The Mist Movie
Storyline
TAGLINES
Stephen King's Legendary Tale of Terror
Fear Changes Everything
Belief divides them, mystery surrounds Them, but fear changes everything
After a violent storm attacks a town in Maine, an approaching cloud of mist appears the next morning. As the mist quickly envelops the area, a group of people get trapped in a local grocery store -among them, artist David Drayton and his five-year-old son. The people soon discover that within the mist lives numerous species of horrific, unworldly creatures that entered through an inter-dimensional rift, which may or may not have been caused by a nearby military base. As the world around them manifests into a literal hell-on-earth, the horrified citizens try desperately to survive this apocalyptic disaster.
| Thomas Jane | David Drayton |
| Marcia Gay Harden | Mrs. Carmody |
| Laurie Holden | Amanda Dunfrey |
| Andre Braugher | Brent Norton |
| Toby Jones | Ollie |
| William Sadler | Jim Grondin |
| Jeffrey DeMunn | Dan Miller |
| Frances Sternhagen | Irene |
| Alexa Davalos | Sally |
| Nathan Gamble | Billy Drayton |
| Chris Owen | Norm |
| Sam Witwer | Wayne Jessup |
| Robert C. Treveiler | Bud Brown |
| David Jensen | Myron |
| Jay Amor | Shopper #4 |
| Frank Darabont |
7.40 out of 10 (46636 votes)
Visitor Reviews
Gut-wrenching horror--one of the best of recent years.
posted on 30 Aug 2009BING-O! After sitting through some mediocre Stephen King adaptations this month, I wasn't expecting much from this. Well, holey dooley! "The Mist" is easily my favorite movie of the year, and maybe my favorite horror of the 00's. I cannot remember the last time I left a movie theater feeling so depressed, emotionally exhausted, and just plain drained (127 minutes long!) because I was so invested in the movie I was watching--and a horror movie to boot! "The Mist" is R-rated horror for grown-ups: no shaky came here, no annoying teen TV stars, no bad dialogue, and no obnoxious music. At the half hour point, I was turned off by some Sci-Fi channel caliber CGI and I wasn't sure I was going to like where the movie was headed. But it was only uphill from there. I wish that scene was shot differently, but the FX throughout the rest of the movie were impressive and really it's just a perfect horror apart from that. Thomas Jane is flippin' awesome as always, but Marcia Gay Harden is the real star here. She takes a role that anyone else would turn into an irritating caricature and she NAILS it. It's really one of the most brilliant genre performances I've seen in a long time. Too bad "The Mist" appears to be a bomb at the box office. It could have set a precedent for well-written and mature scary movies filling our multiplexes. Oh well. It'll be a cult classic in a few years time.
The worst ending possible
posted on 30 Aug 2009This is one of the best movies made from a King novel. The first 110 minutes is simply excellent. The last five is terrible. They simply had to cut it off. This ending is the worst possible: David and four of his fellows leaves the store and traveling with his car discover that the mist has consumed everything. After a few days (?) they meet a really huge creature and after running out of gas decide to finish their lives. But there's only four bullet for five people. David kills his fellows and gets out of his car to be taken by the creatures. And suddenly the mist starts to dissolve. Then dozens of survivals starts to appear from the road they just left behind and the army shows up as well. And the mist disappears. It is TERRIBLE.A much better ending could be something like this: David gets out of the car and walks into the mist. And the movie is over. We don't know if he will be taken by the creatures or what happens with the rest of the world. Or an even better one: they have five bullets for the five survivals. We cab hear five shots as David kills the others and finally himself. And that's it. I hope there will be an alternate version with one of these endings.
King fans need not fear
posted on 30 Aug 2009One of the hardest things Hollywood tries do to is take excellent stories and/or books and bring them to the silver screen, and in my experience, it seems they have the hardest time with the works of Stephen King. The readers want to see the story played out before them just like they envisioned it when they read the story, but that experience is different for everyone--what matters most is if the story plays out as the author envisioned it, and from what I've read, Mr. King gave this his seal of approval, which is the main reason I wanted to see it. And I'm so glad I did. So many of Hollywood's versions of King's works have missed the mark, because he put so much depth into each of his characters, no matter how minor they may be, and each subplot has so much detail, there's no way one of his full-length novels can be properly condensed into a 90-minute movie--the best one can hope for is a mini-series on HBO or Showtime. When it comes to his short stories, however, it seems that sometimes even 90 minutes isn't enough to encompass the full scope if the story King wants to tell us. This movie has fully grasped the finer points of the story and properly sifted the wheat from the chaff, keeping the best parts and retaining the meat of the story. And the ending--OH. MY. I can see Mr. King hearing someone reading it to him and going, "THAT'S how I should have ended it!" while smacking himself in the head. I love a movie that kicks my butt, and this one did--royally.
Awesome
posted on 28 Aug 2009I just saw the premiere of the movie and it's pretty damn awesome. I totally recommend it. It's a tight movie that gives you enough of what you need without wasting any of your time. Great acting. Top-notch film-making. If you're disappointed, it's your own damn fault because the movie is solid. Two thumbs up. And if you can watch it with a girl that screams a lot, all the better. It really adds to the excitement, and there's plenty of excitement.I could tell you more, but you'd wished I hadn't. See the movie. Oh, and if you can see it in a theater that serves good beer, you really should. There's nothing like looking at all that mist while sipping on a nice cold beer.P.S. Don't go into the mist.
The worst movie I have ever seen!!!!
posted on 28 Aug 2009I really don't understand all the hype this movie was given since it does not deserve any. SO what if its a Stephen king novel??? The theme is clichéd with the same old monsters. At least a million mindless movies of a similar kind have been produced! The graphics suck too! I was in a rage for 2 days after watching this movie as I could have used the 9 bucks for getting beer or at least I could have given it to a beggar and saved myself the pain and misery! Movies of this sort should not be released by the censor board! I rate this as the most awful movie I have ever seen in my life! I really don't understand all the hype this movie was given since it does not deserve any. SO what if its a Stephen king novel??? The theme is clichéd with the same old monsters. At least a million mindless movies of a similar kind have been produced! The graphics suck too! I was in a rage for 2 days after watching this movie as I could have used the 9 bucks for getting beer or at least I could have given it to a beggar and saved myself the pain and misery! Movies of this sort should not be released by the censor board! I rate this as the most awful movie I have ever seen in my life!
Good Movie, Stupid Ending
posted on 28 Aug 2009This has got to be one of the worst endings I have seen in my WHOLE LIFE!!! It makes the movie a waste to watch and it's depressing and also disturbing! The movie was good in general but the ending ruined it!!! Stephen King is an excellent writer and a genius story teller, but this movie doesn't make him look good. The movie is very gory and disturbing at times. A ton of profanity!!! Watch out parents!!!!! The horror factor out of 10 is about a.... 7. It really isn't scary but very scary images!!! But still, it is a great movie other the the ending. I just want to warn all you readers that the ending almost ruins the whole movie! In conclusion, great movie, horrible ending.
what a stupid ending
posted on 28 Aug 2009I was really looking forward to this adaptation of Stephen King's The Mist and, I really enjoyed watching this movie until the ending came along. The movie was moving on target and the suspense was spellbinding. I had a feeling of nervousness throughout the movie and I was actually sitting on the edge of my seat the whole time. The actors and actress were perfectly cast for their roles. Then comes the ending; what a jerk this Frank Darabont is. He should never be allowed to adapt any Steven King novels and short stories period. He destroyed the story with that stupid unbelievable and most absurd ending. What was he thinking with this assisted suicidal ending, and to have a father kill his own son which should never be even thought of any point in time. I am completely appalled with this ending.
Best movie to come from a Stephen King novel........EVER!
posted on 28 Aug 2009I've been a Stephen King fan since I could practically read. While other kids were watching Spongebob and power rangers, i was watching Christine and Carrie(pardon me using the two girl names as my examples). Through out the years I have rented every single movie to be inspired by a Stephen King story in a desperate attempt to find one that actually did the book SOME justice. For the past couple years Carrie and The Shining (not the one with jack Nicholson,(pardon me if i spelled his last name wrong) but the mini-series on SciFi) have been the only ones to fill my heart with pride, until this weekend when I rented this movie after my friend recommended it. As with most movies, i was a bit nervous that the Mist would turn out to just be a poor attempt at one of the great works of Mr. King, but i was gladly mistaken. This movie had me at the edge of my seat the whole way through. The story was a truly unique one that hasn't come along in a LONG while. The acting was all very believable from everyone, and i must say that Marcia Gay Harden's character scared the crap out of me (not to quote the movie, but she reminded me A lot of Jim Jones). The Mist s truly terrifying, psychologically AND otherwise. It is one of the must see horror movies of the year, if not the must see horror movie yet. Stephen King fans and movie buffs alike will not be let down.
One of the best horror/thriller movies in the past few years
posted on 26 Aug 2009Wow, is what I was thinking when this movie ended. the acting was superb , I really love what Thomas did here , the way he shows us fear is perfect. every creature was dead on , looking new and very scary, the music was so fitting for this movie , and the music that comes in the end of the film is some of the most beautiful music in film history , the movie has a lot of good scares and thrills , you keep wanting to see what monster will come out next, the mist works magic in this film , its just there day or night , really gives you the end of the worked feeling , as if there is nothing out there other then the people in the store and the monsters in the mist.it's the kind of movie that leaves an impact on you , and when it ends , you think about it for a long time after.spoiler, when you see the big monster walking in the mist in the end , and they look at it, as if they think there can be no hope with such things, plus the music and the acting was just perfect.the ending was one of the best endings I'v seen in movies in a very long time , so strong so dramatic , and such a big shock , I believe it was much better then just an open ending like in many horror movies or like in the Book.
If only the ending was different....
posted on 26 Aug 2009I honestly did not even imagine to sign up on IMDb until I watched this movie. It was great and all UNTIL I watched the ending.....that was a BIG let down for me.I'll start off with the pros: The movie had a lot of action, suspense, fear etc. I honestly did not feel that amount of fear or feeling for the characters since I first watched "Aliens". The director very nearly copy's the book's events with certain tweaks to make it even more enjoyable. If your a big fan of "Aliens", you'll certainly love this film....UNTIL.....THE ENDING!!! *Dun....Dunn.....Duuuuuuhhh*.....I must brutally say that the ending was a HUGE turnoff for me. I went let out anything from the story, but all I can say is that if the ending was a bit more....lets say....logical and less cheap emotion, this film would've been the best I've seen in a long time.However, I have a lot of forgiveness when it comes to films, if it gets me spooked or if it gets my imagination flying, then its a good one. This one had it almost done until the end came about. That itself drops down a lot of stars for this rating. I am going to be generous though and give it a rating of 6.BOTTOM LINE: If your just looking to get your psyche revved up, or just simply don't care for meanings and just want a good ol' darn action/suspense/scifi/horror film, this one is just for you.
"The Mist" should get a Razzie
posted on 26 Aug 2009Now, before I say anything I should note that I think that the Shawshank Redemption is one of the best films out there. But this movie for me was god-awful (pun intended.) Granted, some of the political and symbolic messages may have slipped over my head. But, the fact is that while watching this movie I didn't care enough about it to concentrate.Throughout The Mist, what I kept thinking about was the ending of the movie "It." For those of you who don't know how that ending went, well, it ended with a ridiculous looking monster that was supposed to terrify but had a more laughable effect instead. That's the way I saw this film. The giant insects, gargoyles(or whatever they were), and huge unidentifiable beasts were not terrifying to me. They were preposterous.Moreover, the way that people behaved in the store was not plausible to me. Now, like I said, I may have missed the "deeper" meaning of some of the rantings and ravings of the black lawyer and the insane Christian. Nevertheless, I can't for the life of me imagine normal people becoming unthinking fools in the matter of a day or two. The Christian lady was clearly out of her mind and I think that this fact would not go unnoticed by most. But, in a short time, these average joe sixpacks and sally housecooks turned into raving lunatics ready to sacrifice a little kid on the altar of the checkout line. Absurd seems like an appropriate word to describe that.I could go on, but I have to go to the gym. While I am on the elliptical I will ponder what I saw at the movie today. If you don't hear from me again on this august website, just hope that the Mist didn't get me.
Stephen King all the way, not too original though
posted on 26 Aug 2009I really like Stephen King films, even if they're just in his storyteller's style without the story actually been his (movies like Creepy Crawlers). Townsfolk, real communities, people you can care about are usually given some room for characterizations before bad things start to happen and this one is no different.This is not the most original horror movie ever (Dawn of the Dead and The Fog come to mind among a slew of monster movies) and it's certainly not the best as some claim. The only monster we have never seen before is in the ending and it doesn't get much action. Yup, it's about monsters. And the real monsters are the humans when they're desperate and scared.It's a good, enjoyable film though with good acting. Never a dull moment and you really keep wondering...what's next. The hysteric ranting about the apocalypse does fit in well because at first it seems like they're struck with one biblical plague after another.An OK film that's worth a view if you like Stephen King films. Some mentioned Ctulhu and the story definitely seems inspired by H.P. Lovecraft at some point (won't spoil it). I would definitely love to see film adaptations of that writer. It seems King has had his share now, time to move on to a long-overlooked author.
Cliché movie for the masses
posted on 26 Aug 2009Now, i have to believe Stephen King didn't write this. That is, the director (movie script writer) did a bad job making the novella into a movie. It's so full of clichés, it's basically a cliché movie.Not knowing what the movie was supposed to be, it takes bits from so many different sci-fi horror movies. Made to please the casual viewer... Let's see: there are monsters which look, act and sound the same in dozens of other movies, a pretty standard main character (tall, dark athletic male with family), army experiment went wrong, a stubborn guy who always manages to find people like him,... The list goes on. Oh, and not to forget the tall as a house monster which is waiting for someone to leave the building, but just can't seem to figure out how to brake a glass window for a human treat. Then there's bugs coming out of bodies which are enveloped in some web...All in all, it's an OK movie. Not very scary, quite predictable in fact. Maybe because it's structure came mail-ordered from a company named "Sci-fi horror movies script - Now with standardized variations".I'm saying, watch the movie (it is a bit too long, although) and if you turn of your thoughts, you will enjoy it. However, Stephen King should not be pleased with this adaptation. It just... Should have been better.
Darabont treats Kings work with the respect .
posted on 26 Aug 2009Based on a short story by Stephen King comes The Mist… A mist envelops a small Maine town and dozens are trapped inside a supermarket knowing that in the mist are horrible creatures and being stranded takes its psychological toll… If you're like the sound of this you're in for a treat, however, it's not as scary as some would lead you to believe.The Shawshank Redemption director Frank Darabont and acclaimed writer/producer (The Green Mile) seems unsure at times whether to use the documentary styled film making or stick to a traditional style of shooting, but that aside he is a master of creating apprehension and unease. Also Frank Darabont treats Kings work with the respect it deserves with high production values. Thankfully it's not another dire TV movie.The effects are good but suffer at times due to the over use of CGI, luckily the solid actors including Thomas Jane (Stander), Laurie Holden (Silent Hill) are there to compensate for this as the film is mainly character driven. Although melodramatic at times The Mist highlights the silliness of fanatical, cult religions as the trapped shoppers split into two camps: those who believe it is an act of a vengeful god and those don't.I love brave bleak endings. The Descent, Invasion Of The Body Snatchers, The Elephant Man, The Thing, They Live, to name a few but Mists ending whilst not as preachy as the recent film The Happening is let down by a needless, emotionless ending, that extinguishes all that came before.The tag lines read 'Fear Changes Everything' and 'Stephen King's Legendary Tale of Terror', but The Mist while not a bad film falls short of becoming a 'Shining' classic.
One of the best survival horror movie
posted on 26 Aug 2009There are many survival horror movie but this is one of the best directed movie. The icing on the cake was the story line. So if any one of you who does not know the plot, do watch this movie. Also this movie is for all the survival horror movie and game fans. Guys, you'll love this movie.The plot is simple but the acting and direction keeps the grip over the movie and keeps viewer in the movie. Hope you all will love this movie.Movie has all the contents which are required to make a good Sci-Fi and survival horror movie. The tension, worries, people's reaction, faith, hope, bravery and last but not the least emotions. I don't want to reveal the plot in this comment but if you love this kind of movies, then this is one gift for you. I am sure you will love this movie.The best part is the end of the movie. I didn't expected this in the end. If you want to know what happened in the end, do watch the movie.
Hats off to Stephen King
posted on 24 Aug 2009Again...Stephen King goes into the darkest and scariest thoughts about society today. I'm still thinking, "Wow." There were parts of this movie that drove me crazy, like when they wouldn't run out of the freaking pharmacy...I was so angry. But other parts like the insanity that fear places in people. The religious cult that bloomed in the wake of terror, the ending! Oh my GOD the ending, (yes I saw it coming) but what a kick in the nuts! ( I won't spoil it for you.) Please, if you are a deep thinker and enjoy the macabre, go see this movie. If your looking for the usual crap that Hollywood gives us...then don't go see it. I still can't get over how screwed in the head King is.
Good, but not up to expectations
posted on 24 Aug 2009The mist has been one of my all time favorite stories from Stephen King. I was really excited about seeing this movie. For the most part, I was not disappointed. While the "things" in the mist were more terrifying in my imagination, the film version also brought the creepiness and horror out.However, I do take issue with the ending. In my opinion, the short story ending FAR surpassed the film ending. I was left disappointed and a little disgusted. I think someone sold out to the ideas of Hollywood and what they thought would make money.With the amount of money and clout Stephen King carries, I would have thought he could have put his foot down and demanded the film follow the story completely.All in all, this was a good, not great film. It does give a good example of the earlier, and in my opinion better, writings of Stephen King.
Great Horror, Complex Characters, Chills, Scares & Dark Ending
posted on 24 Aug 2009I have read some of the reviews and I don't understand what some people didn't get and why they didn't like the way Mrs. Carmody was portrayed. This is based on a short story from way back in King's career, the resulting script is faithful to the way King writes his characters, the pacing was good, the inter-personal drama is well acted & written, Frank Darabont directs with real fervor, creating a modern horror monster movie, the ending would and probably did go over very well in Europe, it's the type of ending that usually gets changed for American audiences thankfully it was not. Many people here just can't take a movie for what it is entertainment, and in this movies case a parallel between monstrous behavior and real monsters. Simply put I loved it have now watched it 6 times on DVD every time I catch some nuance I missed. King adaptations benefit from good character development and this one has it in spades.
Finally
posted on 24 Aug 2009A movie that doesn't pussy out in the end. They weren't afraid of killing anybody. They even got the dad to shoot his kid in the face. HA HA. Then they sock it to the dad 5 sec. later. Harsh, just the way I like it. He's sure to off himself. Lol. And some commenters are saying that it's bs that all those people would NOT be on the loony bible thumpers' side that soon. Are you kidding me? Yeah they would. Everyone in this world is so easily brain washed, just look around. They even state it in the movie, put someone in a stressful situation, you can warp anyone's mind. Glad they shot her in the face too. Wasn't so happy that only the main character was trying to save the solider from being sacrificed, when there were lots of sane people standing around. But what ever, it's a movie. They have to hollywoodize every story.
A great movie spoiled by a rotten ending
posted on 30 Aug 2009Until the last five minutes of this movie, I was prepared to walk out and say that was one of the best movies ever born out of a Stephen King story/book. The Mist is one of my favorite stories because it does what horror is supposed to do - make the unknown scary. The story and the movie do this well, giving us only a glimpse of the true horrors out in the mist and never giving anyone a sense of what kind of world was out there.SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER The story and the movie move along together, with the small group of survivors setting out in a car, but the story ends with the giant thing crossing their path on the road and the characters realizing that, oh no, this is it - it is a whole new world and nothing is going to be the same again.To me, that was the magic of the story. That OH NO moment right at the end.But the movie completely changes it and makes the whole thing much more bleak ... and even depressing. I mean, I get the point of the ending, but one of the best things about a King story or novel is that the horrors don't always get resolved. We are left to wonder what might be. To resolve the matter in the movie, and in the very depressing way Darabont did, upset me.I will say this, if I had never read the story I would give this movie a solid 7, at least (I still would think the ending is just too bleak). But seeing one of my favorite stories butchered with that ending was depressing.