The Mist

First, a disclaimer: I am a huge Stephen King fan. As in, I have read everything the man has written down to 2 books I am currently working on finishing. (The Stand is a behemoth, give me time!) So any Stephen King movie I review is going to be greatly biased.

That said, I do agree with the general opinion that most Stephen King movies are, well, crap. Something just doesn't translate to the big screen. I think it is the screenwriters'/directors' focus on the horror story, where Stephen King novels are pure humanity: character-driven, fleshed-out tomes with masterful passages that simply cannot be captured on film.

And that being said, I still enjoy most of the movies. Yes, "It" had an ending that was pure letdown, but the movie was still menacing fun. Sure, "Pet Sematary" was an exploitative gore-fest, but what is so wrong about that?

I was pleasantly surprised at the news that Frank Darabont, who has been a longtime Stephen King collaborator, and directed the horror-lite, drama-heavy, and critically beloved S.K. movies"The Green Mile" and "The Shawshank Redemption," was to direct "The Mist". And, for the most part, his movie does not disappoint.

"The Mist" holds pretty well to the Stephen King trademark tone. The characters are well-defined and much of their traits are retained on film. There is good build-up of creepy atmosphere, but I felt the movie somewhat fell apart once the creatures behind the mist started to be revealed. I like my horror a little more subtle, a little less creature feature-y. Still, for a Stephen King movie, this is a pretty good entry.

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