This is another Stephen King story directed by Frank Darabont (who also directed the classic Shawshank Redemption). David Drayton and his son travel into town with a neighbour the day after a heavy storm. Whilst in a supermarket a dense mist descends around the town, a near hysterical guy then runs into the shop shouting about something being in the mist and to lock the doors.
This event begins starts off a series of incidents; both supernatural and also very human.
This was a really strange film for me; on one level it was incredibly cheesy and naff with B movie monsters that reminded me of smaller versions of the ones in The Host. Essentially it was just people fighting and ultimately getting killed by the killer albino bugs in a variety of ways. Also characters were shooting off predictable lines all over the film I actually expected someone to say they were going out and may be gone for some time before they headed into the whiteness.
Jane's acting wasn't great especially when he was required to produce anything resembling emotion, but the presence of Marcia gay Harden and Toby Jones added significant weight to the cast for me. The psychology of a totally mixed bunch of people under stress in extraordinary circumstances proved to be very interesting and raised this film up a level. Hardens religious zealot actually made me wish I could shut her up and made me question how I would deal with such a person in such circumstances (probably not very well). This film also explores how close the human race is from being savages and from turning into a mob, although maybe this issue was already raised in my consciousness by reading The Road by Cormac McCarthy, which is being made into a (hopefully) better film.
Its not a terrible film, its just not great either though and as for the shock ending its ok, its different from what you would normally expect but I wouldn't just watch the film for it.
Directed by Frank Darabont
Cast:
Thomas Jane – David Drayton
Marcia Gay Harden – Mrs Carmody
Laurie Holden – Amanda Dumfries
Andre Braugher – Brent Norton
Toby Jones Ollie Weeks
Read more at: Nerve Curve
