I'm definitely not a fan.

Rating: 3/10 (3 December 2008)

I understand that The Mist was a powerful horror experience for many - I've heard more than one person calling it one of the best horror movies in years - so when I saw it, I admit I was disappointed. I'm not going to be an a*s and throw around words like 'overrated', because I'm sure supporters of The Mist do have their reasons for loving it, but I nearly hated the whole thing.
The Mist started off promisingly enough. The first 20 minutes set up the atmosphere and characters very well. However, the movie suddenly turns horrifically cheesy during the first creature attack. I was laughing when I'm positive that I should've been scared. This continued throughout the rest of the movie - The Mist takes itself very seriously, but for the most part, I found the whole thing fairly laughable.
The performances in The Mist aren't anything to rave about, either. I've heard almost unanimous praise for Marcia Gay Harden's character, but I thought her performance was awful - way too over-the-top campy for a movie that's supposed to be serious, scary, and thoughtful. Also, I hated the religious commentary that came along with Marcia Gay Harden's character. I'm all for intelligent commentary on the growing number of close-minded, bitter, generally un-Christ-like Christians out there, but the commentary found in The Mist isn't mildly thought-provoking or interesting, just irritating and untruthful and pretentious.
*MAJOR SPOILERS! DO NOT READ AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THIS MOVIE YET!* Oddly enough, the most controversial, much-loathed aspect of The Mist (the murder/suicide scene in the car), was actually what I thought was the best part of the entire thing. It was the only legitimately shocking, horrifying, and haunting part of the film - but the VERY last scene where the military comes was awful. Thomas Janes's acting was terribly awkward, the music was way over-the-top, and I found it infuriatingly contrived and simply a cheap way to get a reaction from the audience.