What it’s about?
A dark tower exists that protects the universe from a demonic apocalypse. The tower can be destroyed by the mind of a child. The Man in Black (Matthew McConaughey) is locked in an eternal struggle with the Last Gunslinger (Idris Elba), as one tries to bring the tower down and the other tries to defend it. One child is caught in the middle of it all.
What did we think?
Elizabeth Best says: I immediately wanted to watch more of The Dark Tower when the credits rolled. Not because it was a stellar movie, but because I felt like there was SO much we didn’t see. Moviemakers saw fit to compress EIGHT Stephen King books into one movie, leaving the intriguing premise feeling rushed and under explained. This needs to be a TV show so I can binge the crap out of it rather than a movie that piqued my interest but left me dissatisfied.
What’s it about?
Something about a gunslinger (guy with a gun – goodie), another guy that always wears black (baddie) who’s bad, a really tall tower that protects the universe, and kids’ minds being used to knock it down.
What did we think?
I thought this was pretty crap, but then I’m not the target demographic. Fans of fantasy (and particular fans of Stephen King’s series of Dark Tower books) will probably love this movie, with Idris Elba putting in a stirling (and pretty darn sexy) effort as the gun-slinging saviour of all that is good. And young Tom Taylor as Jake is perfectly entertaining as the world-crossing teen – we’ll be seeing more of him. Why Matthew McConaughey agreed to play the villain god only knows. He’s not horrific, but the cheese dripping from his lines is only partially offset by a couple of cracking funnies.
It’s a brave attempt to convert a rich, complex universe into a single, coherent (and all-too-brief) movie but ultimately it lacks the detail and development the story deserves. That’s not to say it’s a bad film – it’s actually just ok – but even people who haven’t read the books will feel like there was something more missing. Good acting (McConnaghy plays a great bad guy and Idris Elba plays Idris Elba), good effects and the skeleton of a good story means it’s an ok popcorn movie rather than the extravagant franchise it could have been.