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The MIst
Rated R
3 Stars Out of 4

In order to truly enjoy a movie like The Mist, you have to enter the theater with the right attitude. Realize this is going to be a B-style monster movie about big evil creatures lurking in a thick fog. Realize this is a Stephen King story set in a grocery store. Realize that anything can happen, good or bad, original or clichéd, corny or suspenseful. Only with this unclouded, open mindset, can a person truly enjoy The Mist for the brilliant story it is.

It's not the best horror film I've ever seen, but I was thrilled to find myself not only having lots of fun, but at times being more scared than I can recall at the movies (and I REALLY don't get scared easily). The Mist is more than pleasantly surprising in delivering not only genuine suspense, but also real, original scares as well. Frank Darapont (of previous Stephen King film adaptations, including The Shawshank Redemption, and The Green Mile) has taken one of King's best stories, and successfully translated it into one of the best films of the supernatural apocalypse genre. I knew I loved this movie when I found myself staring intensely at a blank, opaque screen of fog, searching for what was to happen next. For moments there was nothing visible on screen, leaving a terrifying anticipation of what could be in the mist. This is what really caught me. These moments are the stuff of real movies, getting us frightened of what we are not shown.

Scares aside, the characters too have flares of profound emotions. People in the audience actually clapped at one of their demises, letting me know, again, the director had struck the right chord with his film. Some of my favorite moments involved only dialogue and ideas posed towards humanity, just enough weighty thought to satisfy any thinkers in the crowd. The special effects were satisfying enough, when used (although, granted, you can't show everything that's lurking in the fog for very long), and the movie moves along at a quick, but dread-inducing pace. The camera work is a bit shaky, but in the end it was the climax that was the only thing I wasn't really sure about. I still haven't decided if I liked the end or hated it. I would have to watch the film again to be sure. Admitting gives evidence that this movie might be just a bit better than it’s letting us on to be. Anytime you find the necessity for a repeated viewing, you've touched something special in a movie.

This film doesn't care about being a great movie, which happens to be great fun for the audience. The movie is about being a great scary story, and when our monsters and fears are shrouded in mystery, it’s hard not to sit in suspense, waiting for our fate to jump out from the mist.