home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- SHOW BUSINESS, Page 6321 Up: Three Faces of Stephen
-
-
- UP-MARKET
- "A" pictures
-
- Carrie ('76, Brian De Palma). Blood on a prom dress. A big
- hit, thanks to the last scene: Carrie's graveyard grope.
-
- The Shining ('80, Stanley Kubrick). "Hi, honey, I'm
- ho-ome!" The definitive writer's-block movie -- and a great film
- too.
-
- The Dead Zone ('83, David Cronenberg). Affecting melodrama
- about precognition.
-
- Christine ('83, John Carpenter). A homicidal '58 Plymouth
- Fury. Tip-top deadpan satire.
-
- Stand by Me ('86, Rob Reiner). Skittish, much loved, macho
- nostalgia. He wrote that?
-
- The Running Man ('87, Paul Michael Glaser). Arnold
- Schwarzenegger on a killer quiz show. Big B.O.
-
- Misery ('90, Rob Reiner). The definitive writer's-block
- cure: Nurse Nasty (Oscar winner Kathy Bates) and her mallet.
-
-
- DOWN-MARKET
- "B" pictures
-
- Creepshow ('82, George A. Romero). Five icky tales, all
- written by, one starring King; his tribute to E.C. horror
- comics.
-
- Cujo ('83, Lewis Teague). Baaaad doggie menaces mom and
- kid in car. Elemental King; decent job.
-
- Firestarter ('84, Mark L. Lester). Girl with pyro
- technique. Chance to catch Drew Barrymore between her E.T. and
- People magazine stages.
-
- Cat's Eye ('85, Lewis Teague). Three tales. Most
- memorable: cat in a child's bedroom.
-
- Tales from the Darkside: the Movie ('90, John Harrison).
- Three-parter. One is King's Cat from Hell -- where else? --
- about a hit man (David Johansen) hired to kill a tabby.
-
- The Lawnmower Man ('92, Brett Leonard). Virtual-reality
- video game. But virtually not King.
-
- Sleepwalkers ('92, Mick Garris). A mother's love can raise
- the dead.
-
-
- MEAT-MARKET
- for gore fans only
-
- Children of the Corn ('84, Fritz Kiersch). Tykes who kill
- by overemoting.
-
- Silver Bullet ('85, Daniel Attias). Where's the werewolf?
- Who cares? A lycanthropic loser.
-
- Maximum Overdrive ('86). King directed this daft nod to
- Jacques Tati's Playtime. Trucks, toys and newlyweds go nuts in
- the all-time traffic jam.
-
- A Return to 'Salem's Lot ('87, Larry Cohen). Inane
- non-sequel to King novel.
-
- Creepshow 2 ('87, Michael Gornick). Three gory tales, few
- shivers.
-
- Pet Sematary ('89, Mary Lambert). Surprise hit about a
- dead (then undead) child. Potent theme, schlocky treatment.
-
- Graveyard Shift ('90, Ralph S. Singleton). The pureed bat
- gets "a 10 on the Barf-o-Meter," says The Official Splatter
- Movie Guide.
-
-
-
-
-
-