The Mist – Collector’s Edition
Reviewer: Tom Leins
Issue 103 May 2008
(1 votes, average: 4 out of 10)
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Play Misty For Me!
The Lowdown: Following a violent thunderstorm, artist David Drayton and his small town community come under vicious attack from creatures prowling in an unnaturally thick mist. The local rumour-mill suggests that the ‘Arrowhead Project’ experiments being conducted at a nearby military base are to blame!
Review: Director Frank Darabont sure knows how to pick his Stephen King adaptations. With The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile already in his back pocket, you’d be mistaken for thinking that everything Darabont touches turns to gold. After turning two of Stephen King’s least spooky stories into hit movies, Darabont veers away from his prison-shaped comfort zone and lurches straight into full-blown supernatural territory. However, whilst undeniably proficient, The Mist doesn’t quite match up with lofty viewer expectations. The reliably energetic Thomas Jane struggles manfully with a largely unimaginative script, and if it weren’t for the genuinely impressive special features, the whole DVD would feel like an overblown B-movie. Intermittent attempts at social commentary sometimes feel clumsy, but the film comes into its own when it goes for unapologetic creepiness, with a handful of scenes up their with the best King-derived moments.
This whopping double-disc collector’s edition comes chock-full of enticing extras to round out the movie experience. Darabont’s audio commentary finds him in effusive form, and the array of featurettes are all worth checking out – not least to try and get a handle on the impressive special effects. The Mist isn’t a classic – far from it – but it achieves what it sets out to do effectively, if not always efficiently. Its bloated narrative will leave some viewers frustrated, but when it cranks up the scare-factor, the tension is genuinely impressive. A mixed bag, but worth checking out if you enjoy King adaptations and gloomy apocalyptic onslaughts!
FILM: 7 EXTRAS: 7
DVD Info:
US Certificate: R
Starring: Thomas Jane, Marcia Gay Harden, Andre Braugher, Toby Jones
Directed By: Frank Darabont, 2007
Distributor: The Weinstein Company
Audio: Dolby Digital 5.1
Visuals: 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
Running Time: 126mins
Price: £18.99
Special Features:
Scene Selection
Exclusive Black & White Presentation of The Mist
Audio Commentary With Writer/Director Frank Darabont
8x Deleted Scenes With Optional Audio Commentary From Writer/Director Frank Darabont
‘A Conversation With Stephen King & Frank Darabont’ Featurette
‘When Darkness Came: The Making Of The Mist’ Featurette
‘Taming The Beast: Shooting Scene 35’ Featurette
‘Monsters Among Us: A Look At The Creature FX’ Featurette
‘The Horror Of It All: The Visual FX Of The Mist’ Featurette
‘Drew Struzan: Appreciation Of An Artist’ Featurette
