Grappling With The Mist| fright.com

May

8

Grappling With The Mist

Note: I initially set out to do a straightforward review of last year’s THE MIST, but quickly realized that adequately covering the film and the many issues it raises would take a far broader canvas. Hence the following. Frank Darabont’s THE MIST was the most widely debated horror movie of 2007. A Stephen King adaptation with a difference (it’s actually good), this monster-packed scare fest inspired an astonishing amount of ire from fans, most of it centered on the far bleaker-than-average ending. Was the controversy justified? Let’s see.
Background
Frank Darabont has over the years proven himself the most talented and dependable screen adaptor of Stephen King’s work. Darabont’s early short “The Woman in the Room” was based on a King piece, as was Darabont’s first major directorial effort THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION. So too his second, THE GREEN MILE. (I’ll politely overlook Darabont’s other major film, the downright-pukeable, non-Stephen King related THE MAJESTIC).

For THE MIST Darabont reportedly secured the screen rights early on. King held off other potential offers for over twenty years, until Darabont was able to secure financing through Dimension Films’ Bob Weinstein.
The budget was a limited one, leading to a down-and-dirty shooting style directly opposed to the more classical approach of Darabont’s other features. Darabont claims he prepared by directing an episode of the TV cop drama THE SHIELD, and borrowed the show’s cinematographer and camera operators for the film. They joined an eclectic cast that included Darabont regulars like Laurie Holden and William Sadler, the Stephen King movie veterans Andre Braugher and Frances Sternhagen, and well-respected actors like Toby Jones (last seen playing Truman Capote in INFAMOUS) and Oscar winner Marcia Gay Harden. Under Darabont’s smooth, confident direction, all the above did superlative work.

The Source
THE MIST began as a novella originally published in the landmark 1980 collection DARK FORCES. The story’s a good one, reading like an old time B-movie in ink, though with Stephen King’s unerring eye for gritty naturalism and solid characterization.

It tells of a strange mist that appears on the horizon of a small Maine town. A violent storm ripped apart everything the previous night, including a scientific research lab responsible for unleashing the mist. In a local supermarket several folks find themselves trapped when the mist blankets the town and all manner of freaky critters emerge from it: dog-sized spiders, mutant mosquitoes, unseen tentacled thingees, pterodactyl-like flying monstrosities, and dimly glimpsed four-legged giants.

Mrs. Carmody, a religious nut, babbles endlessly about sacrifice and the apocalypse, and manages to corral a large portion of the store’s clientele to her way of thinking. The result is a bloody confrontation, after which a small contingent of intrepid individuals decide to test their luck by venturing into the mist.

Like his other King-inspired projects, Darabont’s adaptation was scrupulously faithful to it source…though with one major change. King ended on an unresolved note, with his protagonists driving through the mist pondering their ultimate fate. Darabont continues from there, leading to one of the absolute bleakest, most cold-blooded horror movie endings ever.

The Ending
THE MIST was one of the most notable genre films of 2007, but wasn’t a huge or even minor success at the box office. Aside from Dimension’s ill-advised Thanksgiving release date, the film’s major point of contention with audiences was the ending, which has inspired all manner of commentary, most of it negative (King, for the record, says he likes Darabont’s capper, and would have used it himself had it occurred to him).
Here I’ll insert a SPOILER ALERT, as I find myself with no choice but to describe the conclusion in detail. Got that? Good.
It goes like this: our heroes are in a car, surrounded by mist on all sides. After traversing what looks like quite a distance the vehicle conks out. The protagonist, an upright, square-jawed type played by Thomas Jane, decides the only way out is for everyone to die. The problem is the gun in his possession only has four bullets–and there are five people in the car. Jane solves the dilemma by fatally shooting each of his companions (including his own son) and then exits the car to face down the creatures in the mist. But at that point the mist clears and Jane is faced with a procession of radiation suit-wearing soldiers armed with flamethrowers, burning up everything in their path and leading several shell-shocked people to apparent safety. The End.

Obviously you can take those events in any number of ways. You may find Jane’s actions futile in light of the fact that the humans appear to have gotten the upper hand on the mist-monsters. One might also argue that he did the right thing shooting his companions, as the post-mist world looks considerably more oppressive than it did before (which can in turn be taken as a comment on our post-9/11 reality). But then maybe it’s Ms. Carmody who had the right idea, with her earlier blather about sacrifice being required to make things better.
END SPOILERS. Not too many horror flicks contain such a complex, thought-provoking finale. It may admittedly be a bit heavy for a movie featuring giant bugs, but I’ll have to give Darabont credit for making a film that isn’t afraid to really go for the throat. Far too many horror movie makers and viewers appear to have forgotten that these films exist not to reassure but to scare and provoke, and in those areas THE MIST definitely succeeds.

Still More Controversy
There are other negatives from an audience standpoint, including the fact that nearly everyone in the film is over 35 (youngsters like the twentyish Alexa Davalos and AMERICAN PIE’S Chris Owen are killed off early on), which seems certain to–and apparently did–turn off the teenybopper crowd that flocks to most horror flicks.

And then the film didn’t show enough of its monsters. Or it showed too much. The protagonists don’t behave intelligently. The monsters are cheesy. Or they’re too slick. There’s too much gore. Not enough gore. Too much Ms. Carmody. Not enough Andre Braugher.

Virtually any complaint one can think of this movie has had thrown at it. You can say that about nearly any movie ever made, certainly, but not too many of them, in recent years at least, seem to rile people up like THE MIST.

Why? My theory is that, quite simply, audiences have become so conditioned to PG-rated snoozers like the recent PROM NIGHT remake (a big hit, sadly) or pandering torture fests of the SAW/HOSTEL variety that they can no longer handle a real horror movie–and THE MIST is indeed that rare animal (as are other hotly contested genre films from ‘07 like BUG and THE GIRL NEXT DOOR, but those were smaller, less commercial projects).

Old-fashioned in the best sense, THE MIST favorably recalls classics like FREAKS and NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. As those films were in their time, it’s unabashedly shocking and audacious. What it’s not is a parody, remake, rip-off, post-modern critique or what have you. That puts THE MIST at odds with nearly every other scare picture currently in release, which if you ask me is strictly for the better!
The Black-and-White Version
I should take this opportunity to mention another feature of MIST that has been attracting attention, albeit of a more positive sort: the black-and-white version available on the DVD. Darabont claims he always intended to shoot in black-and-white, and this version showcases the film in an entirely different form–not necessarily better, but worth viewing for those wanting a new and interesting take on the film.
In black-and-white THE MIST feels like a recovered B-movie from the fifties, with a heightened and deeply atmospheric sense of unreality. In this way the B&W serves to enhance the CGI effects, making them harmonize eerily well with the flesh and blood actors. It makes me wonder why more special effects movies aren’t shot in B&W.
But I’m not in agreement with those critics who’ve been (over)praising this version of the film. What Darabont so painstakingly evoked in the full color release print, with its documentary-like handheld camerawork, is a sense of realism totally expunged in black-and-white. So while I think the latter version represents a worthy take on the film, it should not be considered the definitive one.
Conclusion
It’s rare to find a modern genre picture as fine as THE MIST, or as controversial. I’m certain its reputation will grow in the coming years, as the shock factor lessens and audiences are able to view the film for what it is: a horror movie that’s actually horrific. If you’ve been put off seeing it because of all the furor then now’s the time to rectify that mistake. View the film in black-and-white if you prefer, but by all means view it!

Recently:

You must be logged in to post a comment.

May

8