One ofStephen King’s most hated film adaptations has found love in the streaming universe. By the time of writing,Dreamcatcher, the 2003 box office bomb by Lawrence Kasdan adapted from King’s book of the same name, is in the first spot onTubi’s top 10 list of most-watched films. Also appearing on Tubi’s top 10 list you’ll find 2019’sPet Sematary,another King adaptationthat was panned by audiences and critics.
If you were around in 2003, you probably remember the hype about the adaptation ofDreamcatcher.The Green MileandHearts in Atlantishad been released before, giving fans a taste of King’s more “life-affirming” works. Some pleaded for a horror movie and that was the one they got. Unfortunately, it was also a disastrous adaptation that many wish they could forget.
I’m Sorry, but This Is the Last Stephen King Adaptation We Need Right Now
The recent announcement of Doug Liman’s feature adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘The Stand’ is the last thing we needed.
The film follows Beaver, Jonesy, Pete, and Henry, four childhood friends who go on a hunting trip every year. After saving a boy from bullies when they were children, the four of them gain psychic abilities. After rescuing a man lost in the forest, they realize the planet may be on the verge ofan alien invasion. Per the Rotten Tomatoes synopsis of the movie:
Dreamcatcher tells of four young friends who perform a heroic act – and are changed forever by the uncanny powers they gain in return. Years later the friends, now men, are on a hunting trip in the Maine woods when they are overtaken by a blizzard in which something much more ominous moves. Challenged to stop an alien force, the friends must first prevent the slaughter of innocent civilians by a military vigilante, then overcome a threat to the bond between them.
The Very Weird Case of Stephen King’s ‘Dreamcatcher’
Upon release, the film bombed terribly at the box office.It only grossed over$75 million against a $68 million budget. It also wasn’t a hit with critics, asDreamcatchermostly received poor reviews. Today, it sits at 28% on the critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, with the audience score going a bit higher and registering a rating of 36%.
Dreamcatcherhad about everything it coudl ask for to be a good Stephen King adaptation. A solid cast that featured Morgan Freeman, Thomas Jane, Damian Lewis, Timothy Olyphant, Donnie Wahlberg, and Jason Lee. A director known for his screenwriting duties in franchises likeStar WarsandIndiana Jones, and who co-wrote the film with Academy Award winner William Goldman. So, what went wrong? It was a question that famed critic Roger Ebert also asked in his review:
“Dreamcatcher begins as the intriguing story of friends who share a telepathic gift, and ends as a monster movie of stunning awfulness. What went wrong? How could director Lawrence Kasdan and writer William Goldman be responsible for a film that goes so awesomely wrong? How could even Morgan Freeman, an actor all but impervious to bad material, be brought down by the awfulness? Goldman, who has written insightfully about the screenwriters' trade, may get a long, sad book out of this one.
“The movie is based on a novel by Stephen King, unread by me, apparently much altered for the screen version, especially in the appalling closing sequences. I have just finished the audiobook of King’s From a Buick 8, was a fan of his Hearts in Atlantis, and like the way his heart tugs him away from horror ingredients and into the human element in his stories.”
Source:Flix Patrol
Dreamcatcher
