What Do The Critics Say?

"Frank Darabont's The Mist is easily the best horror film since The Blair Witch Project and the most socially frightening statement about humanity in the post 9/11 era." Erik Childress eFILMCRITIC "With his chilling, ultimately bleak adaptation of The Mist, writer/director Frank Darabont once again successfully channels Stephen King's twisted psyche on the big screen." Kit Bowen HOLLYWOOD.COM "For the most part Darabont has adapted the work exactly as one would've hoped, though the last five minutes leave much to be desired." Garth Franklin DARK HORIZONS "Film adaptations of King's work tend to be hit and miss, but with last summer's '1408' and now this scary-as-hell flick, he's on a roll." Peter Hammond MAXIM "Writer-director Frank Darabont hits every color in the feel-bad rainbow in this powerful adaptation of one of Stephen King's scariest works." Chris Farnsworth E! ONLINE "The movie has plenty of payoff, especially in the exciting and nerve-wracking final hour. You can try guessing what will happen next, but you'll probably be wrong." Peter Hartlaub SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

"Darabont slowly cranks up the tension, patiently stringing us along as the trapped characters come to understand the extent of their predicament and the dawning realization of their impending doom." James Kendrick Q NETWORK "The Mist is a supermarket of B-movie essentials, handsomely stocked with bad science, stupid behavior, chewable lines of dialogue, religious fruitcakes, and a fine display of monsters." Anthony Lane NEW YORKER "One of the best screamfests I've seen in years, and a whale of an entertainment." Rex Reed NEW YORK OBSERVER "Stephen King's The Mist is a reminder of what a great horror movie is all about." Cole Smithey COLESSMITHEY.COM "A scary-fun horror flick that doesn't skimp on the thrills or the mayhem." Eric D Snider ERICDSNIDER.COM "A near-campy escapist thrill ride." chard Roeper EBERT & ROEPER "Yes, something is in the mist. Lots of things are in the mist. They’re gorgeous and frightening and strange and elaborately detailed, and the effects used to create them allow them to blend in seamlessly with the live action." Christy Lemire ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Inside Story In 1977, when now legendary fiction writer Stephen King enjoyed his first taste of success, he wanted to find a way to give back. In a show of support for other emerging artists, he granted students and aspiring filmmakers permission to adapt his short stories for the cost of one dollar. In the early 1980s, Frank Darabont wrote, produced and, directed one of these "Dollar Babies". King loved thetwenty three year old filmmaker’s screen version of "The Woman in the Room", King's short story about an incurably ill woman who seeks death. "There’s something about Stephen’s voice as a storyteller that always resonated with me," explains Darabont, who grew up in Los Angeles. "His work speaks to me; his characters speak to me. He's a master storyteller, and his stuff just knocks me out. It inspires me to want to get behind the camera." Darabont says he was drawn to "The Mist" for several reasons. "King writes the ensemble tapestry particularly well. I loved reading this 'Lord of the Flies' like disintegration of society that happened when people were put in a pressure cooker of fear." After shooting "Woman in the Room", his screenwriting and directing debut, Darabont wrote or co-wrote such films as "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors", "The Blob" and "The Fly II" as well as episodes of the television series "Tales from the Crypt" and "The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles". One of his favorite King short stories, "The Mist", was always on the back burner. "I’ve loved 'The Mist' since I read it back in 1980 in 'Dark Forces', an anthology edited by Kirby McCauley," recalls Darabont. "I remember reading the story before I even had a career in film." He also recalls thinking, "Wow, I’d love to make this into a movie someday." "The Mist" might have been Darabont’s first film once upon a time, but fate had something else waiting for him. "I remember sitting on the set of my first produced feature as a writer, 'Nightmare on Elm Street 3' in 1986, and thinking that since my writing career had kicked in, I should start thinking about what I might try to direct," recalls Darabont. "Since he’d liked my short, I was thinking of going back to Stephen and asking him for the rights to 'The Mist' or 'The Shawshank Redemption'." After debating with himself briefly, Darabont chose 'Shawshank', and the rest is Oscar history with Darabont being nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay in 1995. Hailed by critics and praised by audiences, "The Shawshank Redemption", released in 1994, has since become one of the most beloved films of the 20th century. Co-producer on "The Mist" and Vice President of production at Darabont's production company, Darkwoods Productions Denise M Huth notes ,"it was nominated for seven Academy Awards. People tell Frank daily that it’s their favorite film, or it’s the best film ever made. That's amazing and wonderful, and obviously he loves to hear that. But it put a lot of pressure on him." Darabont would follow up 'Shawshank' with two more Stephen King adaptations: "The Green Mile" (1999) and "The Majestic" (2001). Anna Garduño ("The Majestic"), a co-producer on "The Mist" has known Darabont since they were classmates at Hollywood High School. "He’s a genre guy. Frank loves horror movies because they really do expose a window into your own spirit. It’s a very interesting area to delve into." So why wait till now to do "The Mist"? "I felt ready to try something completely different than what I’d done before," says Darabont. "This film is an opportunity for me to get back to my horror roots. I really wanted to get back to the genre that I've always loved. I also wanted to try on a different kind of filmmaking. It’s a legendary story of King's, and the fan base has been waiting for the movie version to be made for a while. You wait for all the planets to align and suddenly it’s finally time." "I think he wanted to do something that reminded him of what he loves about directing," says Garduño. "It’s almost like he’s a kid again." "He really wanted to have fun," says Huth. "This is the first movie that he actually has enjoyed filming." Darabont agrees. "This has allowed me to throw everything that I know out the door and try on a different hat as a filmmaker." The core idea of King's story is preserved in the film. "The rules are stripped away, and now superstition has replaced reason and panic has replaced thought," says Darabont. "What’s great about Steve’s story is the idea that, yes, there’s this mist that traps you in this supermarket with no clue as to what will happen next. But it’s not what’s outside that proves to be the real threat, it’s the inherent terror inside, the people in the market turning against one another. All of a sudden your friends and neighbors are melting down, and they’re dangerous." 2001 Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden ("Pollock") echoes this sentiment. "I was attracted to the 'Lord of the Flies' aspect of the story. "The Mist" is incredibly scary and remarkably intelligent. What do people do when they’re in catastrophic situations? Are people heroes? Are they divisive? And at what point do people crack?" "Frank would never do anything without Stephen being completely on board. He feels a tremendous responsibility to get it right," says Garduño. "Frank and Stephen connect on some very deep level on what this material’s about." Never the less, King did email one request. "Stephen sent me an email begging me not to have the actors try to attempt Maine accents in the film," says Darabont. Thomas Jane, no stranger to science-fiction having starred in such films as the forthcoming "The Mutant Chronicles", was cast as David Drayton, a movie poster artist and family man who becomes an unlikely hero. FFCC Award winner Jane was pleasantly surprised when Darabont sent him the script. "It was one of those rare times that someone sends you something that's actually really good. It’s rare that a movie comes along like this, that you are willing to do anything to make it work." Harden admits her character is "a bit of a religious freak who is very dedicated but very unstable. Part of what makes her crack is power." Andre Braugher, who plays high-powered attorney Brent Norton, was drawn to the project by the opportunity to work with Frank Darabont. "Frank is a brilliant director and he did a wonderful adaptation. He adapted and directed one of the best films ever made, "The Shawshank Redemption". So when Frank Darabont wants to do a horror film in Louisiana, I'm there. Period." Laurie Holden, who appeared in ten episodes of "The X-Files" between 1996-2002 and plays town newcomer Amanda in "The Mist" was drawn to the project by the script. "I thought it was great," she said. "It was such a horrific morality tale. It was a very powerful story. What I love about this particular piece is that people’s characters are revealed under dire circumstances. When bad things happen to people, how they behave shows their true nature. How do people respond when life goes awry?" Toby Jones ("The Painted Veil") plays Ollie, a mild-mannered supermarket manager who is forced to take heroic measures to save his life and the lives of others. "It’s interesting to work with directors whose work you admire," says Jones of Darabont. "Also, I’m looking to change the kind of parts I do all the time. This is a different kind of film for me. You don’t know anything about these characters lives before everything takes place. In a way you don’t need to in a film like this." Jeff DeMunn ("RocketMan") has been cast in all of Frank Darabont’s films so far. DeMunn says that when he gets a call from the director asking him to act in a project, "My answer is immediate: of course I’ll do it. It’s a wonderful friendship and working relationship that we have. Frank is smart, and he's creative. He's got a big heart. And he's courageous; he’ll try stuff. He never shuts you down." 1982 Saturn Award winner Frances Sternhagen ("Outland" 1981) joined the cast as feisty schoolteacher Irene. Darabont had been a fan of Sternhagen ever since her comic turn in the 1979 comedy "Starting Over". Sternhagen couldn’t resist the idea of "combating these critters. Especially when I read that I was racing around with bug spray and setting fire to spiders." William Sadler ("The Shawshank Redemption" & "The Green Mile"), who will next be seen in "August Rush", plays Jim, a local mechanic with a chip on his shoulder. "Jim is a bit of a bully," says Sadler. "He's blue collar. He doesn't like outsiders, folks that come to town and think they’re better than everybody else." Casting David's young son Billy posed a particular challenge for the filmmakers. The filmmakers’ prayers were answered when 2003 Hollywood Film Award winning casting director Deb Aquila ("The Jane Austen Book Club") found nine year old Nathan Gamble ("Babel") for the role. Alexa Davalos, who joined the cast as Sally, a supermarket checkout girl, had known Frank Darabont since she was a toddler. Her mother, actress Elyssa Davalos ("Nancy Drew" 2007), and the director attended Hollywood High School together and remain friends. "I have such a reverence for Frank’s work," says Davalos. "He always brings something to the table that makes you say, wow, I didn’t see that coming." Production designer Greg Melton notes the film "was extremely ambitious. When I first saw the storyboards, my mouth dropped open." The film shot mainly at StageWorks in downtown Shreveport, Louisiana. Synopsis

After a vicious storm wreaks havoc in their small town in Maine, artist David Drayton heads out to the town supermarket for some much-needed supplies with his young son, Billy, and his neighbor, Norton, in tow. Their trip soon turns to terror when a menacing white mist settles in, leaving this group of locals and out of towners fighting for survival against an unknown, bloodthirsty enemy. When the local religious zealot begins to convince the group that the mist is punishment from God, Drayton and his cohorts realize that they may be trapped inside with an enemy just as dangerous as whatever is lurking outside. Tension runs high in this tale as the trapped group faces difficult moral decisions. Should they stay and wait out the terror, or make a break for it and risk suffering a terrible fate? Is the eerie mist the will of God, a secret experiment from the local military base, or maybe, a freak natural disaster? Without modern conveniences and the normal conventions and rules to guide them, the group is easily swayed by the loudest opinion. Will they save themselves at the expense of each other, or will they work as a team to save everyone?

The Verdict "The are moments of sheer pleasure in "The Mist" and then there are moments when you'd think you were watching a film made by inexperienced high-schoolers. Despite the raving by critics, some will find watching Stephen King's "The Mist" a frustrating experience. Despite a good storyline, moments of high tension and excellent creature effects, "The Mist" is dragged down by two flaws: Marcia Gay Harden's character Mrs Carmody who is too predictable and eventually becomes so agonizingly painful to watch and, a dud of a finish that clearly lacks real emotion and yes, is too predictable. Despite these failings, Stephen King fans and lovers of 'horror' films should get their monies worth out of "The Mist". Reasonably entertaining but not in the same leauge as "1408". 3 1/2 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "THE MIST" stars .......
Thomas Jane ["The Thin Red Line", "The Sweetest Thing", "Dreamcatcher" and "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3:"]; Laurie Holden ["Separate Vacations", "The Majestic" and "Fantastic Four"]; Andre Braugher ["Frequency", "Poseidon" and "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer"]; Toby Jones ["Finding Neverland", "Amazing Grace" and "St Trinian's"]; William Sadler ["The Battle of Shaker Heights", "Kinsey" and "August Rush"] and Marcia Gay Harden ["Space Cowboys", "Mystic River", "Mona Lisa Smile" and "Into the Wild"] as Mrs Carmody.
"THE MIST" was .......
directed by Frank Darabont ["The Shawshank Redemption", "The Green Mile" and "The Majestic"]; screenplay by Frank Darabont ["A Nightmare on Elm Street 3:", "The Shawshank Redemption" and "The Green Mile"]; from the novella by Stephen King ["The Green Mile", "Hearts in Atlantis", "Carrie", "The Dead Zone", "Gotham Cafe" and "1408"]; costume design by Giovanna Ottobre-Melton ["The Woman in the Room", "Children of the Corn II" and "Across the Moon"]; production design by Gregory Melton ["Children of the Corn II", "Bordello of Blood" and "The Majestic"]; edited by Hunter M Via ["Butterfly Dreams", "Identity Lost" and "Recycling Flo"]; cinematography by Ronn Schmidt ["Catch Me If You Can", "Mad at the Moon" and "Lord Of Illusions"]; original music by Mark Isham ["The Cooler", "Crash" and "Bobby"]; produced by Frank Darabont ["The Green Mile", "The Majestic" and "Collateral"]. Who's Who?

Thomas Jane Marcia Gay Harden Laurie Holden Andre Braugher Toby Jones William Sadler Jeffrey DeMunn Frances Sternhagen Alexa Davalos Nathan Gamble Chris Owen Sam Witwer Robert C Treveiler David Jensen Jack Hurstson

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David Drayton Mrs Carmody Amanda Dunfrey Brent Norton Ollie Weeks Jim Grondin Dan Miller Irene Sally Billy Drayton Norm Wayne Jessup Bud Brown Myron Joe Eagleton

Run Time 126 minutes Rated MA15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2008 - Dimension Films - All Rights Reserved Enduring © All Rights Reserved - The Movie Pages & Impact Internet Services - Protected by Australian, International, Copyright & Trademark Laws.