UPDATED: Big Driver, Let The Whining Begin

Don't you love it when a new Stephen King project comes out, and everyone gets their chance to complain?  I'll post my thoughts on Big Driver in a couple days -- until then, here's a summery Sara Stewart's whining from nypost.com.  Her article is titled, "Stephen King’s ‘Big Driver’ stuck in neutral."

• Bello is an engaging presence, but she’s above this material. Ditto Ann Dowd. I can’t say as much for rocker Joan Jett, though it’s still a kick to see her brief appearance as a weathered barkeep with a glass eye.
• “Big Driver” can’t seem to decide if it’s a straight-up thriller or a dark comedy about what writing about murder for years does to a person’s brain.
• It’s a line King often walks with finesse in his stories, but doesn’t always survive the leap to the screen since he’s usually not writing the screenplay.

Stewart nails something that I mentioned when I first read the book; it's hard to believe Tess would respond the way she does to the scenario she's given.  Stewart writes:

There’s an essential implausibility to Tess’ reactions — and while it might, in a different genre, have been amusing to watch her developing an in-depth internal relationship with the voice in her GPS, the fact that it follows a traumatic rape feels way off, tonally.

I wrote in my journal entry about the NOVELLA:

 Tess' reasoning at several points still troubles me. Sorry to mention this. But I was not really convinced on her reason for not calling the police. And, her note to herself, "Don't get caught" . . . but she didn't really carry out much of a plan. She followed an emotion, but didn't execute a flawless play. Instead, she plans backward. that is, she carries out an idea, then figures out how to cover her tracks. 

While the story is dark, the ending is fantastic. King masterfully pulled the strands together. It is dark, but perhaps not as dark as some of the other novella's contained in FDNS.

By the way, I liked the Lifetime movie. More about that later.  What did y'all think?

UPDATED:
latimes.com Mary McNamara has her own share of whining, declaring that King "often" deals with the subject of rape in "long, graphically detailed and brutal scenes."  I wonder who she's been reading!

Check it out:
Carrie, no rape.
Christine, no rape.
Cujo, no rape.
The Shining, no rape.
Pet Sematary no rape.
The Green Mile, no rape.
. . . So what exactly is McNamara talking about?   Well, as is often true of the press these days, it's accusation an without any supporting evidence.

McNamara isn't done trashing King and Big Driver.  She writes, "If only it weren't such a disturbingly retro and sadistically sensationalized take on the subject. If only it were any good at all." And, "The story is simple, manipulative and ghastly." She goes on to say, "this story is so nonsensical that it, at best, exploits its subject matter and, at worst, insults it."  She calls Big Driver, "criminally limited material."  Criminally?  Now here's a reviewer who apparently just needs to just use words randomly without concern for their meaning. Big Driver has "CRIMINALLY limited material" ?

Know what the problem is -- McNamara, and many reviewers, are looking for King's "message" instead of looking for the STORY.  These reviewers aren't along for the ride, they're looking for a cause and a protest, and upset King did not set up a good rally for them.

Details On LIFETIME's BIG DRIVER

picture credit: HERE

broadwayworld.com has a good article on the upcoming The Lifetime Original Movie, Big Driver.  Check out the article.  Here's the facts in bullets:

• Premiers Sunday, October 18 at 8pm
• It is the first collaboration between Lifetime and King. 
• The screenplay was adapted by Richard Christian Matheson.  (He's the son of the legendary Richard Matheson.)  
• Thirty of Richard Christian Matheson's stories are collected in Scars and Other Distinguishing Marks with a Foreword by Stephen King.  
• Directed by Mikael Salomon.
• Big Driver stars Maria Bello, Olympia Dukakis, Joan Jett, Ann Dowd, and Will Harris.
• The movie is produced by Ostar Productionsand executive produced by Bill Haber and Jeffrey Haye. 

Stephen King Movies In Production

image credit: fanpop.com/clubs/stephen-kings-it

Den Of Geekhas posted all of the King movies and TV shows in development!  The information below are from Den Of Geek -- but the full article is at their website.

These include:

11/22/63
J.J. Abram's Bad Robot production company has acquired the rights to adapt this novel into a TV show. Jonathan Demme (The Silence of the Lambs) was working on the script, but he dropped out over disagreements on the direction the show should take. Bummer.

Ayana
NBC wants to turn this into a TV show. Chris Sparling (Buried) is writing the pilot. Ben Haber (Across the Universe) is set to produce, while Jordan Kerner (Less Than Zero) will executive produce. No director or cast have been announced at this time.

Big Driver
Lifetime recently announced it would adapt King's novella of the same name, starring Mario Bello (Prime Suspect), rock legend Joan Jett, and Olympia Dukakis (Sinatra). Richard Christian Matheson (Masters of Horror) is penning the adaptation and Mikael Salomon (Drew Peterson: Untouchable) is directing.

The Breathing Method

For now, Jason Blum (Paranormal Activity) is producing a feature film, but has yet to set it up at Universal. Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange) is set to direct.  Of course, now that Derrickson has been chosen to direct Doctor Strange, this film will most likely go on the back burner...

Cell

Eli Roth (Hostel) talked about adapting this novel into a feature film a few years back, but that didn't happen. Instead, it's currently in production eyeing a 2015 release. It stars John Cusack, Samuel L. Jackson, Isabelle Fuhrman, and Owen Teague. The film will be directed by Todd "Kip" Williams (Paranormal Activity 2), with King and Adam Alleca (Last House on the Left remake) writing the screenplay.

Children of the Corn

Although there have been nine films already, Warner Bros. wants to make another. Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw 2) will reportedly direct with Jon Bokenkamp (The Blacklist) writing the script.

Creepshow 4

The rumor is Warner Bros. is interested in making another sequel or a possible remake. It would be interesting to see them tap someone like Ti West (V/H/S) to direct.

The Dark Tower

Now it looks like Russell Crowe (A Beautiful Mind) might play the role of Roland along with Idris Elba (Pacific Rim) in an unspecified role. Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) has also met with Howard about a part. Writer Akiva Goldsman and producer Brian Grazen, both of A Beautiful Mind fame, are also attached to move this adaptation along.  . . . Now it's rumored that Media Rights Capital will produce the film. Who knows anymore.

Firestarter

Universal and the Dino De Laurentiis Co. will produce a new adaptation of Firestarter. Mark L. Smith (Vacancy) will write the screenplay. The idea is to give the film more edge than the original in an attempt to create a potential franchise. We wouldn't mind a Stephen King movie franchise about a secret organization that investigates the paranormal and does evil shit with it.

Gerald's Game

Mike Flanagan (Oculus) is at the helm of this adaptation, co-writing the script with Jeff Howard (Oculus). Intrepid Pictures will produce. The film will release sometime in 2015.

A Good Marriage

Peter Askin (Trumbo) will direct a screenplay written by King himself. Joan Allen (The Contender), Kristen Connolly (House of Cards), and Stephen Lang (Avatar) star. The film is planned for an October release.

Grand Central

The TV show comes from the former Dead Zone writing team Sam Ernst and Jim Dunn, and is in development at ABC for a potential summer straight-to-series order. 

IT

Being split into two parts (I'm guessing so that the film makers can tell both the children and adult stories as accurately as possible), Cary Fukunaga (True Detective) will direct. Fukunaga will also co-write with Chase Palmer (Neo-Noir) and David Kajganich (The Invasion). The film will be produced by New Line Cinema.

Joyland

Tate Taylor (Winter's Bone) is directing and adapting the screenplay. Wyolah Films is producing. Aiming for a 2015 release, the film is still in pre-production.

Lisey's Story

Josh Boone (The Fault in Our Stars) is attached to write and direct the feature film, which is slated for a 2015 release.

The Long Walk

Frank Darabont, super frequent King collaborator, has secured the rights and is planning a low-budget film. This has the potential to be a home run. Fun fact: this was the first novel King ever wrote, but he failed to publish until many years later.

Mercy

Frances O'Connor (Mr Selfridge), Mark Duplass (The Mindy Project), Dylan McDermott (American Horror Story), Joel Courtney (Super 8), and Chandler Riggs (The Walking Dead) are set to star. Peter Cornwell (The Haunting in Connecticut) will direct from a screenplay by King. The film is slated for later this year.

The Overlook Hotel

Glen Mazzara (The Walking Dead) is making this prequel for Warner Bros. and Mythology Entertainment. 

Pet Sematary

David Kajganich (The Invasion) wrote the first draft of a screenplay before Paramount turned writing duties to Matthew Greenberg (1408). Producers Lorenzo Di Bonaventura (Transformers) and Steven Schneider (Paranormal Activity) are on board to guide the project.

Rose Madder

Naomi Sheridan (In America) is working on the screenplay. 

The Shop

Charlie McGee will be back, once again running from an even more powerful Shop. Luckily, she'll have a guy named Henry Talbot, a former Shop employee, to guide her through her life as a fugitive. The project is written by Robbie Thompson (Supernatural) and produced by James Middleton (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles), Jaime Paglia (Eureka) and Thompson.

The Stand

Josh Boone is directing and writing this one, too. Nat Wolff (The Fault in Our Stars), who has already worked with Boone, is rumored to be in the cast. The film would be a 3-hour movie adaptation -- plenty of room, but it probably won't be as expansive as the 1994 TV series. 

The Talisman

This adaptation has been in development hell for quite some time. Steven Spielberg was attached to produce a TV series at some point, but that fell through back in 2006. Frank Marshall (Raiders of the Lost Ark) is now trying to turn this novel into a feature film. 

The Ten O'Clock People

The film adaptation should be interesting. Tom Holland (Fright Night) is directing and writing the screenplay. Jay Baruchel (This Is The End) and Julie Browen star. Kathy Bates (Misery) and King himself are also rumored to appear. This film is slated for a 2015 release.

The full article is at: denofgeek

BIG DRIVER is headed to LIFETIME

The hollywoodreporter has news that Big Driver will be a Lifetime small screen adaptation.  The article notes that Big Driver marks the first collaboration between King and the A+E Networks-owned female-skewing cable network.

Here's the highlights from the Hollywood Reporter:

• The show will star Maria Bello as Tess Throne.
• She will be joined by Olympia Dukakis, Joan Jett and Will Harris also star in the revenge tale adaptation, expected to premiere this fall. 
• Production begins in Halifax, Nova Scotia, this summer.
• Poduced by Ostar Productions and executive produced by Bill Haber (The Trip to Bountiful) and Jeffrey Hayes (A Day Late and a Dollar Short). 
• The screenplay was adapted by Richard Christian Matheson (Masters of Horror, Happy Face Killer)
• Directed by Mikael Salomon (Drew Peterson: Untouchable).

Finally, the article reminds us that CELL, starring Sameul L. Jackson, is in postproduction.