Rent The Dead Zone (1983)
3.6 of 5 from 169 ratings
1h 43min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Johnny Smith (Christopher Walken) is high-school teacher, a car-crash victim who wakes up from a 5-year coma with the ability to see into people's future. Consequently this extra sensory perception enables Johnny to avert several potential disasters and earns him a degree of local celebrity. After his 5 missing years however, Johnny has lost both his job and his fiance and he longs for his former existence without his new 'gift'. That is until he meets with a local politician and would-be Presidential candidate Greg Stillson (Martin Sheen) and sees future events of genuinely catalysmic proportions. It is only then that Johnny must come to terms with his powers, his conscience, and his destiny. - Actors:
- Christopher Walken, Brooke Adams, Tom Skerritt, Herbert Lom, Anthony Zerbe, Colleen Dewhurst, Martin Sheen, Nicholas Campbell, Sean Sullivan, Jackie Burroughs, Géza Kovács, Roberta Weiss, Simon Craig, Peter Dvorský, Julie-Ann Heathwood, Barry Flatman, Raffi Tchalikian, Ken Pogue, Gordon Jocelyn, Bill Copeland
- Directors:
- David Cronenberg
- Producers:
- Debra Hill
- Writers:
- Jeffrey Boam, Stephen King
- Aka:
- Stephen King's The Dead Zone
- Studio:
- Prism Leisure
- Genres:
- Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thrillers
- Collections:
- Top 10 Films Turned Into TV Series, Top 10 Stephen King Films, Top Films
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- Unknown
- Run Time:
- 103 minutes
- Languages:
- Castilian Spanish DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, English Dolby Digital 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
- Subtitles:
- Castillian
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.78:1 / 16:9
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- (0) All
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- Unknown
- Run Time:
- 103 minutes
- Languages:
- English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- DVD Regions:
- Region 2
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.85:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- New Audio Commentary with Filmmaker Mike Flanagan and Eric Vespe and Scott Wampler of 'The Kingcast'
- Audio Commentary with Director of Photography Mark Irwin
- Audio Commentary with Film Historian Michael Gingold
- Audio Commentary with Film Historian/Author Dr. Steve Haberman and Filmmaker/Film Historian Constantine Nasr
- Audio Commentary with Film Music Historian Daniel Schweiger with Isolated Score Selections
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Reviews (4) of The Dead Zone
Good film, well worth a watch - The Dead Zone review by RP
Based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, this is perhaps the first of director David Cronenberg's films with big-ticket Hollywood actors. Until then Cronenberg's horror-genre films had been low-budget affairs with (usually) unknown actors [Aside: Although his immediately preceding film, 'Videodrome' did feature Debbie Harry of 'Blondie' fame].
Christopher Walken (who won an Oscar for his role in 'The Deerhunter') plays schoolteacher Johnny Smith, who develops psychic powers and has visions of the past, present and future when physically touching a person. And he can also change the future by his actions.
Martin Sheen plays an evil far-right wannabe US Senator, Tom Skerritt plays the local sheriff, Brooke Adams (whatever happened to her film career) plays the love interest, and Herbert Lom is cast against type as a sympathetic doctor, rather than as a mad scientist.
Filmed in Canada, there's plenty of snow. And the rather good actors deliver a rather good film. Yes, the 'psychic powers' theme has perhaps been a bit overdone now, but the acting is good, the script is good, the score is good, the directing is good - it's a good film, well worth a watch.
4/5 stars - recommended. This 30+ year-old-film deserves to be seen more.
3 out of 3 members found this review helpful.
Good film that would work better as a tv show - The Dead Zone review by TH
Watching this it did feel a tad dated. The story is interesting enough to engage but overall it felt like it would make a better tv miniseries. Worth a watch. Walker is great.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.
Agree With Previous Review - The Dead Zone review by Cato
I very much agree with RP's review, and can't find much else to add, except that the film is now 35 years old and beginning to show it's age somewhat. Also it has the stamp of other Stephen King's stories, i.e. rather OTT and slightly unbelievable, but perhaps I'm carping. Walken carries the film brilliantly, and it's great to see Herbert Lom again. Both top actors.
1 out of 1 members found this review helpful.