NEEDFUL THINGS
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1993 James Berardinelli
Rating (Linear 0 to 10): 5.0
Date Released: 8/27/93 Running Length: 2:03 Rated: R (Violence, language)
Starring: Max von Sydow, Ed Harris, Bonnie Bedelia, Amanda Plummer,
J. T. Walsh
Director: Fraser C. Heston
Producer: Jack Cummins
Screenplay: W. D. Richter based on the book by Stephen King
Music: Patrick Doyle
Released by Columbia Pictures
In the quiet New England town of Castle Rock, an unassuming elderly man by the name of Leland Gaunt (Max von Sydow) has arrived to open an antique shop called "Needful Things." Most of Castle Rock's residents discover some rare and coveted treasures within--a 1956 Mickey Mantle baseball card for a young boy, a china figurine for a slightly off-balance woman, a magnificent chalice for a priest, and a necklace that can take away an arthritic's pain. The price asked by Mr. Gaunt is always more than reasonable, at least where money is concerned, and if a couple of pranks have to be played to round out the deal, so be it. The only one immune to "Needful Things" appears to be Alan Pangborn (Ed Harris), the local chief of police, so when the carnage starts, it's up to him to stop it.
How is it that a film with a good cast, stylish direction and camera work, and an intriguing premise can turn out mediocre? Perhaps if the production crew had known the answer to this question, NEEDFUL THINGS would have been a far more engrossing and satisfying motion picture experience than it actually is.
What at the outset is the film's strength turns into its greatest liability. The basic concept is solid: a gentle-seeming yet truly sinister old man comes into town and acts as a catalyst to incite people's greed to turn them against one another. Unfortunately, once that has happened, the movie doesn't know where to go with the story, so it turns to the old Hollywood stand-bys of a pyrotechnics show, a lot of dumb dialogue, and an ending that is unlikely to satisfy many.
The final scene isn't the problem; it's the one that immediately precedes it. This is so dumb that I felt like yelling at the screen. The big payoff in NEEDFUL THINGS is a gyp, and it takes the rest of the film down a couple of notches. Those that sit through this picture deserve more than they're given.
It's too bad about the climax, because the bulk of the overly-long film shows promise. There are the usual horror staples, like the meat cleaver in the head and the shock-tactic swell of music, but most of the story is scripted with the intelligent viewer in mind, and the villain of the piece never dirties his hands. The terror here is more psychological than physical, and the real root of evil lies in the cupidity of the citizens of Castle Rock. Leland Gaunt only causes it to surface.
Max von Sydow is an inspired casting choice, and the performance he turns in is by far the best thing about NEEDFUL THINGS. He manages a kind of gentlemanly wickedness that keeps the audience off-balance. He's the bad guy, all right--there's never any doubt about that--but he's so cultured and smooth, and delivers the one-liners so bitingly, that it's almost impossible not to have a sneaking admiration for him. Certainly, it's von Sydow's rendering of Gaunt that keeps the movie from becoming tedious.
Ed Harris, Bonnie Bedelia, and Amanda Plummer have shown great ability in the past, but none of that is evident here. The best of the three is Bedelia, and her role is relatively small. Plummer is so bad that she comes close to creating a caricature. Harris, who's supposed to be playing the heroic lawman, is about as potent as a limp noodle.
If he hasn't done so well with three of the four main actors, at least first-time feature director Fraser C. Heston (son of Charlton) can boast excellent cinematography (by Tony Westman) and a creepy atmosphere. NEEDFUL THINGS consistently looks nice, even during its most banal scenes. Some of the choppy pacing is clearly Heston's fault, but the editor cannot absolve himself entirely of blame.
In the three Kenneth Branagh films he scored (HENRY V, DEAD AGAIN, and this summer's MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING), Patrick Doyle showed significant versatility and range. Sadly, the same ability is not in evidence here, where Doyle reworks his DEAD AGAIN music into an overwrought theme that, at best, does little for the film. There are a couple of effective musical sequences, but neither uses Doyle's work, instead relying on "Ave Maria" and Grieg's "In the Hall of the Mountain King".
NEEDFUL THINGS is another example of a good idea gone awry. This seems to happen with alarming frequency when a Stephen King story is involved. Since I'm not a fan of Mr. King and can't claim to more than occasionally read his work, it's difficult for me to say whether or not this trait is indicative of his books. Whatever the case, in Leland Gaunt, NEEDFUL THINGS wastes one of the year's most intriguing villains. This is a case of a film building to an apex that isn't there. By the time the end credits roll, a lot of people will be wondering if that was really everything. Sadly, the answer is yes, but at least the time invested is repaid in part by the fine performance of Max von Sydow.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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