Definitely, The dining room table It just needed a boost to become a critical and audience phenomenon, in addition to reaching Filmin’s catalog in style. And that was it, receiving a direct and ecstatic recommendation from the master of contemporary horror himself. Stephen King not only praised Caye Casas’ film for its undoubted goodness of script and staging. Also, to remember the wonder of horror cinema, as the writer conceives it. Which amounts to a point of view of enormous importance, since the genre has reconfigured its themes and settings, precisely thanks to King.
But it is not the first time that the author expresses his opinion on cinema. A lover of the seventh art, King often mixes cinematic pop culture with his perspective on the art of storytelling. Therefore, in several of his books, references are included to films by renowned directors, which usually form a curious part of his fiction works. However, beyond that, the writer also enjoys commenting, and above all, recommend your favorite options, in all your interviews and public interventions.
We leave you a list of five favorite Stephen King feature films and where to watch them right now. From an action classic that usually goes unnoticed to a painful story that he considers an unfairly underrated classic. The list covers everything and does not always include terror. Which demonstrates the intellectual versatility of one of today’s most popular personalities in culture and the literary world.
Cursed Load (Filmin)
For Stephen King, a good story necessarily involves tension and the human element. Something he explored in 2017 in an interview for the British Film Institute. In it, in addition to having a frank conversation about the importance of cinema in his books, he also mentioned what his favorite movie is. Is about cursed load by William Friedkin, released in 1977.
Book adaptation Le Salaire de la peur (1949) by Georges Arnaud, tells the journey of a group of men who must transport a load of explosives, which could cause their death, through South America. With an oppressive air and a plot that uses its precarious resources To create a claustrophobic feeling, the film runs at a frenetic pace.
But at the same time, carefully exploring the four men who must risk their lives in an unthinkable situation. For King, the film is much more than a well-told suspense plot. Also, it is an intelligent look at fear, violence and cruelty. All in a kind of road trip condemned to tragedy that, of course, will not end well.
Billy Elliot (I Want to Dance) (Filmin)
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly in 2007, Stephen King pondered at length about the beneficial effect of cinema. Also, about the way movies can bring hope, joy, and a kind of pleasure only equal to literature. One of the works that he mentioned capable of doing something similar was Billy Elliot (I Want to Dance), which he considers a small work with all the ingredients to be a classic. Which, in fact, it is today.
Stephen Daldry’s film, which tells the life and struggles of an English boy from a mining town with an extraordinary talent for dancing and music, is much more than a coming-of-age story. It is also an exploration about talent, the power of will and the ability to dream and explore the ideas of good and evil, through the influence of art.
With an urban and honest staging, the film is a combination of a moving plot with a background full of harsh social commentary. The result is a fresh premise, which is still moving and to the surprise of fans of the king of contemporary horror, one of Stephen King’s favorites.
The Autopsy of Jane Doe (Prime Video)
That a horror movie impresses Stephen King only means two things. That uses the elements of the genre in a completely new way or that is so creepy as to defy all expectations. This is the case of The Autopsy of Jane Doe by André Øvredal, which the writer fervently recommended in a Thttps://twitter.com/StephenKing/status/819313178240753664. But besides that, she made it clear that she had impressed him enough to analyze its plot from various points of view.
The plot, which tells the story of a forensic procedure that ends up becoming a large-scale supernatural event, necessarily amazes. Not only does it elaborate the idea of mystery through a minimalist staging, but it also explores the idea of death — and the terror it produces — through frontal scenes that are chilling in their simplicity.
The result is a disturbing film, which becomes more sinister by the minute. Not in vain did King compare it to Ridley Scott’s Alien and Cronenberg’s early films. If you want to see what amazed the writer so much, you can watch it right now on Prime Video.
Scarlet Summit (Netflix)
Guillermo del Toro’s gothic romance is also on Stephen King’s list of favorites. Especially, and according to the author’s words, for combining terror with a setting of enormous beauty. The result is a film that explores all the codes of the macabre – and you know what the writer is talking about – and that is also a visual delight.
The story of Edith (Mia Wasikowska) and her tragic romance with the deceitful English baron Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston, from Loki) is a combination of terror and suffering. When the young newlywed discovers that her husband’s past is More murky and perverse than he imagines, everything around him will become a sinister and bloody chaos.
But much more, a journey through all the unthinkable horrors that her brand new husband’s family home holds. Considered a gem of period and current cinema, part of the cult works directed by Guillermo del Toro, you can see them on Netflix.
Mystic River (Prime Video)
In the same interview in which he declared his love for Billy Elliot (I want to dance), Stephen King mentioned that another of his favorites was a classic that he considers underrated. He refers to Mystical river, the very tough film by Clint Eastwood that narrates a gruesome murder case. But beyond that, it also explores the wounds of sexual violence. and fear, in a stark, anguished and frontal way that still surprises.
Based on the book of the same name by Dennis Lehane, the film is a careful and harsh exploration of the wounds and traumas that can mark childhood. So much so that in the future, those who suffer from them will have to deal with them without knowing if Will they ever be able to recover from the suffering they went through.
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For King, it is a work of cinematic art that covers all kinds of important topics with sensitivity and brutal sincerity. If you haven’t seen them yet or want to give them a review in light of the writer’s comments,You can find it on Prime Video right now.
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