The Mist – Run away! Scary Movie Review!

Every once in a while, famed horror writer Stephen King wants us to bite the big one. He puts us on a runaway train of death and destruction and then tells us, “You have two choices. Either give up, or you’ll be forced to give up.”

Director George A. Romero did the same thing to us with his 1968 cult classic Night of the Living Dead. In that movie, our heroes did not give up until they were forced into it. And, boy, were they forced!

(Notice how I’m being very careful here…I don’t want to reveal endings for people who haven’t seen them yet…because that would be too much of a scary movie review. As a movie reviewer, instead of scaring you half you death with spoiler alerts, I’d rather just scare the pants off you with my uncanny yet witty metaphors.)

Director Frank Darabont (the genius behind Shawshank Redemption) has removed scenes from the Stephen King novella, and then he added some new scenes. The result? A quick paced thrill ride. Only when the ride slows down toward the end do we realize the horrifying truth.

With George A. Romero’s zombies, at least we had a fighting chance. I mean, they are zombies after all. Slow-witted versions of ourselves. But Stephen King’s The Mist has a freaky collection of otherworldly monsters…monsters sporting razor-sharp teeth and claws and tentacles and—well, you get the idea.

The odds are against us. Totally. Especially if you believe in monsters, like I do. You’ll walk away feeling depressed. Saddened. Angry. Totally wigged out.

But if you don’t believe in monsters, you’ll be one of the many few who found their way through the mist unharmed.