomas and he made a great film called...

A new adaptation of Stephen King's Firestarter has been cooking since it was first announced at The Overlook Film Festival back in 2017, and now it's heating up once again with the reveal of a new director for the film.

Variety reports that Keith Thomas will helm the new Firestarter movie for Universal Pictures, Blumhouse Productions, and Akiva Goldsman’s Weed Road Productions. Variety also reveals that Blumhouse has picked up the domestic distribution rights to Thomas' feature-length debut, The Vigil, which has been well-received on the festival circuit.

Thomas is the latest director for the film, with Fatih Akin (In the Fade) reported as the movie's previous director back in 2018 following the announcement in 2017 that Akiva Goldsman was developing the film.

Thomas will direct the new Firestarter movie from a script by Scott Teems (co-writer of Blumhouse's upcoming Halloween Kills). The screenplay will be based on the 1980 Stephen King...

Back in April of 2017, Daily Dead witnessed Jason Blum's announcement that Blumhouse was teaming up with Akiva Goldsman to develop a new adaptation of Stephen King's Firestarter, and now the project is starting to heat up with a director coming on board.

Variety reports that Fatih Akin (In the Fade) will direct the new Firestarter movie from a script by Scott Teems. The screenplay will be based on the 1980 Stephen King book about a telekinetic child named Charlie and the organization known as The Shop that will do anything to capture her and exploit her powers.

King's novel was previously adapted for the big screen in a 1984 film directed by Mark. L. Lester and starring Drew Barrymore. A TV movie sequel, Firestarter 2: Rekindled, was released in 2002.

Martha de Laurentiis, Blum, and Goldsman will produce the new Firestarter film, which is in development at Universal Pictures. A release...

The Stanley Film Festival kicked off at the Timberline Lodge in Mt. Hood, Oregon last night, with producer Jason Blum and director Akiva Goldsman debuting their new thriller Stephanie as the opening night screening. The producer and director also used the event to break some news, announcing that they are both collaborating on a new remake of Firestarter, the 1984 horror classic starring Drew Barrymore. Universal Pictures is also involved in the development, but it hasn't been said when production may begin.

Deadline reports that Scott Teems (Rectify) has come aboard to write the screenplay, with Akiva Goldsman set to direct and Jason Blum producing. Universal previously tried to put together a Firestarter reboot back in 2010, with the studio bringing on Mark L. Smith (The Revenant) to write the screenplay, but that incarnation never moved forward. Martha de Laurentiis, who made her producing debut as an associate producer on the original movie,...

Don Kaye May 2, 2017

The new film version of Stephen King’s pyrokinetic thriller Firestarter will be directed by Akiva Goldsman.

Stephen King’s 1980 novel Firestarter is going to be adapted as a feature film for the second time, it was announced at the end of last week at the Overlook Film Festival in Mount Hood, Oregon. The news was revealed by producer Jason Blum (Get Out, Split, The Purge) and the man who will direct the picture, Akiva Goldsman.

See related Jessica Jones season 2: Janet McTeer nabs mystery role Iron Fist: Rosario Dawson pops up in new clip The Punisher: Rosario Dawson will not appear

King’s novel focused on a little girl named Charlie who develops the ability to start fires and control the flames with her mind. A secret government agency known as the Shop - which injected Charlie’s parents with the drug that gave...

Daily Dead Editor-in-Chief Jonathan James is attending The Overlook Film Festival in Oregon, where they have announced that a new version of Firestarter is in development.

Following the screening of Akiva Goldsman's new supernatural horror film, Stephanie, Goldsman and Jason Blum stepped on stage for a Q&A, where they announced that Goldsman will direct a new version of Stephen King's 1980 novel, Firestarter.

Goldsman will direct the new take on the story about a girl with pyrokinetic abilities who is hunted by a sinister organization known as The Shop. The new Firestarter movie will be co-written by Goldsman (who also co-wrote The Dark Tower movie, based on King's epic fantasy book series) and Scott Teems (Rectify, That Evening Sun), and Goldsman mentioned that they are looking to the book for inspiration.

Jason Blum's Blumhouse Productions will support the new Firestarter film, and Universal is taking part in its development,...

Skye McCole Bartusiak, the actress who played Mel Gibson's youngest daughter in the 2000 Revolutionary War drama "The Patriot," has died at the age of 21. "We lost our girl," Helen McCole Bartusiak told CNN. "She was a kind and really beautiful girl." Though cause of death is unknown at this point, Bartusiak states that her daughter had been suffering from epileptic seizures over the last several days and may have "had a seizure and choked and nobody was there." The actress had been experiencing seizures since the time she was a baby, though they ceased for several years before returning last week, according to her mother. "I've done CPR on that kid more than one time and it just didn't work this time," Bartusiak said, stating that paramedics also attempted resuscitation but could not get a heartbeat. Bartusiak made her screen debut in 1999 with a small role in the ABC...

Charlie McGee thought she had reduced The Shop to a pile of ashes when she was a little girl, but it turns out the organization that exploits humans with superhuman powers survived the flames. The 2002 TV movie Firestarter 2: Rekindled attempted to continue the story of Stephen King’s 1980 novel Firestarter and its 1984 original feature adaptation of the same name. Now TNT is taking a turn at continuing the Firestarter storyline with the announcement of a new TV series called The Shop, which will serve as a sequel to King’s novel and focus on an adult Charlie.

As reported by TVLine, this sequel series was recently announced as part of TNT’s new lineup of thriller shows. The Shop will begin twenty years down the road from where Firestarter left off. Charlie will be all grown up. Also alive and well is the organization that terrorized Charlie and her dad in her younger days.

Firestarter lives on. TNT is saying, "Hey, forget that 2002 sequel Firestarter 2: Rekindled" by announcing today that it will forge ahead with its own follow-up entitled The Shop. "Firestarter" is a Stephen King novel that was adapted for the big screen in 1984 by Mark Lester and it starred Drew Barrymore and David Keith as a father and daughter on the run from "The Shop" which wanted to harness their otherwordly abilities (he could control minds and she was a pyrokinetic). This paved the way for the aforementioned sequel in 2002 on the Sci-Fi Channel (now SyFy).

The post Another Firestarter Sequel is in the Works, Now at TNT appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

Do you want to see a creepy trailer? Look no further, boys and girls. The trailer for Sick Boy is a skin-crawler. Featuring the great Debbie Rochon and Skye McCole Bartusiak, Sick Boy looks like a truly scary project. And it now has worldwide representation from Raven Banner Entertainment.

During the Toronto International Film Festival Raven Banner Entertainment nabbed the rights to Sick Boy, Tim T. Cunningham's creepy baby-sitting gig gone awry film.

Oh, and that trailer I was talking about? Check it out below along with some stills and artwork. Yeah, dude, that sick boy is creepy!

From the Press Release

Raven Banner is excited to be representing the worldwide rights to Tim T. Cunningham’s Sick Boy. Raven Banner’s Managing Partner, James Fler, negotiated the deal with producer/director Tim T. Cunningham and producer Sean C. Cunningham.

This frightening homage to Hitchcock and the horror films of the late 70’s,...

Tremors? Nightbreed? Sundown: The Vampire in Retreat? 976-evil? Are all on the list this year. And though there were not huge horror wins in sound editing through screenplays, the Technical Awards never cease to bring out the horror veterans. Notably Tim Drnec who contributed to such VHS classics as Alien Seed, Destroyer, and Prison won for his work on “Spydercam 3D volumetric suspended cable camera technologies.” An award also shared with Ben Britten Smith and Matt Davis who both also worked on Constantine.

But among all the winners, the Academy also honored some great loses in 2010. And though they mentioned some of our heroes, Dennis Hooper (Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2), Kevin McCarthy (Invasion of the Body Snatchers) and Dino de Laurentiis (King Kong), they did not mention Zelda Rubinstein or Corey Haim. But we will in this last section and the others lost to us last year.

So farewell fight fans and remember,...

Now we really are scraping the bottom of the remake barrel with news that Universal and the Dino De Laurentiis Co. are looking to kickstart a new franchise based on one of Stephen King’s lesser works Firestarter. You may remember the original film, released in 1984, starred a cherubic Drew Barrymore as the pyrokinetic poppet whom a government agency were hunting to harness her powers.

It was previously brought back to the small screen in 2002 with Firestarter 2: Rekindled. De Laurentiis Co. Chairman Martha De Laurentiis told Variety;

“We see this as a unique, character-driven thriller with a supernatural edge, based on a timeless concept and enhanced by recent visual effects advances.”

So translate this as ‘people with superpowers are cool and we can blow stuff up real good these days.’

Writer Mark L Smith (Vacancy, The Hole) is working on the script with the apparent intention of making it edgier this time around.

Universal Pictures and producer Dino De Laurentiis' production company (Red Dragon, Assassins) have teamed to reboot the 1984 horror film "Firestarter," based on a Stephen King tome, and have hired Mark Smith (Vacancy) to write the script. The original movie starred a 9-year-old Drew Barrymore as a girl able to start fires at will. It grossed $17 million at the domestic box office. Although there were no sequels developed (besides the unrelated TV film "Firestarter 2: Rekindled"), the studio aims to turn the reboot into a franchise property. The goal is to begin filming in 2011. "We see this as a unique, character-driven thriller with a supernatural edge, based on a timeless concept and enhanced by recent visual effects advances," said Martha De Laurentiis, who has taken over Dino's company after his death last month. De Laurentiis company has a slew of other projects in various stages of development, including a reboot of the cult classic "Barbarella,...

According to reports, Universal Pictures and Dino De Laurentiis Co. will develop a reboot of the 1984 feature "Firestarter", to be scripted by Mark L. Smith.

Based on author Stephen King's novel, the original "Firestarter" feature starred Drew Barrymore as 'Charlie McGee', who develops 'pyrokinesis':

"...'Andrew' and 'Charlie McGee', are a father-daughter pair on the run from a government agency known as 'The Shop'. During his college years, Andy had participated in a Shop experiment dealing with 'Lot 6', a drug with hallucinogenic effects similar to LSD. The drug gave his future wife, 'Victoria Tomlinson', minor telepathic abilities, and him an autohypnotic mind domination ability known as 'the Push'.

"Both his and Vicky's powers are physiologically limited. In his case, overuse of the Push gives him crippling migraine headaches and minute brain hemorrhages, but their daughter 'Charlie' developed a 'pyrokinetic' ability, with the full extent of her power unknown. After...

Normally I couldn't give a sh*t about a remake to Firestarter, but it's hard to ignore any project being produced by Steven Schneider and his Room 101 banner. Variety reports that Room 101, along with Universal, are looking to reignite the Firestarter flame. The studio and Dino De Laurentiis Co. have teamed to reboot the 1984 horror pic, with Mark L. Smith (Vacancy, The Hole) onboard to pen the script. Based on the Stephen King tome, the studio aims to turn the reboot into a franchise property. The 1984 pic starred Drew Barrymore as a girl able to start fires at will. It grossed $17 million at the domestic B.O. and was also produced through U and De Laurentiis' Co. The SyFy channel aired Firestarter 2: Rekindled back in 2002. The plot details for the reboot are being kept under wraps.

In the wake of Dino De Laurentiis comes news of remakes to two films he produced. According to Variety, Universal is going to revisit Stephen King's "Firestarter" and re-adapt the property for a new generation. The novel was first turned into a film in 1984 starring Drew Barrymore and David Keith as a daughter and father - who harbor special abilities and are on the run. Fans of the novel were riled up when George C. Scott was strangely cast as John Rainbird. A made-for-tv follow-up, Firestarter 2: Rekindled hit the Sci-Fi Channel in 2002. For the redo, "We see this as a unique, character-driven thriller with a supernatural edge, based on a timeless concept and enhanced by recent visual effects advances," Martha De Laurentiis told Variety. Also on...

Although it was based on a novel by Stephen King, I really don’t see anything remotely “Horror”-ish about his “Firestarter”. If anything, it’s more sci-fi than horror, what with Eeeeeevil Government types and experiments gone awry and such. In any case, Universal and the Dino De Laurentiis Co. are teaming up to remake the 1984 movie, with an eye towards turning it into a potential franchise. Based on a King novel, the 1984 flick starred Drew Barrymore back when she was a little tyke as Charlene ‘Charlie’ McGee, a kid who can start fires with her mind if you get her really, really mad. David Keith played her dad, who is on the run with Charlie from evil Government types determined to harness the girl’s powers for nefarious purposes. (A common motif in King’s stories — never trust The Man). Heather Locklear played the mom. There was a...

Universal and Dino De Laurentis Co. are teaming to reboot Mark L. Lester’s Firestarter, based on the horror novel by Stephen King about a father-daughter pair with special abilities. Both worked together on the original in 1984.

The original starred David Keith as Andy, a man left with autohypnotic mind control abilities after government-sponsored experimentation with hallucinogenic drugs. His daughter, Charlie, had pyrokinetic powers that could ignite objects simply by focusing on them. Charlie was played by a 11-year-old Drew Barrymore, just two years after her breakout role in E.T.

Plot details for the rebooted version are being kept secret, reports Variety, but the new story will be loosely based on King’s book. Only this time, the plan is to reinvent the main character with “a little more edge.” Of course, the update will take full advantage of modern special effects to enhance Charlie’s “firestarting” abilities.

A TV...

Dennis Hopper’s long film career began with the 1955 teen angst classic Rebel Without a Cause with James Dean, and he helped usher in Hollywood’s New Wave as director and star of the counterculture anthem Easy Rider in 1969. He later became a respected character actor, specializing in such off-beat villains as the drug-addicted, obscenity-spouting Frank Black in David Lynch’s Blue Velvet (1986), crazed bomber Howard Payne in the 1994 action-thriller Speed with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, and Deacon in Kevin Costner’s soggy post-apocalyptic saga Waterworld (1995).

Hopper was born in Dodge City, Kansas on May 17, 1936. He moved to San Diego, California with his family in the late 1940s, and began studying at the local Old Globe Theater while attending high school. He soon signed with Warner Brothers and was featured in a small role in 1955’s Rebel Without a Cause. He was later featured as Jordan Benedict III, the...

This review also appears on our Starlog website...

Mutant Chronicles tries to be The Dirty Dozen meets Aliens but it’s really more like Pearl Harbor meets The Chronicles Of Riddick. In case you couldn’t guess, that’s Not a compliment. It’s out today from Magnolia (reviewed from the $26.98 single-disc DVD; also available as a $29.98 two-disc Collector’s Edition DVD; $34.98 Blu-ray).

Director Simon Hunter and screenwriter Philip Eisner haven’t been prolific in the last decade. Hunter hasn’t helmed a feature since 2000’s Lighthouse (a decent horror movie) and Eisner has only added Firestarter: Rekindled to his credits since penning Paul W.S. Anderson’s Event Horizon. Perhaps both have gotten a little rusty over the years, because Mutant Chronicles is a boring, flavorless, sermonic flick that dulls with its repetitive, exhausting “action” sequences and tiresome, pedagogical passages on the values of religious conviction and blind faith.

It’s the 28th Century,...

Mutant Chronicles tries to be The Dirty Dozen meets Aliens but it’s really more like Pearl Harbor meets The Chronicles Of Riddick. In case you couldn’t guess, that’s Not a compliment. It’s out today from Magnolia (reviewed from the $26.98 single-disc DVD; also available as a $29.98 two-disc Collector’s Edition DVD; $34.98 Blu-ray).

Director Simon Hunter and screenwriter Philip Eisner haven’t been prolific in the last decade. Hunter hasn’t helmed a feature since 2000’s Lighthouse (a decent horror movie) and Eisner has only added Firestarter: Rekindled to his credits since penning Paul W.S. Anderson’s Event Horizon. Perhaps both have gotten a little rusty over the years, because Mutant Chronicles is a boring, flavorless, sermonic flick that dulls with its repetitive, exhausting “action” sequences and tiresome, pedagogical passages on the values of religious conviction and blind faith.

It’s the 28th Century, and an Ice Age...