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Reviews
The Things They Left Behind (2011)
A worthy adaptation of quite an emotional story
About the film: Scott Staley is a survivor of the attack on the Twin Towers. He stayed home from work at the day of the attack, thus surviving the drama. But as King writes: survivors are victims too. For they are haunted by nightmares, feelings of guilt and remorse. As is Scott. But suddenly, something strange happens: all kinds of junk appears in Scotts apartment, like a farting cushion, a pair of fake glasses, a small statue and a baseball bat. Every piece comes straight from Scott's past. They belonged to his colleagues, whom he has lost during the 9/11-attacks. Scott desperately tries to get rid of the stuff, but whenever he gives them away, they appear back in his apartment within minutes. Throwing stuff away doesn't work either: as soon as he gets back to his apartment, the belongings are back. Slowly, Scott realises what he should do. Finally, he brings the stuff back to the relatives of his colleagues, who are very happy to be returned something that belonged to their dearly beloved.
My opinion: This is obviously a story by the 'older' Stephen King. In a sublime manner he poses a dramatic story, to which he adds a supernatural element. He did this before on 'The Green Mile', but King shows he knows his way with a short story as well. Add this to the fact that the 9/11 attacks are burnt into everyones memory . Therefore the story grabs you right away, and doesn't let go. This story was Kings outlet to write away his feelings on this matter. It's not an easy task to film such a sensitive and personal story in a decent manner. Pablo Macho Maysonet IV knows exactly what he's doing, and delivered a true masterpiece. The camera-work is typical for a modern filmmaker: a lot of out of focus shots, moving camera– shots and often a special placement of the camera (very high or very low). One thing I didn't like that much was the lighting. In Scott's nightmare scenes, the lighting changes to bright green or bright blue. In itself, there's nothing wrong with that, but Scott has a LOT of nightmares. Therefore it happens that you're watching a bright green screen for minutes on end, with a couple of shadows walking through. It does make clear which scenes are dreamt by Scott, and which are reality. A matter of taste, I guess.
Maysonet keeps a fine tempo, so the film doesn't bore at all. The story itself is not one with a lot of action and tension, but by skillfully switching dream sequences and reality the film keeps a great speed. An above average, worthy adaptation of quite an emotional story.
My vote: 8/10.
Danny Paap Stephen King Fanclub Netherlands
The Boogeyman (2010)
Gerard Lough has beautifully portrayed a therapy-session which keeps the viewer at the edge of his seat
Why this film: It's been a couple of years ago that the short story 'The Boogeyman' was adapted as a film. In fact, Jeff Schiro's film from 1982 was one of the very first dollarbabies that were made. Finally, nearly 30 years later, there's a new adaptation of this chilling story.
My opinion: Gerard Lough is an Irish filmmaker, which becomes apparent once the film starts: all actors speak in an Irish accent. It took a while to get used to, but soon you'll realise the conversation between Andrew and his psychiatrist is well understandable. The film consists mainly from Andrew telling his story. At first from the chair, but later also through a voice-over, which brings slightly more action (and diversity) on screen. The boogeyman doesn't get much time on-screen, but you'll feel his presence all the time: those unfamiliar with the story will wonder multiple times if the boogeyman is real or just a delusion from the quite stressed out Andrew. The film has some surprising camera angles, which keeps the viewer involved with the story, despite the lack of action. Luckily the director succeeds the long monologue with shots of Andrew searching his house for the boogeyman. My biggest concern is that the film doesn't have very much action or special effects. Still, Gerard Lough has beautifully portrayed a therapy-session which keeps the viewer at the edge of his seat.
Ending Score: 7,8
Danny Paap, Stephen King Fanclub Netherlands
Everything's Eventual (2009)
Right from the start you'll know that Everything's Eventual something special...
Many King readers know by now that King makes a special deal with amateur/student filmmakers. For a symbolic $1 they can adapt a Stephen King short story to film as a so called "Dollar Baby". These films can only be exhibited at school presentations and/or film festivals and may not be commercially distributed. Most amateur filmmakers who make a dollar baby create a mediocre film with a minimal budget. But every now and then a very talented filmmaker stands up to create a true masterpiece. J.P. Scott, who adapted the story "Everything's Eventual", did just that. J.P. showed his film to King, who was very impressed by the film. So much in fact that he offered J.P. the chance distribute the film theatrically. Furthermore, King gave the film to 3 major distributors to consider the film, including Summit, Overture and Lion's Gate. Unfortunately, all three decided not to release the film in cinema's, which means the film can now only be seen at film festivals around the world.
My opinion: Right from the start you'll know that Everything's Eventual is something special. The beautiful images, the fine acting and especially the ominous music make this a film that is expected of most Hollywood-King films. Stephen King's story is followed pretty closely, but isn't told in the same order. Also, a couple of subplots have been added to the story. Especially Pug, an old childhood friend of Dinky's, plays an important role in the film, where the short story only mentions him a couple of times. Add this to the fact that this is the first dollar baby to be feature length, it really gives you the feeling you're watching a Hollywood movie. My only comment to the film is that the acting is not quite up to par in a couple of scenes: it's really not that big of a deal though. Should you get the chance to see the film somewhere, be sure to do so! I promise you won't regret it.
Ending score: 8.5
Danny Paap Stephen King Fanclub Netherlands