Depressing Vision, Decent Film

Rating: 7/10 (21 July 2008)

I can't say that this was a bad movie but I can't say that I liked it either. I'm a Stephen King fan, and have been for many years. But the main message of this movie seems to be that humanity is too rotten to live. So stay far away if you want something fun to watch.
The acting was pretty good overall, although I found the kid that played Thomas Jane's son to be kind of irritating. Marcia Gay Harden in particular did a very good job. So good that if I saw her in person anytime soon after watching the movie I'd probably slap her face.
As far as creature effects go, they were a bit low rent. Not the worst I ever saw, but not the best either. Maybe they should have skipped the puppetry and used more cgi. Probably a budget issue, but also a case of somewhat lackluster creature design. Other special effects were the same. Not the worst but far from big budget best.
Direction was okay. Frank Darabont is no Steven Spielberg but he gets the job done. Camera work was good to very good. Sound and music were both excellent. Editing was good. Writing was okay. I have a minor gripe with the extras. Would have been nice if they had used just one group for the entire film but there was kind of a revolving door amongst the non-speaking cast. The number of people in the store seems to fluctuate also.
My main reason for not particularly liking it is the story itself. It's very dark and does not have the adrenaline rush of many horror films. In fact I wouldn't really call this a horror film at all. More of a psychodrama or even a disaster movie in my opinion.
So the conclusion: If you want something light that will give you a rush I don't advise watching this movie. If you're a big Stephen King fan or you like this kind of movie then go ahead.