Product: The Dead Zone [VHS] (1983)
Rating: 5.0
Christopher Walken Lights Up This Amazing Movie!
One of my wierd little pet peeves is people who instantly associate Stephen King's name with gory schlock. And I just know that these people have probably never read any of his books. King is way more than just a horror writer (and when he writes horror, it is far from schlock), but can also write touching dramas, and his Dead Zone novel is a testament to this. Cronenberg's movie also stands (alongside Carrie) as perhaps the best King adaption ever. This is due in big part to the ingenious casting of Christopher Walken as the sympathetic hero. We watch what he goes through, losing his girl and his mother and now having this new psychic talent, and we sympathize for him. You'd be surprised to discover how sweet the movie is, and we get to see Johnny Smith help a lot of people out. The movie also has a slam-bang ending which manages to tie everything together in about two minutes without seeming rushed.Overall, you gotta love Walken and Cronenberg equals brilliance, and when they're hard at work to adapt something from master Stephen King, you get: MASTERPIECE.