The Mist

Over the years monster movies have become more of a joke than anything even resembling terrifying, unless of course you think that slasher films are monster movies, which their not. But true monster films have pretty much gone by the wayside, and the stories that examine this genre are left to the author’s imagination where just about anything is possible. This story was originally written by Stephen King back in 1980 and became an instant classic with his readers. Adding his own flair for the fantastic with the genre of monsters, the short novella drew the attention of Hollywood almost immediately. Now 27 years later, with Oscar nominated director Frank Darabont at the helm, the tale of spine chilling tale of survival and the unknown that has lived for years in the hearts of King fans comes to life with stunning realism.
After a pounding thunderstorm leaves a small town without power, a dense fog engulfs the town bringing with it deadly creatures that trap a small group of survivors in the local grocery store. All of the right elements that make a good horror movie can be found in this story, from the mounting terror inside and outside of the story to not being able to see the creatures in the mist. Thomas Jane plays the normal every day Dad that is thrust into the most extraordinary of situations with his young son along for the ride, and he plays the role with such believability that its heart wrenching watching he deal with the crisis’ as they arise. One of the other things that works in favor of the spine-chilling way this movie unfolds is that film makers gave the story a strong, shocking ending where King left it open ended for the reader to use their imagination.
Watching this story come to life on the screen is a real treat, the whole tale, with some slight changes for the time period and character development, is told in a faithful way to the original novella. The one true element that keeps this movie on the edge of your seat is that you don’t see the monsters until their right on top of you, and when you do see them their more than you expected. This creepiness is what is usually what is missing from movies that are transferred from King’s works, but with this film, and other more recent adaptations, we as an audience might be able to finally see some of the greatest horror fiction come to life on the screen in a believable fashion.