Stephen King's The Stand [1994]

Customer Reviews:

Oh come on!.......2008-02-18

Firstly, as good as Stephen King is at writing, this is by no means his best novel. It's a very overdone and obvious stroyline... epic disease wiping out half the human race, civilisation must reform, good and bad people fight until (low and behold) the good people win.

Even though the novel does go into depth with some characters, the greater storyline doesn't seem to make sense. For instance, the breakout kills most of America, but the rest of the world is never mentioned? Did the disease spread? Are we okay? Should I be in an isolated hospital ward somewhere, clinging to my life?

It's the usual 'all about America' Christian story where the Christians (of course) will prevail in the end. And to hell with those 'evil' folk, hiding away in the (shock! horror!) gamblers paradise, Las Vegas!

There are two sides to Mr. King. His 'I'm gonna think about this' side, where he comes out with novels such as Shawshank, Green Mile etc and then there's his 'quick buck' novels, such as The Stand where he writes whatever he can sell into a screenplay. Write about God, racism, sexuality and homophobia and it's a dead cert. to rile up the American crowds, flocking to the cinemas after viewing a good lynching.

However, after saying this. This adaption of the Stand is oddly addictive. It's extremely tacky, extremely obvious and pretty blnking cringe-worthy at times, but take it with a pinch of salt and it's an easy watch. Well I just bought it anyway.

Amazing book.....APALLING film. .......2008-02-11

The stand was the first stephen king book I read. I thought it was an epic masterpiece, and I dont use that term lightly. It was complex, believable, beautiful, meaningful, tense, sinister and truly moving.

I only managed to stomach the first two disastrous episodes of this TV mini series. From some of the positive reviews here, I feel like I must have watched a totally different film.

The acting is appaling. Imagine the cheesiest American soap. Yes im not kidding. Molly ringwald as Frannie is actually an offensive choice. She is extremely irritating. Gary Sinise as Stu is actually pretty good; it seems strange such a talented actor is trying to work amongst these amateurs. Harold is a joke, and when I saw that fake acne i nearly cried. The sets are extremely poor and mother abigails corn field made me wince - the corn was clearly plastic even on my non-hd-tiny-tv.

Tom cullen is pretty good, and he created some actually genuinely moving moments. I liked Nick, but as far as cast goes, fran (a main character) made me forget the merits of the rest - she is appalling.

I could rant all night - if you enjoyed the epic book. DO NOT i mean DO NOT touch this, let alone watch it. Why make a low budget tv series from a concept that quite clearly needs to be very high budget? I speak as a fan of the book - please be warned; dont let this disgrace taint your memory of kings masterpiece.

M-O-O-N, that spells apocalypse.......2008-01-08

It is great to see, for a change, an adaptation where someone actually thought about the changes needed for the transfer to the medium of TV.

The standout performance is probably Bill Faggerbakke as Tom Cullen. Most of the lead actors do a good job, with the exception of Molly Ringwald playing Frannie, who was a much tougher and brighter character than this.

Stephen King himself has a bit part, which is no bad recommendation.

In the unlikely event that there are any diehard King fans who haven't seen this adaptation:
-It is based on the original published version of the novel, not the "Complete & Uncut Edition".
-The Rita Blakemoor character is incorporated into that of Nadine Cross. (This jarred first time I saw it, but in fact it works very well).

The soundtrack is excellent:
-Original incidental music by Snuffy Walden, which perfectly complements the action. This is on a long-deleted CD - well worth tracking down a copy.
-A sparse but well-chosen selection of well-known recordings (plus Adam Storke, as Larry Underwood, busking part of "Eve of Destruction").
- "Baby can you dig your man", performed by Al Kooper.

The Stand.......2007-12-30

This DVD is the made for TV mini series of The Stand as adapted by Stephen King. Generally this is faithful to the book, but unfortunately some aspects of the story aren't explored as fully as they could be and other storylines are adapted or removed altogether. Considering how detailed the book is and how it would need to be altered for screen this is understandable. The reason I gave this three stars is that with the exception of Gary Sinise, and a few other minor characters, the acting is extremely wooden. The sets and overall style are a touch dated as well, but it tends not to detract from the story or your enjoyment too much. If you like the book then this mini-series is well worth a try and if the book's length daunts you then this is a great way to get to know the story without spending hours reading. Although I must add that the time spent reading this epic masterpiece will not be wasted. A great film, an OK cast, dodgy sets and 6 hours to relive a brilliant epic story.

Staggering stuff.......2007-12-10

I saw this years ago with my cousin and we spent the afternoon glued to the screen. It is unforgettable. I recommend it as a unique piece of cinema. It's listed on the IMDB as a TV mini series but watching it in one fell swoop is the only way. It's a suspense - thriller with really freaky psychological stuff. Very good performances. Good old Stephen King. I hope someone buys it for me for Christmas.

Average customer rating:

Make it again!
Not as good as the book, but pretty good,
Tishoo! Tishoo! All Fall Down!
how to ruin a great book...........
Not good at all!

Stephen King's The Stand [1994]
Starring: Gary Sinise , Adam Storke , Ray Walston , Rob Lowe , and Molly Ringwald
Director: Mick Garris
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00019HORM
Release Date: 2004-04-05

Customer Reviews:

Make it again!.......2007-12-18

It is a pitiful shame that so many of Stephen Kings best works have been mangled by some truly wooden acting when translated to the big screen. This adaptation had so much potential and, while some parts are fair to middling, the terrible casting (most notably Molly bloody Ringwald!) causes it to fall flat. Throughout I felt deeply embarrassed for poor old Gary Sinise, he gave it his all and really brought the character of Stu Redman to life, but he'd have been better served acting alongside a bunch of Jim Henson puppets. I apologise for such a scathing attack but I am sorely disappointed with this film, so many talented actors and actresses in the world and it appears whoever was in charge of casting this film purposfully set out to sabotage it.
I think this film should be re-made on a grand scale (as a trilogy?) and with no expense spared. The casting in my view should be, The Dark man - Johnny Depp? Who else could do this creature justice while still being charming? Stu Redman - Viggo Mortense, Larry Underwood - That guy from Lost (Sawyer i think, maybe not a great actor but pretty!) Nadine Cross - Jennifer Connelly, Glen Bateman - Dustin Hoffman, Trashcan man - William H Macy (cos the guy's a legend)and Lacey Chabert as Fran and for some reason while reading the book I kept seeing Lloyd as Chris Cornell from Soundgarden. Weird! Anyway if you've made it this far many thanks for enduring my rant, this is all my own personal opinion so if you're really drawn to watch this then go for it, you may like it, but i advise you beg, borrow or steal a copy instead of wasting you hard earned cash. Ax.

Not as good as the book, but pretty good,.......2007-06-24

First off, I have to say that most stephen King stories are never as good on the big (or silver) screen as they are in print. The Stand is no exception to this. The stand is a tale of christianity, which charts the (almost) end of the world and the fight for survival against the "dark man." The book is complex and there are many characters, each with their own full life stories and quirky ways. Consequently, many are missed out in the mini series.I am not sure that any actor could fully bring King's characters alive. The closest I have seen is Jack Nicholson in the Shining and Cathy Bates in Misery.

However, the actors in the Stand do a pretty decent job. Let's face it, it's not easy to show cities with no one in them, but you do believe that this is the case when watching this.

Mother Abigal is solid, as is Stu, Glen Bateman and Larry. Less good is Fran and Harold.

This may no be a masterpiece, but it still manages to do a pretty good job of getting the story across and there are some genuinely scary parts.

Tishoo! Tishoo! All Fall Down!.......2006-10-18

Unlike most of the other reviewers, I seem to have approached this movie backwards. I saw the movie, quite liked it and then went and bought the book. Wow, now that was a fat book! The Movie after reading the book seemed weak and a little trite - as another reviewer has noted it seems to be chronologically challenged and skips forward a bit but the thing that struck me the most was the casting. Gary Sinise now will ever be the image of Stu Redmond in my mind, but for some reason Molly Ringwald didn't fix in my imagination as Fran. And so it went through the cast, some outstanding, others just cut outs. The movie, or rather the mini-series, is clearly a Sinise lead production, however the core of the good guys and the bad guys worked well together especially Tom and Nick Andros, and performances from the likes of Ossie Davis as Judge Ferris and Miguel Ferrer as Lloyd Henried are worthy of note. Matt Frewer's Trashcan man is right from the pages of the novel, although certain characters from the book are missing such as "The Kid".

The story is the all too familiar government experiment gone wrong (does anyone remember the Terry Nation BBC TV Series "The Survivors"?) but there is a spiritual good vs evil angle in Stephen King's tale. Does good always win? Hard to say really, make your own mind up after counting the number that fall along the way. I should emphasise that this is a mini-series spliced into two parts with a run time of six hours or so, but fortunately you have a pause button for those all important snack/comfort breaks. As a mini-series made for TV it is a 4:3 aspect production with not exactly fantastic sound.

I will admit to being hooked in the first few minutes by the marvellous opening sequence backed by the most excellent Blue Oyster Cult track "Don't fear the Reaper". It is exciting, tense and urgent with a background of futility - brilliant production work. Look also for a small speaking part played by Stephen King himself (Teddy Weizak) and a cameo by the Evil Dead's Sam Raimi.

All in all, not a bad version of the story, and don't forget to say hi to the Ratman.

how to ruin a great book..................2006-07-16

After reading the book i was desperate to see it in film. Sadly this dire tv film is the only option,with Stephen King involved with the making of it i expected a film which would be gripping and true to the book. What you get instead is an unintentional comedy,the acting [Gary Sinise] apart is truly awful.My advice would be to avoid this film at all costs as it is by far and away the worst thing i've ever seen, on the other hand if you are a fan of awful acting and cringe worthy lines this could be right up your street.

Not good at all!.......2006-07-06

I absolutley loved the book and was desperate to see the film. I was sorely disappointed. The acting is pretty terrible (apart from gary sinise), especially molly ringwald,large chunks of the story are missed, the characters are nowhere near as developed as they were in the book, and considering how dark the book is, this was not reflected in the film. I thought flagg was laughable rather than scary, and that the extent of his evilness was not shown well at all.I think the film would have worked much better if it had been a big budget 'lord of the rings' type epic which could have done the book justice. A tv movie is just not the best way to bring to life The Stand. I recommend reading the book and letting your imagination run wild rather then watching this trash!

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