Tales from the Mausoleum – Weekend
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“Stephen King Universe” is being released, a documentary journey through the writer’s film adaptations, in which directors and other filmmakers share thoughts about his work and stories from the filming – thoughts, unfortunately, too general and stories too common.
For almost half a century, more than 300 films and TV series have been made based on Stephen King’s novels, novels and stories. This is truly a whole universe – even in a non-judgmental sense, although the localized title of the film by the Frenchwoman Daphne Bevir contains a slight trepidation with which it is customary to talk about a native of Portland, Maine. In the case of such a promising sign, of course, not only intonation is important, but also the perspective, the choice of works, and especially the speakers who will highlight spectacular episodes from iconic and not so significant projects.
Spoiler: King fans don’t have to worry – it’s unlikely that “Universe” will tell them anything new. Just a couple of interesting facts: they say, the fireman’s ax from the finale of “1408” (2007) is the same one that Jack Nicholson used on the set of “The Shining” (1980), and the ending of “The Mist” (2007), which was invented by Frank Darabont, made The writer regrets that it was not he who guessed such an ending. Bevir’s film would be more appropriately titled “The Mythology of Stephen King” – so many tales and popular opinions about it are recalled by directors, producers and composers in 105 minutes.
The original title, however, is much more accurate: “King on Screen”. Without being distracted by the hackneyed pun in the direction of the “royal” surname, this title warns that for almost two hours viewers will be treated to an endless list. It all starts with Brian De Palma’s “Carrie” (1976), then there will be a long stop in the area of Kubrick’s “The Shining”, which the writer hated, followed by “Misery” (1990), after which Frank Darabont, the director of “The Shawshank Redemption” will take over the screen for a long time. (1994), “The Green Mile” (2001) and “The Mist”, and in the end they will suddenly remember George A. Romero, who directed King in “Knight Riders” (1981), wrote with him the first “Kaleidoscope of Terrors” (1982) and filmed “The Dark Half” (1992).
Basically, filmmakers fill the “air” with important revelations. The composer of Kaleidoscope of Horrors, John Harrison, notes that Romero and King had in common the ability to combine the scary and the funny. Greg Nicotero, who devoted ten years to The Walking Dead and worked on the multi-part version of Kaleidoscope, reports that the almanac film is a good opportunity to work in different genres. “Boiler is a metaphor for what’s going on in Jack Torrance’s head,” explains Mick Garris, a friend of the writer who directed The Stand (1994) and also signed on to make The Shining (1997) closer, with a completely enlightened look. to the text.
It is significant that the film is sorely lacking in directors of recognized successful film adaptations: mostly the clever Darabont takes the rap – perhaps the most intelligent and meaningful storyteller of all – but not a word from De Palma, Cronenberg (The Dead Zone, 1983), or Carpenter (Christine) , 1983) or Reiner (“Misery”) will not sound. Especially the late Kubrick or Romero. “Stephen King Universe” in general seems to set out to prove that not all directors are interesting storytellers: this applies both to those who are trying to hastily explain the phenomenon of the writer, and to Bevir herself, who seems to be led by the material. The film begins with a game prologue teeming with King clichés (Jeffrey Demann and the giant Carel Struycken flash in the frame), which, fortunately, can be forgotten until the very end. Next, an intense “trailer” of King’s greatness falls on the viewer: in a tight cut, the directors vying with each other to select flattering epithets for the writer, telling how he loves and understands ordinary Americans, embodying the true spirit of the USA in his terrible, but very everyday stories.
Actually, talking about any writer in general terms is a lost cause, but with King it’s not at all suitable. The real “Stephen King universe” is created by the almost manic detail of his novels (down to the names of powders and other everyday little things). And this same immersion in precise details makes his world so cinematic, allowing him to meticulously reproduce reality, find characters in the spirit of “this is literally me,” or comb through deep-seated fears – personal and political, lying on the surface or hidden in the depths of the subconscious. That’s why Kubrick, Romero, Mike Flanagan (“Gerald’s Game” (2017), “Doctor Sleep” (2019)), and numerous neophytes, whom he allows to buy the film rights for just $1, are approaching King’s novels. By the way, Darabont was one of the first to try this format, filming the short film “The Woman in the Ward” (1984), and in 1988 the story “There Are Tigers Here Too” was almost filmed by the Canadian dreamer Guy Maddin, but something didn’t work out. There are also Russian-language adaptations (for example, “Fear What You Wish” (2022) by Sergei Sharovatov), and last year King gave the go-ahead to Uzbek director Gulnara Ivanova, who wrote him a letter about her desire to direct “The Man Who Didn’t Shake Hands.”
Simply put, King is a very democratic author – sociable and productive, in perpetual motion, which is doubly difficult for a living monument. Even in a film about himself, he appears in the chronicles as a restless mascot who does not want to linger for a long time on the next “page”. The universe of such a lively and life-loving author deserves not a respectful linear chronicle, but a collection of particular approaches, bold interpretations – like the recent anthology “Lynch/Oz” (2022) by Alexander O. Philip, where film critics and directors share (video) essays about the connection between the master of dreaming movie with The Wizard of Oz (1939). Powerful monologues from David Lowery, Karyn Kusama, John Waters, Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, accompanied by spot-on details, observations and stills, reveal far more about Lynch than being labeled the greatest of anyone. It is this approach that allows you to look through a hole into another universe, and not to see a drawing of a hearth on a canvas in order to state: this is a hearth.
In theaters from September 21
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