The Mist

[CyberGhostface]

Easily one of the best King movies ever. If King had given more of his stuff to Frank Darabont instead of Mick Garris, the world would be a better a place.

But I just wanted to start this topic so I could share with you one of the most moronic Amazon customer reviews I have ever seen.

"I received the wrong product. I wantd to buy the mist remake on blu ray, what I got was the original black and white version. I sent an email to the vendor. It has been nearly 1 month and know reply."

[Woofer]

Woah.

[mia/susannah]

Hopefully it will get worked out soon

[ola]

I sadly shake my head at people that complain about shipping, etc in a customer review. I feel like those should get deleted from Amazon automatically, but they seem to stick around.

The Mist: I haven't read the novella yet...but the ending chosen for the movie is beyond bad. The three of us watching it were all like "REALLY?!? WTF!" for hours afterward.

I really, really hope that King wrote a better ending than that.

[Woofer]

I sadly shake my head at people that complain about shipping, etc in a customer review. I feel like those should get deleted from Amazon automatically, but they seem to stick around.

The Mist: I haven't read the novella yet...but the ending chosen for the movie is beyond bad. The three of us watching it were all like "REALLY?!? WTF!" for hours afterward.

I really, really hope that King wrote a better ending than that.

Oh, I liked the movie's ending. That was hardcore.

[ola]

Oh, I liked the movie's ending. That was hardcore.

OK, hardcore, I'll give you that. Hardcore for what purpose? I want some kind of meaning in my dismal, depressing endings. I couldn't find any. What I learned:

End of the Mist film

Don't shoot your kid, even if there's monsters somewhere that might kill him. The End.

I didn't hate the rest of it. I just think that it was 100% unrealistic that someone would do that thing in that situation.

[Woofer]

Oh, I liked the movie's ending. That was hardcore.

OK, hardcore, I'll give you that. Hardcore for what purpose? I want some kind of meaning in my dismal, depressing endings. I couldn't find any. What I learned:

End of the Mist film

Don't shoot your kid, even if there's monsters somewhere that might kill him. The End.

I didn't hate the rest of it. I just think that it was 100% unrealistic that someone would do that thing in that situation.

I respectfully disagree. It was the stark realism of

Spoiler:

saving those you care about from a much worse death

. I have no problem seeing someone - by no means everyone - making that pact in a similar situation. If I may make an analogy:

Spoiler:

I do not want to live as a vegetable and have taken measures to ensure I will not. One of my biggest fears is to have a fully functioning mind in a body that cannot communicate that fact. I could come of it. These things happen. Some folks even live normal lives. If I am one of those who would've come out of it, then I would be DNR for no reason. But we have no way of knowing.

This is the same situation at the end of The Mist. Sure, they might've made it, but all signs indicated otherwise. Shall we sit here in this car slowly dying of thirst and hunger until something senses us and rips us apart or dissolves our innards or sucks our brains out of our eyes? Or shall we do the one thing we can do: spare ourselves the horror with a quick, clean shot? I would not have expected any military to charge in and save the day without massive, physically destructive explosives of some type.

So, while I don't expect everyone to have the same feelings, I can certainly see that end happening. Many times over.

[ola]

I respectfully disagree. It was the stark realism of...So, while I don't expect everyone to have the same feelings, I can certainly see that end happening. Many times over.

OK, so I understand the analogy. (To the extent that I don't have much experience with it in life.)

I think if someone you love is already in immediate danger or suffering, that is a possible conclusion. But someone acting upon the probable possibility of suffering?

The first story that comes to mind in comparison is "The Road." They suffer quite a bit in that book, and the probability of a happy ending is low. But still there's a drive for survival and protection against all odds.

I guess you can't make a global judgment on how a person would react in an extreme situation. I'm trying to imagine what I would do, and that is the last thing I can imagine doing.

[Woofer]

I respectfully disagree. It was the stark realism of...So, while I don't expect everyone to have the same feelings, I can certainly see that end happening. Many times over.

OK, so I understand the analogy. (To the extent that I don't have much experience with it in life.)

I think if someone you love is already in immediate danger or suffering, that is a possible conclusion. But someone acting upon the probable possibility of suffering?

The first story that comes to mind in comparison is "The Road." They suffer quite a bit in that book, and the probability of a happy ending is low. But still there's a drive for survival and protection against all odds.

I guess you can't make a global judgment on how a person would react in an extreme situation. I'm trying to imagine what I would do, and that is the last thing I can imagine doing.

Absolutely. That's what's so fascinating about apocalyptic end-of-the-world scenarios: the differences in how people act. I believe they were at that point in The Mist.

Spoiler:

I don't think any of them thought it was probable, I think they saw it as inevitable. It had been many days with no sign of help from any quarter. I think I would've given it a bit longer, personally, but I do think that the ending was extremely intense for exactly that reason. Essentially, they see the situation as being trapped in much the same way as

Aliens spoiler

Gorman and Vasquez are in Aliens, only they do not have a grenade to take a few of the mist creatures with them.

[pathoftheturtle]

We talked some about the issues you're discussing, over on this thread: The Mist DT Connections. It has some unmarked spoilers for the film ending, but the novella's ending is boxed. Hope you'll all check it out, and that you'll return to it, ola, once you read "The Mist."

When it comes to SK books, though, Woofer's dilemma more reminds me of a different one: Pet Semetary.

[special k]

yea the end of the movie made me mad. when he did what he did and you know who showed up i just threw my hands up in the air and just yelled out

Spoiler:

"you dumb monkey! you know what, just bludgeon yourself with your gun since youre out of bullets jackass!"

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I liked the ending of the movie better than the ending in the story. The Mist is one of the few movies that I walked out of the theater feeling a little nauseated. Any movie that can have that powerful of an effect on me gets an A+ in my book.

[pathoftheturtle]

Pretty subjective, though, BC. Me, I just rolled my eyes.

Still, while the emotional effect was lost on me, I did appreciate the film-making. In my book, it gets a B.

[BROWNINGS CHILDE]

I think B movie was what Frank was trying for, so I guess thats a win.

[CyberGhostface]

Guys--regarding the Amazon review I mentioned. Here's what's so ridicilous about it.

The disc is double-sided. Frank Darabont included his "Director's Cut" as he intended on one side--its the film shot in black and white, a homage to the B/W monster films of the 50s. That's what the reviewer was complaining about. He thought it was an actual old 50s film when he had what he wanted all along--all he had to do was flip the disc over. That's what I found funny about his review.

[Tvmorbid]

That is pretty hilarious Cyber, I would weep for humanity if I had tear-ducts...

With regards to the films ending, I personally loved it and hated it at the same time. I loved it for how daring and hard-hitting it was, and hated it because

Spoiler:

I had spent the last 2 hours becoming emotionally involved with these characters and they all (except for one obviously) end up dying for nothing!

This ending is still lingering with me to this day and its been well over a year since I saw the film. It's definitely one of the best endings I've seen for a long time.

[JameseyLefebure]

I actually love the ending of the movie.
I got totally drawn into the raw emotions that everyone was feeling and when they did what they did at the end i completely understood and felt that it was a really good way to end the film......then there was the twist which absolutely killed me!!
I still rave about this film as one of my all-time to most people who will listen

[Darkthoughts]

I thought the ending sucked. I'm all for having a hard hitting end, or even no end at all - I don't mind if, like the book's version, it's left ambiguous. But it was soooo cliched,

Spoiler:

when the woman who left the store at the beginning rode past on the army truck i just facepalmed, it was so tacky! And seriously, if the army came along that quickly they'd have run into them or heard them, it wasn't at all believeable even within the confines of the film's reality.

[Mattrick]

Oh, I liked the movie's ending. That was hardcore.

OK, hardcore, I'll give you that. Hardcore for what purpose? I want some kind of meaning in my dismal, depressing endings. I couldn't find any. What I learned:

End of the Mist film

Don't shoot your kid, even if there's monsters somewhere that might kill him. The End.

I didn't hate the rest of it. I just think that it was 100% unrealistic that someone would do that thing in that situation.

Mist Ending:

Spoiler:

They drove (if I'm not mistaken) from Maine to what was it...Boston? To them there was no end in sight to the Mist. They ran out of gas. They assumed it was all over. They were already dead. Earlier in the movie his son said "Whatever you do, don't let the monsters get me. Promise me" and he fulfilled his promise.

The ending is so bittersweet and ironic that if they had of just stayed after Rudy killed Mrs. Carmody, they (like Marlon) would have been let back into the store and would have been rescued. Though this is speculation, as we do not see them on the trucks. But we do see the woman who left the store to get her kids. She and her kids survived. David said "Look lady, I've got my own kid." and he lost his wife and kid.

If he didnt run away (outrunning the mist clearing) they wouldn't have all died. David in his eyes sacrificed himself and gave his son et all a more peaceful death than being torn to pieces. A theme in the movie was taking lives and dying. Rudy killed Mrs. Carmody and soon after died. David however, killed out of mercy and instead of death, is forced to live alone with his decisions.

Darabont also had Ollie (kepy calling him Rudy above my bad...not fixing it) drop the gun when he died on the windshield. They all urged him to leave it but David grabbed it. If he never grabbed the gun, they all would have lived. On the theme of God and Judgement (which is HUGE in this movie) Darabont took the side that it all was, in a sense, divine. That gun was a test. To see if no murder would happen; it did and there was punishment. The gun was then a test to David and Co and they also failed.

I think it's a fantastic and realistic ending.

All in all, I consider The Mist to be the thickest and greatest horror movie I've ever seen.

btw; King wishes he wrote thst ending as the ending in King's novella is entirely open.

[Mattrick]

they'd have run into them or heard them, it wasn't at all believeable even within the confines of the film's reality.

Do you not recall the scene where they talk about how The Mist is a noise dampener? Everything is muffled. Don't they talk about the creatures hunting by pheremones? It makes perfect sense in the reality that the mist would be sealed from where it came out so they WOULD be behind them, cleaning the mess from the inside out.

[Mattrick]

The first story that comes to mind in comparison is "The Road." They suffer quite a bit in that book, and the probability of a happy ending is low. But still there's a drive for survival and protection against all odds.

You can't compare the two AT ALL. One is YEARS after the apocalypse. This is during. They were in a confined space with the ultimate version of cabin fever. Not to mention they ended up [spoiler]In a car with no food, no water and no means of safe escape. The Road has a similar ending really, though.

Spoiler:

The Man can't trust human nature because of protecting his son. In the end it costs him dearly. Both endings are equally subtle and ironic. It was The Mans drive for protection that caused him to run from Guy Pierce and his family AND the bomb shelter full of food and shelter. David made better decisions than The Man. But The Man had more time to insane than David did. Really, The Man put his own personal feelings of protecting his son ahead of his sons feelings.

[pathoftheturtle]

...King wishes he wrote thst ending...

I believe 1.> you're right and 2.> he's wrong.

[Darkthoughts]

I'm with Path, Mattrick it sucked. It was a big fat cliche - even the "Noooooo!" style cry was just

Spoiler:

Seeing the woman with her kids on the truck was over the top CHEESE. It makes a mockery of the movie viewer as much as a mushy sugary sweet ending does.

[Mattrick]

I wasn't aware cliches were things that never happened in movies. I thought they were things that always happened. I know I've seen that ending a hundred times. Hell, Lost In Translation ended the same way!

How was it cheese? Because it brought the movie full circle? Because it showed choices have rewards and consequences? Because it supports the theme of divine influence? Jane's 'noooo style cry' as you put it was excellent. Especially when the primal scream stops and he's just saying OOWWWWW because it hurts so bad he can only express the anguish in the most basic and child like form possible. The fact that his character was reduced to such a halpless state where all he can do is scream...no words, just guttural sounds, is fantastic and merely adds to the power of the ending. Words couldn't express what he was feeling. How should they have handled it? Had David scream "OMG I AM IN SO MUCH MENTAL ANGUISH RIGHT NOW!" would that have helped.

As far as I'm concerned; the last 15 minutes of that movie had so much meaning. Maybe far too much meaning. Maybe the ending made a mockery of you, but to say the viewer is speaking for everyone. The only thing that the ending mocked was how poor King's ending was.

[Ricky]

How was it cheese? Because it brought the movie full circle? Because it showed choices have rewards and consequences? Because it supports the theme of divine influence? Jane's 'noooo style cry' as you put it was excellent. Especially when the primal scream stops and he's just saying OOWWWWW because it hurts so bad he can only express the anguish in the most basic and child like form possible. The fact that his character was reduced to such a halpless state where all he can do is scream...no words, just guttural sounds, is fantastic and merely adds to the power of the ending. Words couldn't express what he was feeling.

As far as I'm concerned; the last 15 minutes of that movie had so much meaning. Maybe far too much meaning. Maybe the ending made a mockery of you, but to say the viewer is speaking for everyone.

I agree with you 100% on everything above.