Review of The Mist (2007) by Roan F — 20 Jun 2014

A horror based on a Stephen King novel that the author himself named as one of his favourite movie adaptations of his work. I've gone through a significant amount of horrors recently and hardly any have blown my mind. I can safely say my mind was left in pieces after 'The Mist' came into town.

A dark tale about a large group of survivors who barricade themselves in a supermarket after a mysterious and deadly mist engulfs the area. The setting is established wonderfully as the people's mentalities gradually deteriorate due to the fear of the strange creatures that lie out in the mist. While not knowing how exactly to describe it, I like the way it is shot. Appeared authentic and captured the essence of the terrifying surroundings. Screen time is accurately proportioned so that you get enough of each character to know their personalities. Little need for loud background music since the desperation and fear is conveyed so strongly that this is enough to set the tense atmosphere. I also think the lack of music allowed the viewer to visualise themselves actually being in that situation, making the movie all the more frightening. Arguably, the most disturbing element was not the horror but the rising internal conflict amongst the survivors. It is well executed and therefore shown to be believable while it adds that essential extra level of depth to the severity of the circumstances.

Hate to criticise this but a better actor would have been welcome. Horror films rarely seem to budget for a good cast (or maybe decent actors just don't like the thought of getting killed off), but solid acting in this genre appears to be forever the lurking issue. I felt the guy in the main role did not make me experience his real emotion required to enhance the more chilling moments. Furthermore, it is annoying you don't get a full view of the tentacle monster. To be fair, you are treated to many other surprises but seeing that beast could have ramped this up to 4.5 stars. However, the ending. OOOOWEEE. Although I had another ending in mind which I would like to have seen, e.g. big tentacle monster, the final scene is definitely a shocker.

So you get the point, I like this movie. Plenty of things to scream about so get your vocal chords ready before you settle in for...(cue deep scary voice)....'The Mist'.