The Mist

release year: 2008
genre: horror/drama
viewing setting: home DVD, 4/3/08

synopsis: A small New England town is overtaken by a thick mist, in which deadly monsters lurk; a bunch of people trapped in a supermarket must figure out what to do.

impressions: This was a pretty good adaptation of the novella. The focus of the plot is twofold: the real monsters in the mist, and the mental monster that hides inside some people and comes out when things get bad. I found it hard to believe that a certain character was allowed to live as long as she did. The monsters were good and spooky and dangerous, and the variety of trapped humans was realistic. I will say that the ending was different than the novella's and I wasn't too happy with it.

something this movie has that no other movie has: A spidery monster so big that it doesn't even notice an SUV.

acting: Thomas Jane was the main hero; I only wish he had been in Punisher mode here. Marcia Gay Harden was the religious zealot who went way too far. A number of often-seen actors appeared here too, including Frances Sternhagen, Bill Sadler, and Brian Libby (the killer in 1982's Silent Rage.

final word: Good adaptation, very entertaining.

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