"The Dead Zone does what only a good supernatural thriller can do: make us forget it is supernatural." - Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Today marks the 30th anniversary of the 1983 horror thriller The Dead Zone. The film is adapted from the Stephen King novel with the same name and directed by David Cronenberg (Scanners, The Fly). The story follows Johnny Smith who is played by Christopher Walken. After a night out with his girlfriend, Johnny is involved in a serious accident and lands himself in a coma.
Smith wakes up 5 years later and finds out that his girlfriend is now married and has kids. During his recovery, Johnny learns that that he possesses psychic powers whenever he comes into physical contact with another human being. These powers give him the ability to predict and prevent disasterous events that involve whoever's hand he touches.
I really enjoyed watching this film for the first time today. As a big Stephen King fan, I am somewhat embarrassed that I just now seeing it. This is definitely one of Christopher Walken's top performances and a great King adaptation. My only complaint is the third act tends to drift away and not be as entertaining as the beginning. Overall it's still really good, just not Pet Sematary good :).
-CS
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