My Favorite Books Are Becoming Movies! (Part Two)

Stephen King is my favorite author.

In my mind there is no other author who can create a world (or worlds, or dimensions) so vivid, characters so defined (11.22.63's protagonist Jake Epping and Gunslinger Roland Deschain come immediately to mind), and stakes so crucial as King so often does. Yes, he has his faults and quirks - as every author does - but there is no denying the man's talent, his fire for telling compelling tales, and his effect on his legion of Constant Readers. He's defined as a horror writer, yet on so many occasions proven himself far more versatile (Shawshank and Stand By Me, anyone?).

Regardless, he's just a damn good writer no matter where his story falls.

June 7th is the release of End Of Watch, the final installment in his Bill Hodges Trilogy, which began back in 2014 with Mr. Mercedes, a novel I adored for its briskness, unique characters, fun detective story, and intense opening. Before Mercedes, the only other novel of his I can recall having such a visceral start was Cell (published back in 2006).

I have a good-sized handful of favorite King books, but Cell was the first. Cell was one of the few inspirations (along with Invasion Of The Body Snatchers and Night Of The Living Dead) that got me writing my first novel (what would become a trunk novel that I mistakenly published. Oops.).

Cell is King's "zombie novel," which features a signal (dubbed The Pulse) traveling through every cell phone in the world at the exact same moment one October day, turning those who happened to be using their devices at the time into "phoners"/"phone-crazies" - their minds wiped and their primitive instincts on full bloody display. Within seconds of exposure to The Pulse, which is never given a concrete explanation (because who among those left as normal would ever know beyond speculation?), the phoners are chasing down and murdering everyone in sight (sometimes even each other). Left to wander the burning landscapes of the northeast are Clayton (who wants to get home to Maine, where his wife and son had been) and Tom.

Cell is timely (because of the advancements in, and current obsession with, mobile technology); it's also fun, gory, and a simple paranoia/apocalyptic horror story. It's precisely described in words King himself once used in regards to the novel: "Like cheap whiskey, it's very nasty and extremely satisfying."

For years a movie adaptation has been in the works. Now, it's finally happening. Samuel L. Jackson and, more importantly, John Cusack are starring. Cusack, in my mind, can do no wrong. And if this turns out anything like 1408 (where these two also starred), I'll be a happy camper.

Watching the trailer...I'm not fond that "ground zero" goes from out on the streets of Boston in the novel to the interior of the airport terminals (why change it?). I hope the movie depicts The Pulse's wide impacts (as King described constant explosions and pure insanity occurring all around within close range and in the distance), and goes into what makes the phoners (including their leader, The Raggedy Man) unique rather than just having them all be zombie-tropes.

I read somewhere that King wrote the screenplay, or a draft of it, so hopefully that's true.

I'm more concerned about this one staying true to the source material than the adaptation of A Monster Calls. King's movies tend to be drastically different than his books.

I guess time will tell.