The Dark Tower

Actors: Idris Elba, Matthew McConaughey, Tom Taylor, Claudia Kim, Fran Kranz, Abbey Lee, Katheryn Winnick, Jackie Earle Haley

Rating: 9 out of 10, This is one of my favorite books (actually series of books) from the Master (Mr. King) and I’d eagerly awaited the movie version. I understood the dilution required of reducing a multi-book, dense story into a two hour movie would require the excision of a lot of texture and that certainly happened. The story, however, still sings as Roland, the last gunfighter, tries to save the Dark Tower from the man in black. The movie only brings in only one of the Earth’s allies Roland’s picks up in his travels which was the most painful exclusion for me. Idris Elba is tone perfect as Roland. I’d heard a lot of bad things about the movie going in but I think this was a gallant attempt to tell a witheringly thick tale in the short time a movie allows. I devour all of King’s works, especially the Dark Tower series, and while this is a very pale shadow of the written word, for me it still resonated. I know this will get me in trouble with some of more fanatic fellow fans of the Master but I liked it.

MVP: Elba as the constant and haunted warrior Roland