Steven King movies and books; the good, bad and mediocre
POSTED BY: chrisisall
UPDATED: Tuesday, April 26, 2005 20:35
VIEWED: 5900
PAGE 2 of 3
Quote:
Originally posted by Phoebe:
Finally, has anyone read Desperation/The Regulators who's willing to compare? Because I was mightily confused by them. When The Regulators was published, was King actually trying to pass himself off as Bachman? Because, what with the same underlying plot and almost exact (but twisted) characters used in both books, somehow I don't see how anyone could miss the similarities...
I haven't actually read either, but I remember when they both came out, at the same time, they were advertised together, and (although I could be wrong), even the original covers were meant to match up to form one picture. I also recall some discussion about there being a connection between the two stories.
Star Pilot Grainger
"Remember, the enemy's gate is down."
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Quote:
Originally posted by manwithpez:
Come on! Number one has to be The Shawshank Redemption, followed closely/tied by Stand By Me. Throw The Green Mile in there too.
Hoping Desperation and The Talisman are good, the pictures for Desperation look great!
I totally agree with you here. Shawshank was a wonderful movie. I watch it whenever it comes on TV.
Now, I must know where you saw Desperation pictures!! I MUST!!
Please?
Also, I thought they were planning on a Mist movie.
As for his books, my favorite is It. I've worn out two copies. Of course, the Dark Tower series is easily his best work. I'm not at all ashamed to admit that I cried reading it. He can make me care about characters more than most authors, and the ka-tet felt like family.
I feel the need to mention his best short story, "Head Down", from Nightmares and Dreamscapes. It's more of an essay about his son's baseball team and their bid for the Maine state Champoinship. A real page-turner. Definately his best non-fiction.
"We all float down here."
"Invader's blood marches through my veins like giant radioactive rubber pants. The pants command me! Do not ignore my veins!"
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Got to the pictures through IMDB...I think it looks very much like worth seeing.
Head Down...Sooooooooo Good...I read it then, listened to Stephen King read it for the Nightmares and Dreamscapes audio book. It added the extra oomph to the story. That story is so...pretty...I really can't think of another way to describe it.
Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."
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Also...we do know that Stephen King and Richard Bachman are the same guy, right?
The Regulators and Desperation in an exercise in taking the same characters (some altered in some way) and dropping them in a different setting and a different situation. What stays the same? Tak, that's what...
You know Tak, right?
Yeah, he's around...see It, see Black House...See the Dark Tower books.
But, The Regulators has such an awesome beginning...That's the think with King...the beginnings...There is no author working now that has such a grasp of how to grab a reader, and draw them in such a way that they want to see how this story ends...no matter what course it takes...
Kaylee: "What's so damn important about being proper? It don't mean nothing out here in the black."
Simon: "It means more out here. It's all I have..."
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Yeah, we know Richard/Stephen are the same person. I was just confused about why he bothered marketting TR as Bachman when it's obvious it was Stephen writing...
Desperation pics I got off his official site:
http://www.stephenking.com/pages/Works/Desperation/movie.php
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Cause his publisher at the time, like most of them, wanted to bog down every release to milk maximum cash out of it before spewing forth the next - a practice that has killed more than one book series as readers go elsewhere, and put more than one Author out of writing, thanks to the damn greedy bastards.
So, King rolled up some of his minor stuff and fronted it through the Bachmann name, ironically, I liked THAT stuff better than much of what he wrote as King... weird, innit ?
Every time I read "The Running Man" now it gives me chills, cause lookin at reality-tv as it is now, I wonder.....
*twitch*
-F
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I'm afraid I'm a little like Gonzai's Mom...
I loved:
Stand By Me
Carrie
I liked:
Misery
The Shining
and I hated:
Shawshank Redemption
The Green Mile
The Dream Catcher
so pretty much I've given up going to Stephen King movies...since the more recent movies have been the worse IMO
(I know, you all think I'm nuts)
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But what about George W Bush's favourite film, Firestarter?
(can't believe he likes a movie I like. For me it's a heartbreaking story about the distruction of innocense and the terrible price those responsible pay. Must be a power thing for the Prez...blowin' stuff up an' all, I mean government ain't exactly portrayed as good guys in that one. I'd have expected his favourite to be more like White Lightning, or Rambo.)
Kingly Chrisisall
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No one has mentioned any of King's worst books. Guess I'll take the job.
Gerald's Game. Boring. I don't think I ever finished it.
Most of Night Shift is pretty mediocre. Then again, compared to other horror writers... I mean, Dean Kootz? *Snore*
From a Buick 8 wasn't that great, but still better than most of the ilk people publish these days. Especially in horror.
"Invader's blood marches through my veins like giant radioactive rubber pants. The pants command me! Do not ignore my veins!"
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My two (give or take) cents:
Best Books:
1) The Stand
2) The Shining
3) 'salem's Lot
Best Short Story:
1) Jerusalem's Lot (this one STILL creeps me out)
Best Novellas:
1) Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption
2) The Langoliers
Best Movies:
1) The Green Mile
2) Shawshank Redemption
3) Carrie
4) Misery
Worst Movies:
1) All the rest
His other identities:
1) Richard Bachman
2) Tabitha King (not confirmed, just my very strong opinion based on reading "their" books for 30 years)
Some of the books he wrote under Tabby's name are excellent:
1) The Trap
2) Care Takers
3) Small World
Other notables:
1) 1408
2) The Long Walk
3) Beachworld
4) The Breathing Method
5) Sorry, wrong number
and many more! (Disclaimer: all my books are still packed up until I get some bookcases, this is all just from memory)
Mal-licious
I think I will add cursing and the hurling about of things to my repertoire.
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