Starring: James Caan, Amy Irving, Mike Flanagan
Directed by: Daphne Baiwir
Throwing it back to moons ago (otherwise known as my youth), I can always remember one of Stephen King’s books within grabbing distance from my mother – she read damn-near every one of his page-turners, and would reel me in once one of them got the cinematic treatment – hell, it’s how I cut my teeth in the genre – thanks, Mom! His books have been the back-brace for so many screen-projects since that angry prom queen got her revenge on all those bullies back in 1976 (you know her name), and from that day on, the list of King-fueled adaptations has grown metric-miles, forging an enduring bond between readers and viewers alike.
Director Daphne Baiwir’s latest release: KING ON SCREEN takes a documentary-like approach and throws in a mini-presentation, complete with all the bells & whistles one would expect to find in a King product – I swear someone needs to invent a drinking game with all of the goodies included in this offering. While King himself does not personally appear in this film to offer his own words, the amount of support, adulation, reflection and general appreciation towards his talent is displayed in earnest. Names such as Mick Garris, Tom Holland, Mark Lester, Lewis Teague & a plethora of appreciative voices come together to discuss the importance and inspiration that has resulted from the master throwing the words down on paper – oh, to have just an OUNCE of that man’s creative flow & talent…Christmas is coming – Santa, are you listening?
There are a couple of moments where King’s adaptations are dragged to death (bad pun), with no real discovery of new information pertaining to them, but if I honestly had to search for a negative in this entire exhibition, that would be it and it isn’t anything crippling to the end result. At the end of it all, if you consider yourself a fan of the macabre author in any facet, KING ON SCREEN is not only entertaining, but it really is a great reference-tool to use when needing to assemble your scream-screen wish list – it’ll be hitting select theaters on August 11th.
At the tender age of 6, Matt was indoctrinated into the horror genre by his mother, who asked him to sit down and watch "The Exorcist" with her - ever since then, it's been a blood-soaked, neon-lit, fever dream of an existence. "You don't make horror...horror makes you."
(Can't remember who came up with this quote, but he was probably off-kilter like I am).
