Review of The Dead Zone (1983) by Damon R — 14 Sep 2010

An atmospheric score opens the film and is slowly built upon in a truly memorable film. It is the way in which the tone of the film itself, and Christopher Walken's terrific performance help sell the supernatural nature of the film that is so remarkable.

The film deals with his power as you would expect it to occur in the real world. There is media attention and he receives letters from troubled individuals. He is even specifically sought after to help with problems they have.

The narrative is surprisingly complex. I love the way that it sows the seeds of the subplot into the film and these subplots layer on to of one another. It episodically buildsl to a truly memorable finale. If this was made today the finale would have been completely overdone ala Knowing. You can really tell that this came from a rather dense novel and it does well to combine multiple aspects of this.

Sheen is great as the antagonist. All of the supporting characters are also memorable, from the doctor to the parents. The theme of how things are not meant to be is also conveyed well. Overall t is surprisingly emotional and heart breaking.

I do have to say though, having Christopher Walken as a teacher would be a more frightening experience that any horror film could muster. He had to be reading The Sleepy Hollow didn't he! And the sequence where the fire is shown reflecting on his face is magic.