Nerds That Geek Movie Review: 'The Tommyknockers'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

As a young horror fan growing up in the 80’s and 90’s, there was no prouder moment in my mind for the genre, then when it went mainstream, thanks in large part to Stephen King. Because the 90’s were his decade on television as quality adaptation after quality adaptation of his work hit the airwaves, making for some iconic stories that we still look upon fondly today. But, ironically, much like King’s adaptations in film, there are some dark moments to come about from his television domination and some of his small screen adaptations, were lackluster when it comes to their quality.
 
Which is a shame, because It, The Stand and The Shining were downright excellent in their own right. But I would wager that every producer out there simply wanted in on the Stephen King magic that was surging through the marketplace and having another adaptation in prime time with King’s name plastered all over the title and marketing campaign clearly became the priority over the quality of the script and well, and it led to some seriously laughable and weird adaptations of his work and one that still stands out in my mind as one of the worst was the 1993 iteration of The Tommyknockers.
 
Now this particular T.V. miniseries really did do its best to stay true to the plot of the book. It’s set in Haven, Maine, Bobbi Anderson still finds something suspicious buried beneath the ground and the mayhem that ensues from that discovery is almost identical to what we find in print. So, this should have been a slam dunk with critics and audiences alike, but it was in many ways a failure through and through and that’s simply due to the fact that all the layers and gravity that King put forth on the page aren’t present here and that makes this motion picture feel downright hollow when you watch it. 

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In fact, let me elaborate on that further, because in the book, King not only does a phenomenal job of blending science fiction and horror together in the story, but the tale in and of itself is downright intense and terrifying. There’s suspense everywhere to be found in the novel, case in point, I remember how my heart was racing when we finally got to discover what exactly was in the shed, and the thematic concept of losing control of one’s mind and one’s body is also present in print but…none of what I just made mention of is present in the film. Stuff…just happens, without any tension or hint of trouble and that’s a shame because this could have been a frightening masterpiece, but the poor direction and script fail the story completely and the problems with the film don’t end there.
 
Because the other big issue with this story, is the sheer fact that everything revolving around the aliens that live in the ship that Bobbi finds buried in the ground is handled in the cheesiest of fashion and much of that is the result of poor special effects and special effects makeup. Everything in that realm looks like the least possible amount of money was thrown at it for this film and that makes pertinent moments silly at best and eye rolling at worst and to make matters worse, they actually bother to show the aliens in question, something the novel avoided in order to build tension and well, the power that these beings had in the shadows of the novel is completely removed by the rubber suited monstrosities we see on screen.
 
However, not everything was a total loss in this film. The acting is surprisingly solid, and Marg Helgenberger and Jimmy Smits do a fine job as Bobbi and Jim Gardner respectively, but their acting chops are not enough to carry a story devoid of depth and in the end, this is just another entry on a long list of failed King adaptations and really this is a tough one to recommend, unless you’re a die-hard of the book and Stephen’s work, and in that case, yes, see this one out of respect. But otherwise, steer clear of this mess for your own sanity’s sake and pick up the novel instead, you’ll be glad you did. 

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