Like other fans of the epic tale, I have followed the on again, off again trials and tribulations of trying to bring the story of Roland Deschain, the last gunslinger, to the big screen. It’s been talked about, written about and speculated about for years. Then, it finally happened. The die was cast, the money found, the actors selected.
Stephen King’s novels have been made into movies many times, and unfortunately, most often without particular skill. Stand by Me and Shawshank Redemption stand out in a sea of mediocrity, mostly I think because they were based on short stories rather than full length novels by the king of horror. His super-sized books just don’t condense well into a 2-hour cinematic experience. The Dark Tower, at just over 90 minutes, couldn’t possibly cover the story that filled the pages of 7 full length books, a few short stories and countless references to other King novels. I shuddered with the thought of what the narrative I’d lived with for most of my life would be turned into.
When the casting was announced, I scratched my head as many other fans did. Roland Deschain was described many times in the books, and with plenty of vivid detail as is King’s habit. Additionally, each book was illustrated by various artists over the decades, and they presented a clear image of the man around whom this expansive saga was centered:
To say they took poetic license with casting Roland is to put it mildly. Putting that aside, we move to Walter O’dim, who had a rather minor role in the original Dark Tower book, although he was the object of Roland’s initial pursuit. As King fans know, Walter was just one of many names for a recurring character through the King Universe known as Randall Flagg, or The Man in Black, The Walking Dude or various common names he would don himself with, usually with the initials R.F. I don’t mean to imply that Flagg is not a significant character in The Dark Tower story, but he is not the central figure against whom Roland must face off in order to save the Universe from destruction when the Dark Tower falls. He was elevated to this position though for the film adaptation. I think Matthew McConaughey can probably play any character, and I thought he would make an excellent Flagg, so I was slightly encouraged.
When the trailers first hit, I was impressed by some of the footage and thought that perhaps, just possibly, they would get it right. I prepared to head to the theater for the opening, but read a review online and thought better of it. I resisted seeing it, but I was motivated to read the entire series again. The first time I read the series, it took over 20 years as I waited patiently for books to come out. This time, I had the luxury of reading them all, back to back.
Yesterday, with nothing much to do, I visited one of my favorite pirated movie sites and there, uploaded in glorious HD, was The Dark Tower. I set my expectations to zero and hit the play button.
The movie did not even attempt to capture the core essence of the story. It was twisted instead into an odd narrative about Jake Chambers, who in the classic books was a brave young man thrust into an ongoing battle of good vs. evil that spanned countless spinning worlds. In the movie, he was the ultimate breaker; a specific type of person with psychic abilities that readers didn’t really learn about until Hearts in Atlantis, which was decades after the first book was written.
Roland was a disillusioned gunslinger when we meet him in the film, intent only on avenging the death of his father at the hands of Walter. Roland, the last gunslinger in a world that has moved on, who chose the Dark Tower over his true love Susan Delgado, who watched all his comrades die as they joined him in his single minded determination to reach the Tower, who spent literally thousands of years in the quest, wasn’t remotely interested in it in the movie version. I’m glad my expectations were nonexistent.
I appreciated the fact that they popped lots of small references to the books into the movie, but it really didn’t make up for what was an immediately forgettable cinematic romp through Mid-World. The grandiose span of decades of King’s vision was condensed into a kind of superhero flick, with lots of special effects and very little substance. I wasn’t disappointed as much as unmoved by it. It really didn’t do anything or go anywhere. Even Matt McConaughey couldn’t add much punch, as the dialogue they gave him was so stilted. He did pull off a rather dashing looking Flagg though.
In the end, I am neither better or worse off for having seen it. It neither adds nor detracts from what is arguably my favorite yarn. I would very much welcome film adaptations of individual books in the series, like Wizard and Glass for example, or even the late addition Wind Through the Keyhole. Instead of trying to encapsulate the saving of the universe into a comic book sized movie that barely lasts long enough to finish one’s popcorn, perhaps taking small bites and staying true to the narrative would add new texture and enhancement to the beloved saga of Roland.
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