Trailer for Netflix adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘1922’ is available
The trailer for the latest Stephen King story to be adapted, “1922,” has become available. The Netflix movie, based on a novella published in 2010, concerns a farmer named Wilford James who lives in Nebraska and is resisting the idea of selling his farm and moving to the city. His wife, Arlette, very much wants to move to the city and may divorce him and take their son with her to do it. So Wilford decides that the only way he can live the bucolic life he desires is to horribly murder his wife. While he succeeds and, apparently, gets away with it, the deed turns out to be the biggest mistake he ever made, this being a Stephen King story.
Like many stories of this sort, “1922” is somewhat ambivalent as to whether Wilford is really being haunted by the spirit of his dead wife or whether what is happening is in his guilt-ridden imagination. For those who tend to be squeamish, the haunting or the delusion, depending on how one approaches it, features lots of rats.
A couple of connections to other Stephen King stories exist in “1922.” The farmhouse, Hemmington Home, featured in the story is also the home of Mother Abagail in “The Stand.” The nearby Nebraska town is also where Ben Hanscom, one of the kids in “It,” moves to when he grows up, slims down, and becomes an architect.
Stephen King is one of the most adapted authors in history, with his stories going to the big and small screens ever since 1976’s “Carrie,” remade in 2013. Netflix has already adapted “Gerald’s Game,” which is dropping on September 29, 2017. “The Dark Tower” and “It,” both classic King novels, are currently running in movie theaters.
So far reaction from critics who have seen the Netflix version of “1922” have been overwhelmingly positive. Four out of five critics on Rotten Tomatoes gave the adaptation a “fresh” rating. The reviews were particularly impressed by actor Thomas Jane’s portrayal of Wilford James’ grimness and the film’s “dark themes.”
King, who has seen a rough cut, has giving his approval for the adaptation, stating that “it won’t leave my mind. That is super creepy!" On the other hand, King liked “Dark Tower” a film that both critics and audiences have rejected.
Stephen King’s “1922” is due to be released on Netflix on October 20, 2017.
