The Dead Zone (1983)
…………………………………………………
The Dead Zone Movie Review
The Dead Zone is a 1983 thriller film directed by David Cronenberg and starring Christopher Walken. It’s a very flawed, disappointing cinematic adaptation.
………………………………………………….
“Your house is burning!
There’s still time!“
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
It is based on the titular Stephen King novel which is actually very strong and underrated and I pretty much loved it. However, this film I did not love and I found it to be a very weak, troublesome adaptation of a much superior source material. It is certainly solid and it has its great scenes, but it’s mostly just solid and never as great as it easily could have been.
One major problem I have with this film is its short runtime. Not only is it short, but it is ridiculously short clocking in at around 100 minutes. Needless to say, that just wasn’t enough for a 400-page, rich in story material. Most of the plot here is incredibly rushed in an obvious manner even for those who haven’t previously read the novel.
I liked the first act quite a bit. They got rid of the crazy religious lunatic mother storyline which was fine for me as it wasn’t my favorite and it wasn’t too important for the film. But the rest was very well adapted and I particularly admired the premonition scenes which are accompanied by creepy sound effects and are very well framed and filmed. The film has a very interesting somewhat horror-like approach to it which departed from the book in an original way.
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
However, the rest of the film disappointed me tremendously. My favorite crime story at the half was very much rushed and not nearly as effective as it should have been. As for the political storyline, it was mostly solid with the exception of the ending which I found very disappointing and not nearly as cinematic as it clearly should have been.
As for the characters and actors, Christopher Walken is a good Johnny Smith. He fits the role and was well cast despite my initial reservations. He actually ended up being the best part of this film in terms of acting. I also really liked Greg Stillson as Martin Sheen was perfect for him and thus again the casting was phenomenal here.
However, the rest I did not love. Dr. Sam Weizak is fine and the father is too, but Sheriff Bannerman is underutilized entirely. The kid is actually more memorable and interesting than in the book, but Sarah is very disappointing. Their entire romance was awfully rushed and not moving at all whereas Brooke Adams gave a frustratingly mediocre performance.
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
The Dead Zone is technically excellent. The film managed to get away from using special effects and still feel creepy and dangerous. As I said above, the premonition scenes are easily the standout parts of the film as they are stupendously executed and very effective in creating tension. I loved each and every one of them with the exception of the murder scene.
But even though the film is well shot and well put to screen, it is still poorly adapted in terms of script and especially dialogue and pacing. It is way too short and thus awfully rushed and most of the film felt as if watching a cut, cropped product that should have been a TV series instead of this hastily realized, abrupt movie. Cronenberg did the best he could, but I do think that it suits television more naturally.
The Dead Zone has very effective and creepy premonition sequences, the first act is very strong and Christopher Walken and Martin Sheen were very well cast and they gave good performances, but Brooke Adams is very mediocre and the romance is a total failure here. The film is pretty solid, but it’s a typically troublesome, cropped product that is rushed owing to its bad pacing and rarely as riveting as the novel is.
