THE DEAD ZONE

* * * ½

STARRING: Christopher Walken, Brooke Adams, Tom Skerritt, Herbert Lom, Anthony Zerbe, Colleen Dewhurst, Martin Sheen, Nicholas Campbell

1983, 103 Minutes, Directed by: David Cronenberg

Description: Christopher Walken plays Smith, a man who awakens from a five-year coma with the very mixed blessing of second sight. At the mere touch of a hand, Smith is unwillingly launched into scenes of past and future terror. (Director Cronenberg is said to have fired blanks from a .357 Magnum just out of camera range to keep Walken's flinching spontaneous.)  — Amazon.com

Very good film based on a novel by Stephen King about a man who can "see" the fate of a person merely by touching him or her. Walken plays (for a change) a quite sympathetic character as the man with the psychic powers.

Despite the reputation of both Stephen King and director Cronenberg (Videodrome, Scanners) there is very little blood and gore in this film. Don't believe me? Then go see for yourself . . .

Sci-Fi Movie Page Pick: Better than Cujo . . .Not quite sci-fi, but this is probably one of the best Stephen King adaptations to have hit the big screen, maybe because of its novelistic slant. Who knows? Sure, half-way through it meanders a bit, but having seen it again on the telly recently I can attest that it still holds up - thanks to an excellent Christopher (Communion, Pulp Fiction) Walken in a rare sympathetic role . . .

Voted
# 75
of the
Top 100 Sci-Fi Movies
of all time
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