Steven King movies and books; the good, bad and mediocre by chrisisall

OTHER SCIENCE FICTION SERIES

Steven King movies and books; the good, bad and mediocre

POSTED BY: CHRISISALL
UPDATED: Tuesday, April 26, 2005 10:35
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VIEWED: 4628
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Friday, April 22, 2005 8:48 AM

I'm with our President (but probably for very different reasons), Firestarter is a good movie!
It's also my favourite SK book. I liked The Stand as a book, but the mini-series missed by just enough to suck IMHO.
Needful Things was a really good flick, too.

All right, I ain't gonna list 'em all by myself. Let's bandy it about for a while, if you've a mind to.

Pyrokinetic Chrisisall

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Friday, April 22, 2005 9:04 AM

MANWITHPEZ

Important people don't do field work.

Come on! Number one has to be The Shawshank Redemption, followed closely/tied by Stand By Me. Throw The Green Mile in there too.

I might be the only one, but I enjoyed Sleepwalkers. I definitely liked Storm of the Century. I also liked Pet Semetary, the original Salem's Lot,Creepshow, and I did like Firestarter as well, but its been awhile since I've seen it. I did like The Dead Zone as well...the movie and the show. I'd have to say Carrie is my favorite of the adapted horror.

I've already mentioned The Lawnmower Man and Dreamcatcher as abominations elsewhere, so I won't get into it here. But, Maximum Overdrive...Maximum crap! Rose Red...Bored Viewer. And, I know I'm gonna get mauled for this, but I did not like The Shining. I liked the miniseries better. Much better representation of the novel, which is one of the few books that scared the crap out of me. I'm also not a huge fan of IT, because it was so inconsistent. The kids were much better in their roles than the adults were.

I haven't seen the remake of Salem's Lot...I'd like to though. I've heard of an animated The Eyes of The Dragon in the works, but that's been going around for awhile. No Dark Tower novels have been adapted, and I hope they never do. Leave it alone! Hoping Desperation and The Talisman are good, the pictures for Desperation look great! The Talisman (not one of my favorite novels) has been in development hell for like 15 years.

And, looking forward like hell to King's new book in October. The Colorado Kid, I think its called, but its a crime pulp novel, a genre that I love!

Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."

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Friday, April 22, 2005 9:21 AM

THESOMNAMBULIST

As Manwithpez said.
Shawshank, Stand by Me, and Green Mile.... I would however put the Shinning very high up, as my cousin was hairdresser for that film :)

Sadly I think there are more missies than hits when it comes to Stephen King adaptations - but I'm no expert on his books, I've read only a few not enough to make any kind of comparison.

I wait to see what the rest say and reccommend.

The
Somnambulist

www.cirqus.com

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Friday, April 22, 2005 9:23 AM

MANWITHPEZ

Important people don't do field work.

Whoops! Forgot about Misery! How could I forget Kathy Bates's turn as Annie Wilkes! I even enjoyed James Caan in that movie, though he tends to get overlooked a lot.

Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."

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Friday, April 22, 2005 9:29 AM

CHRISISALL

The first three films you list are great, just not in the genre I think of when I think of SK is all.
I also liked Sleepwalkers.
But here's something; When Pyro starts flaming the Feds in X2, all I could think was "homage to Firestarter? Charlie would blow him away".ha ha ha

Cracked like a china plate in a shooting gallery Chrisisall

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Friday, April 22, 2005 9:41 AM

STARPILOTGRAINGER

Books:
Really liked The Dark Tower that I've read so far (just finished Wolves of the Calla), The Stand, Firestarter, and Dead Zone. From a Buick 8 had a niftiness to it too, but not on the same level.

Movies:
Firestarter movie wasn't bad... I liked The Stand Mini a lot - could have been better, but for what it was, it was pretty good. Dead Zone TV show is excellent, even though they've changed a lot, they've actually improved on it, IMHO, and the Dead Zone movie was a fairly good adaptation in that it kept close to the book.

Star Pilot Grainger
"Remember, the enemy's gate is down."
LJ: http://www.livejournal.com/users/newnumber6 (real)
http://www.livejournal.com/users/alternaljournal (fictional, travelling through another world)
Unreachable Star: http://www.unreachablestar.net - Comics & SF News/Reviews/Opinions

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Friday, April 22, 2005 10:31 AM

GONZAI

The Shining is a pretty sore subject 'round my house - neither the book nor the film did anything for me, but my mother hated the movie with such a passion that she decided she hates Stephen King, across the board, no exceptions. It's taken me years of prodding (and convenient silence) to get her to watch Dead Zone, Stand By Me and Shawshank, and of course, she loved them until she found out the source. Ack.

Another Sleepwalkers fan here, although in my case it's mostly because, let's face it Brian Krause is just adorable

Love The Stand, book and film; Storm of the Century; with 'It', the movie wasn't much but the book still rocks. And though I've neither read nor watched it, Alan Tudyk is in 'Hearts in Atlantis' so it's definitely on my to-do list.

"I'm not a control freak. I'm a control enthusiast." - Joss Whedon

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Friday, April 22, 2005 10:44 AM

CHRISISALL

Gonzai, didn't you find The Stand to be very watered down for TV? It came close for me, a source of some frustration lemme tell ya. All that time invested to see the edge trimmed off here and there...IMHO.

Needed to be an 'R' Chrisisall

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Friday, April 22, 2005 11:41 AM

MRSKBORG

The best adaptations of his books for me anyway are Misery, The Green Mile, Salem's Lot mini, IT mini and the Stand was not too bad. Needfull Things was reasonable too. Carrie was really good, but not that awfull remake mini series thing, that was bloomin awful.

I pretty much like all his books, although my personal favourites are The Dark Half, Christine, Misery, IT, The Stand, hell, I like all of them, I have a difficult time ranking them i any kind of order cos he's just such a great writer.

"This movie may be a beautiful butterfly, but I loved that damn caterpillar." Joss Whedon.

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Friday, April 22, 2005 1:10 PM

PHOEBE

Woot! The perfect thread for me. Sadly I'm going to sleep now so I'll leave with a brief parting comment before writing an essay.

The Desperation photographs aren't impressing me at all. First of all, the wolf is trying to get THROUGH the bars to David - when the wolf never tried to kill David, just to stop him from leaving, which is an entirely different thing to trying to get INTO the cell.

Secondly - hello? Cynthia's hair is NORMAL!

Third - Is it just me who feels weird about the guy who played Jack in The Shining (TV version, not movie), playing Steve? I can't wrap my head around it.

Fourth - I'm very, very, VERY concerned about this being a TV movie. I'm not saying that the violence is all the substance Desperation has, but the violence/gore/graphicness is what made it all the more powerful. With it being a TV movie, some of it HAS to be toned down... and the set photos look *okay* but the quality of some of them worries me just a tad. Regardless, I'll watch it, but as an avid Desperation fan, I'm hoping it's a good enough quality.

Finally, has anyone read Desperation/The Regulators who's willing to compare? Because I was mightily confused by them. When The Regulators was published, was King actually trying to pass himself off as Bachman? Because, what with the same underlying plot and almost exact (but twisted) characters used in both books, somehow I don't see how anyone could miss the similarities...

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Friday, April 22, 2005 4:23 PM

STARPILOTGRAINGER

Quote:
Originally posted by Phoebe:
Finally, has anyone read Desperation/The Regulators who's willing to compare? Because I was mightily confused by them. When The Regulators was published, was King actually trying to pass himself off as Bachman? Because, what with the same underlying plot and almost exact (but twisted) characters used in both books, somehow I don't see how anyone could miss the similarities...

I haven't actually read either, but I remember when they both came out, at the same time, they were advertised together, and (although I could be wrong), even the original covers were meant to match up to form one picture. I also recall some discussion about there being a connection between the two stories.

Star Pilot Grainger
"Remember, the enemy's gate is down."
LJ: http://www.livejournal.com/users/newnumber6 (real)
http://www.livejournal.com/users/alternaljournal (fictional, travelling through another world)
Unreachable Star: http://www.unreachablestar.net - Comics & SF News/Reviews/Opinions

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Friday, April 22, 2005 4:41 PM

CALLMEATH

Quote:
Originally posted by manwithpez:
Come on! Number one has to be The Shawshank Redemption, followed closely/tied by Stand By Me. Throw The Green Mile in there too.

Hoping Desperation and The Talisman are good, the pictures for Desperation look great!

I totally agree with you here. Shawshank was a wonderful movie. I watch it whenever it comes on TV.

Now, I must know where you saw Desperation pictures!! I MUST!!

Please?

Also, I thought they were planning on a Mist movie.

As for his books, my favorite is It. I've worn out two copies. Of course, the Dark Tower series is easily his best work. I'm not at all ashamed to admit that I cried reading it. He can make me care about characters more than most authors, and the ka-tet felt like family.

I feel the need to mention his best short story, "Head Down", from Nightmares and Dreamscapes. It's more of an essay about his son's baseball team and their bid for the Maine state Champoinship. A real page-turner. Definately his best non-fiction.

"We all float down here."

"Invader's blood marches through my veins like giant radioactive rubber pants. The pants command me! Do not ignore my veins!"

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Friday, April 22, 2005 6:42 PM

MANWITHPEZ

Important people don't do field work.

Got to the pictures through IMDB...I think it looks very much like worth seeing.

Head Down...Sooooooooo Good...I read it then, listened to Stephen King read it for the Nightmares and Dreamscapes audio book. It added the extra oomph to the story. That story is so...pretty...I really can't think of another way to describe it.

Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."

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Friday, April 22, 2005 6:49 PM

MANWITHPEZ

Important people don't do field work.

Also...we do know that Stephen King and Richard Bachman are the same guy, right?

The Regulators and Desperation in an exercise in taking the same characters (some altered in some way) and dropping them in a different setting and a different situation. What stays the same? Tak, that's what...

You know Tak, right?

Yeah, he's around...see It, see Black House...See the Dark Tower books.

But, The Regulators has such an awesome beginning...That's the think with King...the beginnings...There is no author working now that has such a grasp of how to grab a reader, and draw them in such a way that they want to see how this story ends...no matter what course it takes...

Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."

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Friday, April 22, 2005 11:42 PM

PHOEBE

Yeah, we know Richard/Stephen are the same person. I was just confused about why he bothered marketting TR as Bachman when it's obvious it was Stephen writing...

Desperation pics I got off his official site:

http://www.stephenking.com/pages/Works/Desperation/movie.php

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Saturday, April 23, 2005 6:51 AM

FREMDFIRMA

Cause his publisher at the time, like most of them, wanted to bog down every release to milk maximum cash out of it before spewing forth the next - a practice that has killed more than one book series as readers go elsewhere, and put more than one Author out of writing, thanks to the damn greedy bastards.

So, King rolled up some of his minor stuff and fronted it through the Bachmann name, ironically, I liked THAT stuff better than much of what he wrote as King... weird, innit ?

Every time I read "The Running Man" now it gives me chills, cause lookin at reality-tv as it is now, I wonder.....
*twitch*

-F

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Saturday, April 23, 2005 7:25 AM

EMBERS

I'm afraid I'm a little like Gonzai's Mom...

I loved:
Stand By Me
Carrie

I liked:
Misery
The Shining

and I hated:
Shawshank Redemption
The Green Mile
The Dream Catcher

so pretty much I've given up going to Stephen King movies...since the more recent movies have been the worse IMO
(I know, you all think I'm nuts)

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Sunday, April 24, 2005 2:36 AM

CHRISISALL

But what about George W Bush's favourite film, Firestarter?
(can't believe he likes a movie I like. For me it's a heartbreaking story about the distruction of innocense and the terrible price those responsible pay. Must be a power thing for the Prez...blowin' stuff up an' all, I mean government ain't exactly portrayed as good guys in that one. I'd have expected his favourite to be more like White Lightning, or Rambo.)

Kingly Chrisisall

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Sunday, April 24, 2005 4:13 PM

CALLMEATH

No one has mentioned any of King's worst books. Guess I'll take the job.

Gerald's Game. Boring. I don't think I ever finished it.

Most of Night Shift is pretty mediocre. Then again, compared to other horror writers... I mean, Dean Kootz? *Snore*

From a Buick 8 wasn't that great, but still better than most of the ilk people publish these days. Especially in horror.

"Invader's blood marches through my veins like giant radioactive rubber pants. The pants command me! Do not ignore my veins!"

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Monday, April 25, 2005 2:03 PM

MALICIOUS

My two (give or take) cents:

Best Books:
1) The Stand
2) The Shining
3) 'salem's Lot

Best Short Story:
1) Jerusalem's Lot (this one STILL creeps me out)

Best Novellas:
1) Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption
2) The Langoliers

Best Movies:
1) The Green Mile
2) Shawshank Redemption
3) Carrie
4) Misery

Worst Movies:
1) All the rest

His other identities:
1) Richard Bachman
2) Tabitha King (not confirmed, just my very strong opinion based on reading "their" books for 30 years)

Some of the books he wrote under Tabby's name are excellent:
1) The Trap
2) Care Takers
3) Small World

Other notables:
1) 1408
2) The Long Walk
3) Beachworld
4) The Breathing Method
5) Sorry, wrong number

and many more! (Disclaimer: all my books are still packed up until I get some bookcases, this is all just from memory)

Mal-licious

I think I will add cursing and the hurling about of things to my repertoire.

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Monday, April 25, 2005 4:46 PM

CHRISISALL

From MEMORY??!!
I have a hard tim remembering my SS#!!!!

Feeble-minded Chrisisall

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Monday, April 25, 2005 6:29 PM

NEEDLESEYE

I liked, as far as movies: The Shining and Carrie.
The Stand, was OK as far as a TV presentation. I'm a sucker for any variety post-apocalyptic crud. Been meaning to read the book for years, free time isn't something I have much of though.

Keeper of Jayne's goggles. 8)
"You only live a day, but it's brilliant anyway" ~ Elliot Smith

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Monday, April 25, 2005 10:52 PM

MALICIOUS

Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
I have a hard tim remembering my SS#!!!!

Oh, it's 644-11-9128.

KIDDING!! (was I close?)

Mal-licious

I think I will add cursing and the hurling about of things to my repertoire.

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Tuesday, April 26, 2005 1:41 AM

MANWITHPEZ

Important people don't do field work.

1408 was great, as was hmmm...what's it called, 10'0clock People, as well as Lunchtime in the Gotham Cafe. I don't make it a point to hunt down short stories (Except from F.Paul Wilson! Worth the hunt!), but King's just got so damn many good ones! Not to mention a few bad ones. I know that when I was a kid, The Boogeyman from Night Shift used to continually both confound and terrify me. It was confounding to me because the good guys didn't win. And, I had never been presented with the idea before I read that story. But, if you've read enough King, then you know, the good guy rarely wins, or, if he does, its at the expense of great personal loss.

Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."

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Tuesday, April 26, 2005 7:23 AM

BLACKOUTNIGHTS

The movies of Sai King's books usually let me down, so I don't go out of my way to see them.

For years I loved his books. However, with the possible exception of Desperation and The Dark Tower, I don't typically like his endings.

That may be because, as he explains before The Dark Tower ends, his books are more about the story and getting to the ending, than the ending itself.

Good excuse; I accept that.

However, in my opinion the best stories have a perfect ending and conclusion, a-la The Lord of the Rings. The journey ends; the work is done. Anything less is just an excuse.

But that's just me.

"You're either in or you're out, and I'm playing to the in."—Greg Dulli

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Tuesday, April 26, 2005 7:48 AM

CHRISISALL

That's exactly why Firestarter is my favourite SK book ( that, and it's the most science- fictiony ).

Love the book/love the movie Chrisisall

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Tuesday, April 26, 2005 8:13 AM

MANWITHPEZ

Important people don't do field work.

The ending to the Dark Tower books is a sore spot with me. I agree with what King's saying...just not how it was said. I loved and hated it at the same time, and the arrows were kinda pointing in that direction while they were pointing everywhere else. But, just because not all (or even the majority) of Stephen King's books have happy ending, I don't think they're bad endings.

King writes (specializes) in books that take the mundane and make them terrifying. As silly as that can be, the real strength to a Stephen King book, (besides great characterization) is that they seem to be grounded in a reality of sorts. Yes, he's talking about ghosts and vampires and werewolves and a dimensional portal in the trunk of a Buick...but the characters react to these things as most people would, I think.

To me, one of King's most terrifying stories is "Apt Pupil" of which, there is on supernatural occurences whatsoever. The idea that evil is an infection that can be spread to the willing is horrible, yet totally feasible. You know what Todd's going to do about halfway through the story. The only downfall of Apt Pupil is that there isn't a clear cut bad guy. My wife read that story (actually, I think she listened to Frank Muller's excellent audiobook reading) and said she felt sorry for Dussander...Sorry for the NAZI! And, that is what is at the underpinnings of almost every great Stephen King story. Real, lifelike, touchable characters. That's why, when one of the good guys bite the dust, you are upset.

I would rather take an unhappy ending over a cop out one anyday. (See most of Dean Koontz's writings ((which is not to discount Koontz...love most of his books))) The unhappy ending feels more real, because, more often than not, in life, this is how things work out for us, as real people.
SPOILERS BELOW!!!

I believe that if I walked as far as Ray Garraty , I would probably go insane. I don't things were going to work out okay for Thad and Liz Beaumont. If you're going to use people for a Hand of God metaphor with a nuclear weapon...they're not all going to make it. King told us all along that not everyone would make it to the Tower! Ted Braughtigan should have gotten caught...he was a little sloppy. Jack Sawyer has to die to Flip forever!

SPOILERS OVER

So, I'll take King's endings over a lot of other authors. At least they aren't abrupt, or needlessly sappy. Some, are downright perfect. Most, are lifelike.

Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."

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Tuesday, April 26, 2005 10:35 AM

GONZAI

First up, for Chrisisall, I find I tend to approach most movies with a particular mindset. My mindset for TV movies is that they're probably lousy. So, the Stand was good, not outstanding, just good, but considering what I was afraid of...

I must confess that King writes way too fast for me these days, I think I finally fell off the pace around 2000 (halfway through Nightmares & Dreamscapes, so I haven't read Head Down! Left off the Dark Tower series around the third book too.) And finding reading time these days is darned tough.

Wanted to comment that in the case of 'Apt Pupil' - I read it once and threw up.

It continues to disturb me greatly 20 years later, and I refuse to see the film, which is particularly notable since I'm a huge fan of Sir Ian McKellen.

"I'm not a control freak. I'm a control enthusiast." - Joss Whedon

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