The Tommyknockers (1993) (TV)

Director:

John Power

Writers (WGA):

Lawrence D. Cohen (teleplay)
Stephen King (novel)

Release Date:

9 May 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

A chilling thriller from the master of horror.

Plot:

A buried UFO slowly turns local inhabitants into gizmo-building alien mutates.

Plot Keywords:

Invention | UFO | Alcoholic | Small Town | Alien

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy.

Cast

Jimmy Smits	...	Jim 'Gard' Gardner
Marg Helgenberger	...	Roberta 'Bobbi' Anderson
John Ashton	...	Trooper Butch Duggan
Allyce Beasley	...	Deputy Becka Paulson
Robert Carradine	...	Bryant Brown
Joanna Cassidy	...	Sheriff Ruth Merrill
Annie Corley	...	Marie Brown
Cliff De Young	...	Joe Paulson (as Cliff DeYoung)
Traci Lords	...	Nancy Voss
E.G. Marshall	...	Ev Hillman
Chuck Henry	...	Chaz Stewart
Leon Woods	...	Hilly Brown
Paul McIver	...	Davey Brown
Yvonne Lawley	...	Mabel Noyes
Bill Johnson	...	Elt Barker

Also Known As:

Stephen King's The Tommyknockers

Runtime:

181 min | 120 min (cut version) | Japan:120 min (video version)

Country:

USA | New Zealand

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | USA:Not Rated (uncut version) | Australia:PG | Germany:16 | UK:15 | USA:R | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Auckland, New Zealand

Company:

Konigsberg/Sanitsky Company

Trivia:

According to author Stephen King The Tommyknockers is an allegory for his own personal battles with substance abuse. The character of Jim Gardener is largely based upon King himself.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Tracy goes to open the lipstick laser to use it on Gard, the lipstick appears instead of the green laser, as in all the other scenes when she went to use the laser, there was no lipstick in it.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Tomi Knockers (1994) (V)

Initially promising, ultimately very disappointing

Aside from the odd exception, Stephen King has rarely transfered well to the big or small screen, and along comes this little mini-series which is a by-numbers example of what actually gets lost in translation. Firstly: when these novels are adapted for the screen, fundamental elements of the plot are excised or replaced, and this is true of even the better King-flicks ("The Shining" and "Carrie" are just as guilty as pulp trash like "Needful Things" and "Cujo"). "The Tommyknockers" begins as if it's going to buck the trend, establishing the majority of the usual King misfits early on, and actually adds a little suspense by not showing its hand too early - for example, this adaptation does not make clear what's buried out back in Bobbie's farm straight away. But as the town begins to be affected by said item, it's off into it's own world, and toss the novel out the window. Granted, some of the more imaginative gimmicks the township dreams up cannot be translated to screen with the appropriate panache, especially with the meagre budget allocated to this project - but does everything need to look so cheap? Much of the dialogue at best doesn't ring true, at worse stinks. Witness the actually quite good Marg Helgenberger delivering some awful lines ("Gard, let's experience it together!") but in an offhand way that suggests that she's really aware that she's not in a Mamet play, but, Hell, let's make the best of it anyway. Any good points? Well, Joanna Cassidy is always worth watching, but an actress of her class still can't make a thrown together middle-age romance look realistic. Helgenberger and Allyce Beasley come out of it with the least mud sticking. Worst crimes? Jimmy Smits completely miscast, terrible dialogue, cheap effects, complete massacre of the source material, Traci Lords all at sea outside of a John Waters movie or skinflick ... the list goes on.