Customer Reviews

Stephen King DVD Collector Set (Misery / The Dark Half / Needful Things / Carrie)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Movies derived from Stephen King's novels range from excellent (THE SHINING) to excremental films like Dreamcatcher. This DVD Collector Set has 4 of the greatest adaptations of Stephen King's impressive novels. MISERY (1990) is a top-notch thriller and one of the best that has ever been made. Psychological thrillers are the best of the genre thanks to an Oscar-winning performance from Kathy Bates as the obsessed fan. Set in the deserted part of America, moody and lethargic Stephen King delivers great human suffering, vanished and broken on the borders of true hell, ran by obsessed woman. James Caan is Paul Sheldon, an author who kills off his popular literary character Misery. Problem is, Annie Wilkes (Bates) reads his heroin-offing book, and goes a little crazy... The ankle-breaking scene is excruciating, and the final brutal fight between Caan and Bates is vicious. Like the excellent SECRET WINDOW, an obsessed fan getting a little too fanatical with the author's stories is a re-occurring theme. Everything in the film is absolutely great: acting, script, directing and a chilly musical score from Mark Shaiman.

THE DARK HALF (1993) is a movie with an implausible plot, but is executed very well. In fact, it's done so well that you end up forgetting how implausible it is. So if you postpone your disbelief a little, chances are you'll like it. Horror master George A. Romero handles the suspense very professionally, but above all, Timothy Hutton's acting is the stand out of the film. His portrayal of Southern madman (ghost) George Stark is intense and will make you thinks of straight razors in a whole new light. Not a horror classic, but original and it does get a few scares out of you. The Stephen King book was better, but the film does a surprisingly good job of adapting it. NEEDFUL THINGS (1993) is a fascinating story of a mysterious old man (Max von Sydow) who opens a novelty shop in a sleepy little Maine town. He has something that everyone wants, but wants something in return from everyone. Simple currency has little allure for this devilish merchant. He feeds off hate and carnage, and uses the simple townsfolk to carry out his desires. CARRIE is possibly the best King adaptation, and one of the most faithful. The problem with some movies derived from his novels, is that some inept directors norse up the source material by changing too much. But thankfully Brian DePalma gets this just right. Sissy Spacek turns in a great performance and John Travolta started his acting career in 1976 in his first movie. Put together with MISERY and DARK HALF, this is a very impressive collection of King movies and a must-have for horror buffs.

While this set doesn't include all the best films made from King's novels, at least two of these are absolute classics. "Misery" is available here as a full and widescreen presentation. The image quality is decent here but it could look a whole lot better. There aren't any notable special features which is too bad--in the UK and Europe this has been released as a "Special Edition" with commentary by Director Rob Reiner and Writer William Goldman.

"Carrie" is the "Special Edition" released a couple of years back. The anamorphic widescreen presentation looks extremely good. This edition features "Acting Carrie" a very good documentary with Stars Sissy Spacek, Amy Irving and others. We also get "Visualizing Carrie" a documentary featuring Brian DePalma discussing his approach to the film. "Carrie: The Musical" a featurette on the disasterous Broadway version. Finally there's background on Stephen King and his novel as well as an animated photo gallery with behind-the-scenes photos. There's no commentary track from DePalma or any of the stars.

"The Dark Half" had much promise but George Romero's film of King's novel doesn't quite live up to its potential. Still, the film has its moments unfortunately this full screen presentation of the film doesn't do it justice. There's no extra features to speak of and the transfer is so-so and the film really would benefit from a widescreen presentation and commentary track by Romero.

"Needful Things" always felt over-the-top to me. It has a fine screenplay by W. D. Richter ("Invasion of the Body Snatchers" and "Stealth") but Fraser Heston's direction seems intent on proving his chops as a director at the expense of the story. The transfer is pretty good here as well. A couple of terrific performances highlight the movie including the late J.T. Walsh, Max Von Sydow, Ed Harris. Despite the potential here "Needful Things" just misses the mark despite an excellent cast and production design.

So I'd give five stars to "Carrie" and "Misery"; two stars for "The Dark Half" and "Needful Things". It's a pity that this set just repackages previous releases and doesn't have another disc of extras. This is a economic way to get all four films if you must have them but, really, only two of these films are essential.

This collection is pretty good, but there really were no special features. Good value if you are a Stephen King fan and are just in it for the films themselves.

An good set for the most part. Three of these movies are excellent and those films (Carrie, Misery, and The Dark Half) do justice to their books. Tha last one, however (Needful Things) is just a butchered mess. Just buy this for the three good films and junk the bad one.

These are some of the best movies that are based from Stephen King novels. Carrie is a movie that any Stephen King fan must own. To have it on a box set with Misery is best. Dalf Half is also pretty good. For most who haven't seen it is about thee other half of the writter and how it can take control when it feels threaten. Needful things is a movie that goes beyond horror and teaches people a lesson. These are a few of Stephen King best movies. Which fans must own to have a true King's Collection.

I'd say, for the price, this set is definitely worth the money. With that said, the movie selections are a mixed bag. Here are two of the best King film adaptations in Carrie and Misery, one decent film in The Dark Half, and one absolute dud in Needful Things. The set is mostly bare-bones, with only Carrie having any special features to speak of.

priced just right, this set is perfect for the stephen king fan.
buying all these movies separately would be costly. makes a great gift

i love Stephen king's movies and when i saw them in multiple movie sets that made it all the better. please let me know when you have more multiple sets. thank you jean

I ordered this product for my grandson. It was exactly what he needed for a school project - and I was very pleased with my order!

Yep, a great collection for a great price. The cases aren't all the same, but- what can you say about that? Definately worth the buy though