Cujo is one of my favorite Stephen King
novels and the film adaptation is also one of my favorite retellings
of one of his stories with the exception of the ending.
I can't believe what I am about to say
could be a spoiler to anyone who is reading this site but just in
case, I am about to give away key story elements so if you don't know
anything about the book or the film you may want to stop reading now.
Okay, so in the book the ending is
horrible and gut wrenching. The little boy, Tad dies. I remember
reading the book and just being mortified that Tad died. I couldn't
believe it. It really bothered me. I thought about it for days.
When the film came out I was curious to see how this ending was
handled but was unprepared for what they did. They let Tad live.
The ending of the film ruins the entire viewing. It did then and it
still does now. I understand why the film makers did it, I just
don't agree with it.
That being said, everything else about
CUJO is nothing short of fantastic. The acting, the story, the FX,
it all works and blends together into a seamless all to possible
series of events that is terrifying on level that any human can
understand.
One of Kings most powerful stories CUJO
tells the tale of a mother and son trapped in their car in a remote
area by a huge Saint Bernard that has become rabid and is hell bent
on having himself a little human snack. Most of the story takes
place in the front seat of a car and director Lewis Teague and his
cinematographer Jan Debont do an amazing job of keeping the story
flowing and keeping the images interesting enough that your eyes
don't ever once dare flash away from the screen.
Dee Wallace Stone is fantastic in this
film turning in what I think is possibly her best performance ever.
Yes, she's that good.
It is hard to believe that it has been
25 years since Cujo first drooled on the silver screen but it has and
this new disc celebrates that fact and in grand style. The film
looks and sounds the best I've ever seen and the disc includes a
three part making of docu that I found very enjoyable. It was
great fun to listen to Teague and Debont discuss how they achieved
some of the films ground breaking shots and listen to the stories of
the hardships that the film endured.
Great stuff.
Everything considered CUJO is a
wonderful, terrifying tale that is certainly worthy of you viewing
again if you've already seen it and a must see if you've never had
the chance to check it out.
I only wish that the film makers hadn't
pulled their punch at the end. The film could have had one of the
most dramatic, horrible, gut wrenching endings ever put on film
instead it ends up playing out like a clichι of itself and
having the dog jump through the window for the one last scare really
seems silly and unneeded.
All in all though CUJO is a wonderful
adaption of an extraordinary novel and I highly recommend you add it
to your collection.
CUJO is available now.
