Misery – this is the novel that has, in my opinion, the best and most fully formed villain Stephen King ever created, Annie Wilkes (done in a breathtaking and award-winning stretch by Kathy Bates) it is, by a whisker, the second best Rob Reiner-directed adaptation of an SK work - good to know my colleague and fellow Flixchatter contributor, Ted Saydalavong, thinks similar.
STEPHEN KING APT PUPIL AUDIOBOOK SERIES
Hearts in Atlantis (and is based on the Low Men in Yellow Coats novella) – even though it leaves out its Dark Tower series links, this William Goldman screen adapted tale reminds me in feeling and spirit to the last film on my list plus, it’s one that brings out the boy in me - the one I hide away (see Novroz’s look at this novella).It’s a haunting story captured wonderfully in spirit by Jeffrey Boam’s screen adaptation, David Cronenberg’s surprisingly subdued direction, and Christopher Walken’s affecting role (see SFF’s splendid review). TDZ really was the first adaptation ‡ in a while that received fan and critics praise on first release (since 1976’s Carrie). The Dead Zone – this one truly was the head scratcher for me in that SK didn’t put this one in his top 10.I recommend Sci-Fi Fanatic’s great recent review for a greater examination. Dee Wallace’s performance is nothing short of wrenching. It’s really a quite chilling story, one altogether too plausible, that takes man’s best friend and twists him into a hellish torment. Cujo – I’m glad to see this Lewis Teague † work rising in acclaim over the years.Carrie – as I mentioned in my 2010 examination of the novel, movie, and audiobook, this was that rare case where the Brian De Palma film (the one that put him on the map) was simply better than the source text. Plus, Sissy Spacek‘s performance as Carrie White was the stuff dreams (or nightmare’s) are made of.With that said, here’s mine (also, in alphabetical order): If I’d put one together (and is there any doubt?), some would definitely match up with SK, and some wouldn’t. Yet, only two from this book’s short anthology made the author’s list, however (I guess the publishers couldn’t expect total cooperation from you-know-who for their book hustle). Stephen King’s well-known, and now famous, disagreement with Stanley Kubrick concerning his resulting adaptation * of his 1977 bestseller, The Shining, was a foregone conclusion. Although, it was no surprise one work in particular did not make his list. Given the number of the tales this author has had adapted to film or television, it’s a thought-provoking list for the what the author himself favors. Still, what was a little more engaging was the last page of the collection: Stephen King’s Ten Favorite Adaptations. While it added some background for each story, as included with 1-2 page introductions written by King himself, there was little of interest for those of us who’ve read these stories before. Very little in new material was involved for King’s fans. However, let’s call it what it was - a pure promotional device to sell a book by way of introducing the source stories to moviegoers. The book Stephen King Goes to the Movies showcased five short stories/novellas previously published in other compilations: 1408, The Mangler, Low Men in Yellow Coats, Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, Children of the Corn. A couple of years ago, publishers came up with a way to re-package a small portion of famed author Stephen King’s now rather large inventory into a new volume.
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