Stephen King's The Dark Tower

Zillah · 10-02-2016 5:26pm

Having waded my way up to the fifth book and finally given up, I'm very curious as to what content they are going to include. King has some cracking ideas, but he's also a dreary, lazy blowhard half the time too. I read the rest of the plot on wikipedia and I have to say, it sounds like it takes a hell of a nosedive.

Is the movie just going to be the first book, or are they planning a series?

weemcd · 10-02-2016 5:41pm

Zillah wrote: »

Having waded my way up to the fifth book and finally given up, I'm very curious as to what content they are going to include. King has some cracking ideas, but he's also a dreary, lazy blowhard half the time too. I read the rest of the plot on wikipedia and I have to say, it sounds like it takes a hell of a nosedive.

Is the movie just going to be the first book, or are they planning a series?

It does take a nosedive tbh, I found the 5th book to be the worst in the series, and if you can get past it the pace and quality picks up again a little. The series did however peak with The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass. After this all the books meander to an extent, and King becomes more and more indulgent to the point of

writing himself into the story

Before the last chapter of the last book he writes a strange letter, it's almost apologetic to the reader about how the story ends. I didn't mind the actual ending too much, what bothered me more was how much he dragged it out before getting there. The series should have been trimmed by at least one book, I personally would have cut wolves of the Calla in half, and trimmed from The Drawing of the Three also.

If they improved the pacing, edited down some of the filler and generally tightened everything up, a well made series could surpass the collection of books, as far as being a cohesive story.

Elba and McConaughey are inspired and unconventional choices. Looking forward to this a lot, despite the fact it will be very difficult to make, and even harder to do well.

intheclouds · 10-02-2016 5:57pm

^^^
Good post above, sums up the quality pretty well. However, despite flaws there were some parts I really did enjoy, but overall, yes, nosedive after Wizard and Glass.

I loved the actual ending, but, could have cut so much to get there. Cant see any movie adaptation indulging in so much rubbish tbh.

19-02-2016 11:30am

Abbey Lee (Mad Max) has been cast as Tirana

Anyone who's finished the books will find that more than a little baffling, not the actress but the role she is to play. I'd also guess many readers could struggle to recall the character, I had to look it up to remind myself.

I'm hopeful for the films and realistic in my expectation that they will not be rigidly sticking to the source at this stage.

intheclouds · 19-02-2016 11:35am

Deleted User wrote: »

Abbey Lee (Mad Max) has been cast as Tirana

They must be completely changing the storyline for a screenplay - thats the only guess I can make at it.

19-02-2016 11:42am

intheclouds wrote: »

They must be completely changing the storyline for a screenplay - thats the only guess I can make at it.

The 1st book would make for a great film especially Tull, but for a series they are going to have to introduce a few things earlier I'd say like the drawing of the three etc. but that character is just waaaaaaayyyy out of left field lol

Please let there be lobstrosities :pac:

intheclouds · 19-02-2016 11:51am

Deleted User wrote: »

Please let there be lobstrosities :pac:

Did-a-chick? Dud-a-chum?

Zillah · 19-02-2016 12:01pm

intheclouds wrote: »

Did-a-chick? Dud-a-chum?

DOD-A-CHOCK!?

Who the hell is Tirana?

intheclouds · 19-02-2016 12:05pm

Zillah wrote: »

DOD-A-CHOCK!?

Who the hell is Tirana?

She was mentioned in the Dixie Pig, very very minor.

Zillah · 19-02-2016 12:07pm

lol, all the news articles are like "DARK TOWER GETS ITS FEMALE LEAD".

Doesn't the book open "The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger and his friend Tirana followed?"

faceman · 19-02-2016 12:14pm

A character from book 7 has been cast. Surely they're not doing the series in one movie???

Zillah · 19-02-2016 12:18pm

I imagine she's going to be slinking around as a harbinger of dark forces, something like that?

19-02-2016 12:20pm

faceman wrote: »

A character from book 7 has been cast. Surely they're not doing the series in one movie???

I was thinking maybe they were replacing the Susannah/Detta/Odetta character with her perhaps? Not sure why they would though I know that character is going to be tough to pull off on screen and they will likely alter her drastically, wheelchair and racism will be out for sure I'd say.

Maybe the Tirana character will pop up in Tull and have a bigger role throughout then, even that changes a few things.

intheclouds · 19-02-2016 12:23pm

Unless its just a name change to avoid confusion, so rather than have Susannah and Susan they have Tirana and Susan?

19-02-2016 12:25pm

intheclouds wrote: »

Unless its just a name change to avoid confusion, so rather than have Susannah and Susan they have Tirana and Susan?

I could buy that yeah.

intheclouds · 19-02-2016 12:36pm

Deleted User wrote: »

I could buy that yeah.

Tirana/Detta/Odetta - but it would be a bit odd that they are announcing the name of the character as Tirana if that was it, surely itd be Odetta?

Boo Radley · 01-03-2016 3:21pm

King just tweeted this:

https://twitter.com/StephenKing/status/704674793145159680

Clegg · 01-03-2016 4:51pm

From Stephen King:

“[The movie] starts in media res, in the middle of the story instead of at the beginning, which may upset some of the fans a little bit, but they’ll get behind it, because it is the story,” King says.

McConaughey will play Randall Flagg and Elba will play Roland Deschain, the last Gunslinger. The series is hard to explain. It started off as a chase through a barren land as Roland sought Flagg, the man who had knowledge of the whereabouts of the Dark Tower. I won't spoil anymore as the plot must really be discovered rather than spelled out.

Tbh I think these are inspired casting choices.

intheclouds · 01-03-2016 5:05pm

Brilliant casting for Randall Flagg, terrible casting for Roland Deschain who was originally written with The Man With No Name in mind (ie, Clint Eastwood in Sergio Leone's "Dollars Trilogy" of Spaghetti Western films).

I think Elba is a great actor but he isnt right for this role. Its going to sharply divide the fans.

I lived these books for 15+ years, waiting on the next one to come out, rereading the previous ones..... Its a lot of time to invest in a character!

Boo Radley · 01-03-2016 5:45pm

Here's an article with lots of hints and details about where they're taking it:

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/02/29/dark-tower-rises-stephen-king-idris-elba-and-matthew-mcconaughey

Basically it seems they're starting somewhere in the middle-ish, maybe The Drawing of The Three, with the hope the film will do well and the get a run at Ron Howard's vision of a TV series companion to the films.

02-03-2016 9:54am

Anyone else annoyed they are actually using the name Randall Flagg ? Minor gripe, though I guess they have to pick one name and stick with it least people get confused

Beggars belief they are starting in the middle , the 1st two books were a perfect set up for any big screen saga , an epic chase across a desert filled with danger in pursuit of a mystery man for reasons yet unknown, an even more epic shoot out in Tull showing what a bad ass roland is, introduction and loss of the Jake character, ends with Roland on a beach with some beasties approaching.

Whats worse is reading a quote from the linked article by Boo

“A lot of it takes place in our day, in the modern world.”

....and thats me losing any hope I had for this

Boo Radley · 02-03-2016 8:58pm

Deleted User wrote: »

Anyone else annoyed they are actually using the name Randall Flagg ? Minor gripe, though I guess they have to pick one name and stick with it least people get confused

Beggars belief they are starting in the middle , the 1st two books were a perfect set up for any big screen saga , an epic chase across a desert filled with danger in pursuit of a mystery man for reasons yet unknown, an even more epic shoot out in Tull showing what a bad ass roland is, introduction and loss of the Jake character, ends with Roland on a beach with some beasties approaching.

Whats worse is reading a quote from the linked article by Boo

....and thats me losing any hope I had for this

You make a good argument as to why they could have followed the order of the books but I haven't given up hope yet. If the film does well enough we might get a TV series that gives the opening stories the attention they deserve. If that were to happen the fact the first film starts later wouldn't bother me at all.

They seem to have a game plan so let's hope it pans out.

GerB40 · 02-03-2016 9:39pm

Maybe the desert parts like following the man in black and meeting Jake will be flashbacks meant to explain why he's guilty (there are other words than these) when the movie begins...

RDM_83 again · 02-03-2016 10:32pm

I wasn't a huge fan of the series of books, I gave up after the 3rd one I think but I thought the basic idea was pretty good and I did read enough to get a mental image of Roland.

Idris Elba as the main character stinks of flavour of the month casting, even leaving aside the skin colour thing* he just doesn't have the physical look to be the aged weathered gun slinger who isn't in the best shape (and this is very much spelled out) and Elba's acting that I have seen (luthor, Wire, Beasts of no Nation) he doesn't "act" in a way that suits his character.

Its just a terrible terrible choice, in my view even if you resticted your casting to only black actors that have been in The Wire you already have a much better candidate,Michael Kenneth Williams, he would be a much better physically for the role

MV5BNDMxMjgwOTU3Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTg1Nzk3OA@@._V1__SX1303_SY606_.jpg

MV5BNDMxMjgwOTU3Ml5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwOTg1Nzk3OA@@._V1__SX1303_SY606_.jpg

MV5BMTc5MDc3MDQwM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjgyNTU4MQ@@._V1__SX1303_SY606_.jpg

and his acting style seems more suited

* which makes a big difference to the Black supremacist lady character, this isn't changing a protagonist who is a blank slate, other characters interactions and the book itself give a good view of what race he is and how the main character looks

ps Idris for Bond I can very much get behind the idea but this is a bad sign in terms of these films (and Stephen King is a great writer but in terms of movies he has a track record that means you should not have to listen too him).

weemcd · 02-03-2016 10:35pm

The bad feelings are already starting to set in for me when they said they were starting in the middle.

The opening to the gunslinger has to be one of the most perfect openings to a story ever. First time I saw them quoted I knew I had to read it.

Liam McPoyle · 18-05-2016 3:15pm

First on set photos have been leaked, they are on the Daily Mirror site.

For good or for bad its going ahead with Elba.

Agent Coulson · 18-05-2016 4:30pm

intheclouds · 18-05-2016 4:33pm

He looks great.

But he isnt Roland.

Kur4mA · 18-05-2016 8:17pm

intheclouds wrote: »

He looks great.

But he isnt Roland.

Yup, I tried to have an open mind when they announced Elba got the part... but that is not Roland Deschain.

Heckler · 19-05-2016 12:19am

Kur4mA wrote: »

Yup, I tried to have an open mind when they announced Elba got the part... but that is not Roland Deschain.

Agreed.

Hows all Odettas railing against the white devil Roland going to work ? Imagine the uproar if they cast a white actress as her.

Like Elba as an actor just fine but this, in context of the story, is bad casting.

19-05-2016 12:42am

Heckler wrote: »

Agreed.

Hows all Odettas railing against the white devil Roland going to work ? Imagine the uproar if they cast a white actress as her.

Like Elba as an actor just fine but this, in context of the story, is bad casting.

They can just call him the black devil and I really don't think there would be any uproar if they cast a white actress. Honestly in this day and age all that should matter when it comes to casting is that they cast the best person for the job, skin colour should not be a factor. Elba is a great actor and based on the single photo we have seen which has no context around it looks fine as Roland.

Sad Professor · 19-05-2016 1:00am

Casting Odetta as white is a great idea. It's the perfect solution to this non-existent problem of casting a black man as Roland. There's nothing shocking or controversial about a racist white woman. A racist black woman, even if she does have split personalities, would give more pause.

Elba/Roland looks awesome. I'm actually interested in this film now, which I wasn't before. Despite the various descriptions and cover art of Roland looking like Clint or King himself, I always thought it jarred with his personality as written.

Heckler · 19-05-2016 1:03am

Deleted User wrote: »

They can just call him the black devil and I really don't think there would be any uproar if they cast a white actress. Honestly in this day and age all that should matter when it comes to casting is that they cast the best person for the job, skin colour should not be a factor. Elba is a great actor and based on the single photo we have seen which has no context around it looks fine as Roland.

Oh FFs. And what about her relationship with Eddie that had colour issues too? Make Eddie black ?

What about the reference to Rolands piercing bombardier blues eyes every second minute ?

Already said I have no issue with Elba as an actor. Hes terrific. Why you think hes the best person for the job is strange. You think hes the best actor in the world ? He's not.

I'd be just as annoyed if they cast Al Pacino/Robert De Niro as Roland. Or take your pick of who you think is the best actor in the world.

Any reader of the series of books knows Roland was based in appearance on the Man with No Name. Never mind in the last book hes said to resemble a certain author.

Sure they can change what you mentioned but why should they ? Just to cast Elba or another black actor ? For what reason ? To appease a demographic ? To be PC ? So everyones gonna be okay with a white actress calling Elba a n****er every 5 minutes ?

Sad Professor · 19-05-2016 1:05am

Heckler wrote: »

What about the reference to Rolands piercing bombardier blues eyes every second minute ?

They'll just have to write around this. Hopefully it won't require too many plot changes.

Heckler · 19-05-2016 1:06am

Sad Professor wrote: »

Casting Odetta as white is a great idea. It's the perfect solution to this non-existent problem of casting a black man as Roland. There's nothing shocking or controversial about a racist white woman. A racist black woman, even if she does have split personalities, would give more pause.

Elba/Roland looks awesome. I'm actually interested in this film now, which I wasn't before. Despite the various descriptions and cover art of Roland looking like Clint or King himself, I always thought it jarred with his personality as written.

How so ?

Heckler · 19-05-2016 1:07am

Sad Professor wrote: »

They'll just have to write around this. Hopefully it won't require too many plot changes.

Haha I get your point but changing a major storyline is going to cause problems for fans.

Sad Professor · 19-05-2016 1:08am

Heckler wrote: »

How so ?

I don't know, it just did. He talked too much and was too articulate for me to picture him as TMWNN.

Heckler · 19-05-2016 1:10am

Sad Professor wrote: »

I don't know, it just did. He talked too much and was too articulate for me to picture him as TMWNN.

I just wonder why they had to made the change. I find it hard to believe they couldn't have cast a white actor which would have meant none of this messing around with the source material.

Why not make Tom Robinson in To kill a mockingbird white ? Carl Lee Hailey in a Time to Kill ?

intheclouds · 19-05-2016 7:58am

Sad Professor wrote: »

Casting Odetta as white is a great idea. It's the perfect solution to this non-existent problem of casting a black man as Roland. There's nothing shocking or controversial about a racist white woman. A racist black woman, even if she does have split personalities, would give more pause.

Elba/Roland looks awesome. I'm actually interested in this film now, which I wasn't before. Despite the various descriptions and cover art of Roland looking like Clint or King himself, I always thought it jarred with his personality as written.

Um, what about the whole Odetta civil rights activism and major involvement in the civil rights movement? There wasn't a white civil rights movement.

Nobody cares what colour a character in a story is, but this guy simply isn't going to (a) match anyone's mental image of Roland and (b) be able to play out certain storylines.

Plenty of us have waited 20+ years to see this story brought to life onscreen, and now from the get go I know it's not going to work.

It might be a good movie, a great movie even, but it won't be The Dark Tower. Not without Roland and his cool blue shooters eyes.

Liam McPoyle · 19-05-2016 8:06am

I've read and reread TDT many times over the last 20 years so have the mental image of Roland in my mind. All the graphic novels and illustrations in the hardbacks have him as white, he is described in the books as white.

So I, as I'm sure many, just dont buy him as Roland.

It's a trivial annoyance though and i for one am very excited to see how it turns out. After all the false dawns its brilliant to finally see it in production.

Sad Professor · 19-05-2016 11:21am

intheclouds wrote: »

Um, what about the whole Odetta civil rights activism and major involvement in the civil rights movement? There wasn't a white civil rights movement.

White people were involved in the African American civil rights movement as well. If anything making Odetta white makes her character even more effective. She's a white southerner who supported civil rights, but her split personality is a vile racist.

Details like this are easily adapted. I appreciate, however, that many book fans are adopting a purist position on this film and will accept nothing but absolute fidelity to the books. Unfortunately that just isn't possible and tbh changing the colour of Roland's skin or his eyes is going to be the least of the changes.

Liamalone · 19-05-2016 11:54am

intheclouds wrote: »

Nobody cares what colour a character in a story is, but this guy simply isn't going to (a) match anyone's mental image of Roland and (b) be able to play out certain storylines.

Nail on head

19-05-2016 3:24pm

I think that the issue regarding the casting of Elba says more about the people who have issue with it than anything else. The whole race aspect of the casting is ridiculous and if you have an issue with the colour of Elba's eyes compared to how they are described in the novel then nothing is going to make you happy. This is an adaptation, it's supposed to take the best of the novel and reinterpret it, the most born book to film adaptations are ones like Sin City which are slavishly loyal to the source material and not at all interesting.

The Dark Tower may very well be a complete and utter mess of a film but it's worth at least watching the film before slating it over things like casting. Jack Reacher featured an actor nothing like what was described in the books and yet the film worked rather well.

Liamalone · 19-05-2016 3:55pm

[Deleted User] wrote: »

I think that the issue regarding the casting of Elba says more about the people who have issue with it than anything else. The whole race aspect of the casting is ridiculous and if you have an issue with the colour of Elba's eyes compared to how they are described in the novel then nothing is going to make you happy. This is an adaptation, it's supposed to take the best of the novel and reinterpret it, the most born book to film adaptations are ones like Sin City which are slavishly loyal to the source material and not at all interesting.

The Dark Tower may very well be a complete and utter mess of a film but it's worth at least watching the film before slating it over things like casting. Jack Reacher featured an actor nothing like what was described in the books and yet the film worked rather well.

Come on down from up there before you fall, mon.

Liam McPoyle · 19-05-2016 7:43pm

Deleted User wrote: »

I think that the issue regarding the casting of Elba says more about the people who have issue with it than anything else. The whole race aspect of the casting is ridiculous and if you have an issue with the colour of Elba's eyes compared to how they are described in the novel then nothing is going to make you happy. This is an adaptation, it's supposed to take the best of the novel and reinterpret it, the most born book to film adaptations are ones like Sin City which are slavishly loyal to the source material and not at all interesting.

The Dark Tower may very well be a complete and utter mess of a film but it's worth at least watching the film before slating it over things like casting. Jack Reacher featured an actor nothing like what was described in the books and yet the film worked rather well.

Who has slated it?

Nobody.

People have raised questions about changing the ethnicity of the main character, that's all.

Heckler · 20-05-2016 12:03am

Deleted User wrote: »

I think that the issue regarding the casting of Elba says more about the people who have issue with it than anything else. The whole race aspect of the casting is ridiculous and if you have an issue with the colour of Elba's eyes compared to how they are described in the novel then nothing is going to make you happy. This is an adaptation, it's supposed to take the best of the novel and reinterpret it, the most born book to film adaptations are ones like Sin City which are slavishly loyal to the source material and not at all interesting.

The Dark Tower may very well be a complete and utter mess of a film but it's worth at least watching the film before slating it over things like casting. Jack Reacher featured an actor nothing like what was described in the books and yet the film worked rather well.

So easy to throw racist accusations at anyone who doubts Elbas casting and thats exactly what you did in you first sentence so don't deny it. (more about the people )I and many others rate Elba as a terrific actor. Just not for this role.

Even despite the overall description that doesn't fit, the gunslinger is frequently described as gaunt, thin with an inner strength that belies his look. Elba looks with that physique that he'd pull your head off with his bare hands.

Noones racist. Again I ask, would John Grishams A Time to Kill have had the same impact if Carl Lee was white ? Of course not.

It might be an ok standalone film but I think its only going to be the Dark Tower in name. Its going to piss off fans off the series (and bear in mind this series is running for 2 decades). People who go to see it without knowing the series are going to be thinking WTF was that about.

Maybe if it had Frank Darabont at the helm it might have have had a chance.

I hope against hope its going to be great but I fear its going to be a fan, critic and commercial bomb.

I find it hard to see who outside fans of the Dark Tower series are interested and the majority of them are probably in their late 30's or 40's now.

So unless they play it close to the book it's gonna flop. Which is a shame. Its such a great series. Its practically unfilmable outside a major tv series tbh.

And sure i'll be pissy. Elba looks he walked of a set. He doesn't have Rolands crisscrossed gunbelts. (when the gun fans get hold of any revolvers Elba shows I think he'll be torn apart) He doesn't have the weary battered look described in the books. I'm sure as **** Hollywood isn't going to have him fingerless in one hand for most of it and as for him carrying around a black leg amputee on his back......

For noone with knowledge of the source it might be ok. For fans its going to be a huge (maybe inevitable) disappointment.

OwaynOTT · 20-05-2016 12:11am

Heckler wrote: »

So easy to throw racist accusations at anyone who doubts Elbas casting and thats exactly what you did in you first sentence so don't deny it. (more about the people )I and many others rate Elba as a terrific actor. Just not for this role.

Even despite the overall description that doesn't fit, the gunslinger is frequently described as gaunt, thin with an inner strength that belies his look. Elba looks with that physique that he'd pull your head off with his bare hands.

Noones racist. Again I ask, would John Grishams A Time to Kill have had the same impact if Carl Lee was white ? Of course not.

It might be an ok standalone film but I think its only going to be the Dark Tower in name. Its going to piss off fans off the series (and bear in mind this series is running for 2 decades). People who go to see it without knowing the series are going to be thinking WTF was that about.

Maybe if it had Frank Darabont at the helm it might have have had a chance.

I hope against hope its going to be great but I fear its going to be a fan, critic and commercial bomb.

Series ran for the 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s. Im not sure of the release date for a wind through the keyhole, which might push the series in this decade too. So 4 decades and possibly five.
Not that it matters.

Heckler · 20-05-2016 12:36am

OwaynOTT wrote: »

Series ran for the 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s. Im not sure of the release date for a wind through the keyhole, which might push the series in this decade too. So 4 decades and possibly five.
Not that it matters.

Maybe doubting you. Can you reference me the Gunslinger back in the 70's ? The book that is.

The Tower, the Rose maybe not the gunslinger I don't think.

Get you with the earlier ones but King didn't put them together into a coherent book till 2003.

Sad Professor · 20-05-2016 1:48am

AVClub suggest they might be pulling something similar to what Abrams did with Star Trek.

http://www.avclub.com/article/stephen-king-may-have-just-revealed-huge-twist-dar-237067?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=feeds

Heckler · 20-05-2016 4:09am

Sad Professor wrote: »

AVClub suggest they might be pulling something similar to what Abrams did with Star Trek.

http://www.avclub.com/article/stephen-king-may-have-just-revealed-huge-twist-dar-237067?utm_medium=RSS&utm_campaign=feeds

That could work and melt the mind.

Stephen King's The Dark Tower

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