The Mist

Review by Sean Lynch

"You don't have much faith in humanity, do you?" is the question answered with a resounding, and utterly convincing "None whatsoever" in the latest Stephen King adaption, The Mist.

It's really indicative of the world we live in at the moment, which is why Frank Darabont's The Mist is such a surprisingly powerful piece of work. The Fog this is not!

After a freak storm cuts off power and sends debris around the sea side town of Maine, David Drayton (Joe Average: Thomas Jane) heads to the local supermarket to get some emergency supplies. From here - well, what happens explains exactly why men hate shopping!

The storm sets off a chain of events that leaves Drayton and a rag-tag bunch of his fellow townspeople (ignorant neighbors, religious fanatics, school teachers, local rednecks & the supermarket staff) fighting desperately for their lives from whatever lurks outside - whatever lurks within The Mist. The question is - will they be able to survive each other?

I really expected very little of The Mist, I'll make no bones about it. I thought it was just another poor King-Screen-Adaption (there have been very few goodies besides The Shining, Shawshank, Green Mile and 1408). But I urge you - do not make this mistake, because The Mist is one of the most thrilling... thrillers to hit cinema screens since M. Night Shamalamalamalalamalam was still... good!

Directed by Frank Darabont (who also worked on Green Mile & Shawshank) this is a horror movie with substance - and chills. Opting, at least for a good deal of the film, for the "What You Can't See" method of movie scares, The Mist is just about as gripping as one could possibly hope for a film set in a supermarket.

What's most impressive is the various social commentaries weaved throughout the film. While they are far from subtle, they are at least made (something which very few horror films do anymore - you see, back in the early days, the whole point of horror films was to portray social commentaries about prejudice, religion & politics) which gives the audience a lot more to chew on. However, let's not forget the scary stuff - there's plenty of that (spiders.... ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww).

The performances are far from Oscar worthy but deliver enough, the CGI ghouls are straight out of 1998 but still give you the creeps, the ending is far from satisfying (it's actually a bit of a cop out) but ironic enough to get the point across - but most importantly, it's consistently engaging throughout.

This is one horror movie not to be... Mist

(Sorry, but it had to be said)

3.5 out of 5

The Mist
Australian release: 7th February, 2008
Cast: Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, Laurie Holden, Andre Braugher
Director: Frank Darabont
Website: The Mist - Official Website