Doesn't Live Up To Fame

Rating: 5/10 (28 October 2016)

Despite being known as one of the best horror movies out there, and one that builds tension rather than rely on 'cheap' jumpscares, I felt this movie to be relatively dull. With a run time of 2h 40m, there may have been 3 good scenes lasting maybe 3 mins each. The remaining 2h 31m was filled with boring, stretched out hallucinations, radio calls, conversations that don't relate to a plot, and Jack Nicholson losing his temper. I know some people seem to think that this builds tension, or even fear, but I neither felt engaged or scared. Just bored.
Though I liked the music, it was carelessly thrown about and never fit the scenes that it was played over. It felt like the work of a 9 year old learning to use iMovies. Not sure if this was intentional or not, but it just felt wrong.
Though I disliked most of this movie, there were some great ideas and scenes in it (e.g. the kid riding the toy vehicle through the corridors), but it wasn't until the very ending scenes when things actually got interesting and tense. The ending scenes could have been better had the tension been built up better beforehand, but sadly, it wasn't to be. And when the ending scenes, which were pretty typical and clichéd, were the best aspect, it's not looking good after trudging through 2h of gunk.
To describe this movie in one word: boring. Very disappointed, as I was genuinely eager to watch this after all the hype and good reviews, but it doesn't live up to expectations and wouldn't even crack my list of Top 25 Horror Movies. Not sure if mediocreness is a running theme in Stephen King movies, but the two I've watched ('The Mist' and 'The Shining') haven't really astonished me.