Stephen King must have really been hurt during his 1999 accident. Well in any case the next novel he wrote, Dreamcatcher, actually offers up a car accident to one of the characters. Despite that similarity, Dreamcatcher is one awesome novel and even better film. Often King's novels when turned into films lose something, however Dreamcatcher just seemed to be able to be above that trap.
Our story begins with four friends who grow up together and share one special experience as children. That experience is the rescuing of a moderately retarded kid who is being beaten by older football jocks next to an abandoned shed. The boys in a very Stand By Me fashion are on an adventure to that old wharehouse when they rescue what will become "Duddits", the way his name sounds when he says it to them. The film is presented mostly in the present with the boys as adults with various careers but flashbacks of the boys setup the story.
To say anymore about the boys and what happens with Duddits would ruin the story but let's say it is classic King. The movie find a perfect space between old school scary monsters and scifi aliens. It's a film where the stakes are the entire world and these four friends along with Duddits are within the middle of the battle.
Let me say that a special congratulations should go out to the CSA who cast these parts. Each of the four friends, Jonesy, Beaver, Henry and Pete are really just as I pictured in my mind when reading the novel. I'd just like to know why King himself failed to make a cameo. Oh well the cast is enhanced even more by the crazed military alien hunter played by Morgan Freeman. This film just has it all, a great cast, a story that mixes fart jokes with scifi and monsters and hero that nobody expects. Definitely one of the best King adaptions in years.
The Disc:
Presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen, this transfer kicks with clarity that supports the awesome special effects. Colors are vibrant and the special effects move smoothly throughout the screen with little to no artifacts. The sounds on the disc are equally impressive though the lack of DTS on this spooky film somewhat disappoint me. Still the 5.1 mix does a great job with the surrounds and what better kind of film that one of Stephen King's to scare you in 360 degrees?
Extras on the disc I admit are adequate but I just was hoping for more. It starts with DreamWriter: An Interview with Stephen King right after he viewed a rough cut of the film. At only seven minutes there's nothing much here but a single observation and some real fluff. He briefly mentions his accident and how we wrote this novel by hand since he couldn't sit at a typewrite for very long. I guess I just wanted more input from him.
Next up is DreamMakers: A Journey Through Production. This is a more comprehensive effort, spending 19 minutes with director Lawrence Kasdan, producers Mark Kasdan and Charles Okun, co-screenwriter William Goldman, cast members Morgan Freeman, Tom Sizemore, Damian Lewis, Thomas Jane, Timothy Olyphant, Jason Lee and Donnie Wahlberg and various crew. I suppose this is meant to replace most discs feature length audio commentaries. Once again I found there to be more fluff than actual reflection.
Finally is a third documentary DreamWeavers: The Visual Effects of Dreamcatcher. Running at a mere 8 minutes this really doesn't do justice what went into creating the monsters. Although we aren't talking award winning stuff here, there is still some really nice effects here that I personally would have enjoyed hearing more about.
bottom line:
An AWESOME movie that I will watch over and over again. It is definitely a part of my King collection and second only to The Stand in terms of matching what the novel did to the film. While the extras are a bit disappointing the real reason to own any DVD is the film itself and we couldn't be more pleased here.
4.5 out of 5
By - Brian Gray
1/2
