10 Terrible Movies Based on the Works of STEPHEN KING
Mike Sprague
|
What’s the worst Stephen King movie? We all have our picks. But what’s Rotten Tomatoes’ ranking? Oh, boy. The results might surprise (the hell) out of you.
Personally, I dig quite a few entries on this list. Hell, as a super King fan I dig MOST of the movies on this list. But, truth be told, I’m not too hard to please. Number one DOES suck though. Even I will admit that. Make sure to let us know what you think!
Check them out below!
10. NEEDFUL THINGS (1993)
Plot: When a creepy older man named Leland Gaunt (Max von Sydow) moves to a small town in Maine and sets up an antique shop, bad things soon follow.Gaunt has the remarkable ability of selling people exactly what they want most, but his ideal purchases come at a price that involves more than just money. Through Gaunt’s manipulation, the citizens of the town gradually turn on one another, resulting in violence that Sheriff Alan Pangborn (Ed Harris) struggles to contain.
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
10. CREEPSHOW 2 (30%)
Plot: This second horror anthology presents more eerie tales based on Stephen King stories. One episode finds a cigar-store Native American statue coming to life to avenge the death of the shop owner (George Kennedy) and his wife (Dorothy Lamour). Another features a group of teens menaced by a blob-like creature. The final installment follows a wealthy and callous woman who hits a hitchhiker with her car and decides to flee the scene, but the victim isn’t inclined to remain dead.
Critics Consensus: Not even the melding of Stephen King and George A. Romero’s writing sensibilities can elevate this spineless anthology, which is too simple in its storytelling and too skimpy on the genuine scares.
9. DREAMCATCHER (28%)
Plot: Dreamcatcher tells of four young friends who perform a heroic act — and are changed forever by the uncanny powers they gain in return. Years later the friends, now men, are on a hunting trip in the Maine woods when they are overtaken by a blizzard in which something much more ominous moves. Challenged to stop an alien force, the friends must first prevent the slaughter of innocent civilians by a military vigilante, then overcome a threat to the bond between them.
Critics Consensus: An incoherent and overly long creature feature.
8. THE MANGLER (27%)
Plot: A series of gruesome accidents leads an officer to believe that a laundry machine is possessed by a bloodthirsty demon. Directed by Tobe Hooper (Texas Chainsaw Massacre) and starring Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street).
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
7. RIDING THE BULLET (26%)
Plot: Ever since his father passed away, art student Alan Parker (Jonathan Jackson) has been hypnotized by thoughts of death. After his girlfriend breaks up with him, Alan attempts suicide but is rescued by his friends. The next day, he learns that his mother (Barbara Hershey) has just had a serious stroke, and he sets out to hitchhike to her hospital. Along the way, he meets a series of strange people, including sinister George Staub (David Arquette), who may be Satan.
Critics Consensus: Stephen King adaptation veteran director Mick Garris has lofty storytelling goals which ultimately flail and undercut the story’s terror.
5. THE DARK TOWER (16%)
Plot: Roland Deschain (Idris Elba), the last Gunslinger, is locked in an eternal battle with Walter O’Dim (Matthew McConaughey), also known as the Man in Black. The Gunslinger must prevent the Man in Black from toppling the Dark Tower, the key that holds the universe together. With the fate of worlds at stake, two men collide in the ultimate battle between good and evil.
Critics Consensus: Go then, there are other Stephen King adaptations than these.
4. STEPHEN KING’S THINNER (15%)
Plot: Billy Halleck (Robert John Burke) is an obese lawyer who accidentally hits a Gypsy with his car. Given Halleck’s influence in town and general prejudice against Gypsies, he manages to brush the incident under the rug. However, the victim’s father places a curse on the heavyset man. And he starts to lose weight at an alarming rate, which is followed by other macabre events.
Critics Consensus: A bland, weightless horror film that seems to want to mock itself as the proceedings drag on.
3. MAXIMUM OVERDRIVE (15%)
Plot: After a comet causes a radiation storm on Earth, machines come to life and turn against their makers. Holed up in a North Carolina truck stop, a group of survivors must fend for themselves against a mass of homicidal trucks. A diner cook, Bill Robinson (Emilio Estevez), emerges as the unlikely leader of the pack. He attempts to find an escape plan for himself and the survivors, who include his boss, Bubba Hendershot (Pat Hingle), and a newlywed couple.
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
2. STEPHEN KING’S GRAVEYARD SHIFT (13%)
Plot: A drifter wanders into a small town in Maine. He needs a job and decides to seek employment at the community’s top business: a large textile mill. He is hired to work the “graveyard shift” — from around midnight to dawn. And, along with a few others, he is charged with cleaning out the basement. This task strikes the workers as simple enough. But then, as they proceed deeper underground, they encounter an unspeakable monstrosity intent on devouring them all.
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
1. CELL (11%)
Plot: A graphic novelist (John Cusack) begins a desperate search for his estranged wife (Clark Sarullo) and son (Ethan Andrew Casto) after a mysterious cellphone signal transforms New Englanders into savage killers.
Critics Consensus: Shoddily crafted and devoid of suspense. Cell squanders a capable cast and King’s once-prescient story on a bland rehash of zombie cliches.
What do you think of this Rotten Tomatoes ranking?
Make sure to let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram! You can also hit me up over on Twitter @MikeSpregg325.
Categorized:Lists
