Doctor Sleep

Doctor Sleep was an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Stephen King. It was a direct sequel to The Shining. The book was fantastic.

The movie is also just as good as the book, having been directed by Mike Flanagan.

The always great Rebecca Ferguson stars as the villain, a woman who leads a group of psychic vampires. They stalk the landscape in their camper caravan, looking to devour any humans with the Shining ability.

And Ferguson goes barefoot for a good portion of the film's running time.

This year marks the fifth anniversary of Doctor Sleep's release. If you haven't seen this yet, give it a shot, it goes great with The Shining.

Doctor Sleep

I finally saw Doctor Sleep, and I was pleasantly surprised at how good it was--as well as the fact that its lead actress, Rebecca Ferguson, goes barefoot a great deal here.

Ferguson plays the leader of a pack of psychic vampires who devour people with the Shining to extend their lives.

I don't want to get too much into the story line--other than the fact that it's a sequel to The Shining, with Ewan McGregor playing the now-adult Danny.

Ferguson is great as the formidable villain, who finds herself up against some equally formidable adversaries.

Be warned that this is an R-rated horror movie that doesn't pull any punches. But if you're a fan of the cinematic version of The Shining, then you might want to give this movie a shot. If nothing else, it's got some nice BF scenes.

The Shining on TV

It's well-known that Stephen King hated the film version of his novel The Shining, which was directed by Stanley Kubrick. So much so that King had a TV miniseries made of The Shining that aired in 1997.

Rebecca De Mornay played Wendy, a part played by Shelley Duvall in the Kubrick film.

There's a nice BF moment in the miniseries when De Mornay's Wendy comes downstairs to playfully entice Jack to go up with her so they can make some whoopee.

She goes barefoot throughout this whole scene, which also has her sitting down at one point to talk some sense into Jack (who's already in the thrall of the haunted hotel--and he would have to be in order to turn down an offer like this).

The movie version of Doctor Sleep (the sequel to the Shining) is now out, and I plan to watch it soon. I really enjoyed the novel.

It Returns

2019 is shaping up to be a good year for Stephen King fans (like me). First the remake of Pet Sematary came out (which I haven't seen yet, but I plan to see it soon), then they released a trailer for Doctor Sleep, and now this trailer is released for IT: Chapter Two.

I like the casting of the adult versions of the Losers Club, including Jessica Chastain, James McAvoy, and Bill Hader. Jessica Chastain has worked with IT director Andy Muschietti once before, on another horror film called Mama. I'm really looking forward to seeing this cinematic showdown with Pennywise (Bill Skarsgård).

Doctor Sleep

I thought Doctor Sleep, the sequel to The Shining, was a fantastic book. And this movie version is being directed by Mike Flanagan, who did a great job with The Haunting of Hill House on Netflix. So yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing this one.

And seeing 'REDRUM' written like it was on screen gave me chills. It's also interesting how the sequel film seems to be leaning into more aspects from The Shining film, directed by Stanley Kubrick, which Stephen King famously hates. There are even clips from The Shining in the trailer. This trailer gave me a nice little Halloween chill in June.

Ellen's in for a surprise

Lisa Brenner stars as Ellen Rimbauer in The Dairy Of (you guessed it) Ellen Rimbauer. This is a prequel to the TV miniseries Rose Red, which was written by Stephen King. King did not write Ellen's tale.

This prequel tries to explain some of the creepy shit in Rose Red, and apparently it all starts with kinky sex.

Ellen, asleep in bed, awakens to find her husband tying her wrists and ankles to the bedposts. He's decided that it's time for something a little different.

As you might expect, Ellen's not too sure about this. Which is understandable, seeing how he just sprung this on her while she was sleeping. I mean, no wonder their mansion is haunted, seeing how little communication these two had as a couple. Dr. Phil would have a field day with these two.

You can download this clip right here.

Gerald's Game and Ryta

I remember when Gerald's Game first came out (and I still have my first edition hardcover copy), and at the time I thought if they would ever make this into a movie, that Michelle Pfeiffer would star. But back then I had pretty much imagined every famous female star cuffed to the bed in King's story.

But Carla Gugino got cast, and I'm glad she did. The book was written before the advent of cell phones and voice-activated home "servants" like Alexa. I'm wondering how the film will deal with this--if at all; it could be a period piece where they don't have this tech. It premieres on Netflix on September 29, so we'll see.

In other news, the writing on the new Ryta book is going well. It depends on the overall length, but I'm a third of the way through it and still plugging along, no matter what. For the latest news on the newest Ryta book, you can keep it right here.

It In The Hat

You would think this was a trailer for IT, the new movie coming out this week. But you would be wrong. It's a trailer about something much, much scarier: The Cat In The Hat. But not just the book--oh no, this is the Mike Meyers Cat In The Hat movie...now THAT'S really scary!

"You'll float too..."

We finally get to hear Pennywise (Bill Skarsgård) speak in this trailer, and when he did ("Take...it...") it gave me chills. I enjoyed the 1990 miniseries that had Tim Curry as Pennywise. But I read the novel by Stephen King when it was first published, and I didn't appreciate the changes the TV miniseries made. I'm hoping this new version will do the book justice. If nothing else, I just hope it'll be a good scare.

On that note, my horror novel about a female cop fighting a cult is finally done. Now begins the formatting process. I should have this ready very soon, now. Hopefully by next weekend. Keep it here for the latest news.

Happy Birthday Stephen King

Today is Stephen King's birthday. Happy Birthday, Steve! The very first Stephen King novel I read was back when I was a kid. It was The Shining. I remember being amazed at just how scary it was, and the book opened my eyes to the power of good writing.

I've posted an interview session between King and George R.R. Martin, the creator behind Game Of Thrones. It's pretty informative, entertaining, and funny. Enjoy.