Kevin's Watch

I think these two movies are, without a doubt, the best King movies out there. Trouble is, it's hard to decide which one, sometimes. I love both. I think I love the Shining more, as it's Kubrick, and he's my favorite director. Shawshank is so different from the usual horror stuff King is known best for, I was amazed to find out it was based on something of his. Great movies.

I'm loyal to The Shining, but Shawshank is a classy movie as well. I was surprised too that Shawshank was based on a King story. But I think that's the key thing to keep in mind: King's novella was the basis material, but Frank Darabont forged a great screenplay from it that stands on its own. Kudos to Mr. Darabont for crafting such an amazing adaptation. (He is now one of the top guns in Hollywood: as I understand it, a screenwriter of Darabont's stature can easily command $500,000 or more for a script.)

Shawshank.

I like the Shining but the Kubrick version shifted the focus away too much from the boy and onto Nicholson's character.

Kubrick found the book's heart, though. The movie had all the atmosphere and horror of the book, and that, IMHO, is what counts. Plus, attempting too much to be like the book can be a bad thing. Just look at King's version of the Shining, the 1997 mini-series.

I prefer Shawshank (has anyone else noticed that this flick is shown on some cable station almost WEEKLY?) to Shining.

However, The Green Mile is better than both of them. In fact, I would go so far as to say The Green Mile is the ONLY movie I've ever seen that I thought was superior to the novel it was based on . . . and I really liked King's novel. The Green Mile was absolutely robbed when it didn't win the Academy Award for Best Picture.

As for The Shining, I liked two things Kubrick did which King's novel did not.

One, using the maze instead of the topiary.

And two, the great scene in which Jack has been shown to be typing "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy," for hundreds and hundreds of pages, all winter long. The idea of doing that sends chills down my spine.

I dunno, I can't say the Green Mile is better, but that's just me. I have it on DVD though, and it's waaaay up there on my short list of really good King movies. Excellent cinema.

I know what you mean about movies that surpass the book. A very rare thing. I'd have to say the Godfather did it. Maybe Clockwork Orange. Maybe.

Kubrick found the book's heart, though. The movie had all the atmosphere and horror of the book

Horror through the eyes of a child is always more powerful and that is what Kubrick's version is missing so I have to disagree with your assessment that Kubrick found the book's heart.

The Green Mile is very good but the closing book end fumbles the ball big time by not showing Mr. Jingles passing on. This changes the tone of the story from one of eventual peace to perpetual purgatory. Plus I would have liked the prisoners scenes of their last rites being administered to have been shown. Those were some of the most powerful moments in the book.

Awwwk - the above post is mine.

Cry your pardon!

SR is one of my favorite movies of all time. It's simply an outstanding story. As to the Shining, I definitely prefer Nicholson's version to the 1997 mini-series. It's really the only movie that I thought Nicholson was good in, apart from Batman.

I would give the narrow edge to Shawshank over The Shining, but The Green Mile is superior to both.

jack starts out crazy in the Shining, it needed to be slower. I liked the recentish miniseries much better.

My favorite King movie is The Dead Zone. Walken nails Johnny.

Both the Shining and Shawshank are good films, but they're both so far off the range, they're not very good (faithful) interpretations. Much like Bladerunner was a great film but a lousy adaptation of P K Dick's book.

hrm...
1) Shawshank
2) Shinning
3) Green Mile
4) It

For Me:

1. Shawshank
2. Green Mile
2.1 The Shining
247. It, the Stand


Loved the Top 3 movies, was dissapointed in It the miniseries. Loved the book so much but the casting in It as well as The Stand was horrible, as was the butchered script. JMHO!

I didn't think Shawshank was a particularly unfaithful redering of the story...sure, it wasn't perfect, but I don't remember any really glaring errors. The one that stands out the most was that in the book Red was white, but Morgan Freeman's portrayal of him was good enough that it didn't bother me. It being a novella made it easier to remain faithful in film I think.

Didn't much like either the book or film version of Green Mile. And while Kubrick's Shining was a good movie, it didn't grip me the way the book did.

--A

My Favorite King Movies were

1. Stand by me (based on a short story named "the Body")
2. Shawshank redemption.
3. and the Green Mile was good also
4. the Dead Zone...thanx Cail...I forgot that one.

I loved the Shining, the original one, but much different than the book...and the remake while much more along the story line as the book was lacking due to the cast.

I liked the stand too but only because i filled in the blanks since i have read it so many times.

did everyone forget about Stand by me? great movie about 4 kids in the 50s on a journey to find a kid who was hit by a train.

*nodding* yes.

Stand By Me
Shawshank Redemption
The Dead Zone
Dolores Claiborne

The Shinning doesn't even rate for me. i can't tell you how
annoyed and disappointed i was when it came out.
(there are things i appreciate it now, these many years later)
not saying it wasn't a good scary movie, it was, but i really
loved that book and so many things in the film didn't work for me.
i was not impressed with the hedge maze. i really wanted to see
those moving hedge animals like in the book.
jack was great but was NOT the character in the book.
i freakin HATE shelly duval and that whining wendy she played.
dick halloran does not freakin DIE. (scatman crothers' role).

the hotel was awesome and some of the scenes were well done ( danny, the big wheel and room 237, the girls,the bloody elevator) but truly,
i don't count it in with my fav king films just cause i was bitterly
disappointed when it first came out.

Avatar:

I didn't think Shawshank was a particularly unfaithful redering of the story

I agree. Compared to most book to film adaptations, it stayed very true to the original story.

no votes for Maximum Overdrive?

Shawshank Redemption is one of those movies that I can watch every single time I see it on (and it seems to be on all the time).

Green Mile is the same way, but it's hardly ever on.

The Shining is a decent movie, but I don't find the need to rewatch it that often.

And Maximum Overdrive... shame on you sgt.null!!