Timothy Hutton, Amy Madigan, Michael Rooker, Julie Harris, Robert Joy, Kent Broadhurst, Beth Grant, Rutanya Alda, Tom Mardirosian, Larry John Meyers,...
Novelist Thad Beaumount has buried his alter ego George Stark, a pseudonym he used when writing fiction of a darker nature than he would write using his real name. He even stages a mock burial of George for the benefit of the press. When a local man is killed, evidence leads Sheriff Alan Pangborn to George's grave, and he begins to suspect Thad. Meanwhile Thad is beginning to have visions of sparrows flying, something that hasn't occurred for twenty-three years since he had brain surgery. As the string of gruesome murders continue, someone claiming to be George Stark starts calling Thad on the phone. Thad fears for his family's safety, and Pangborn can't decide whether or not Thad is the murderer.
AMAZON.COM REVIEWS FOR THE DARK HALF (1993): Although it lacks the creepy subtleties of Stephen King's celebrated novel, George Romero's underrated adaptation of The Dark Half ranks among the best films based on King's fiction, with Romero taking care to honor King's central theme while serving up some gruesome gore in the film's much-criticized finale. Inspired by King's own admission that he wrote several novels under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, The Dark Half explores the duality of a writer's impulse, ranging from literary respectability to the viscerally cathartic thrills of exploitative pulp fiction.
Author and teacher Thad Beaumont (Timothy Hutton) finds himself torn between those extremes when he "kills" his profitable, pseudonymous alter ego George Stark (the bestselling "dark half" to Thad's light), who then assumes an evil, autonomous form (again played by Hutton) to lethally defend his role in Thad's creative endeavors. Forced to wrestle with this evil manifestation of his own unformed twin, Thad must fight to protect his wife (Amy Madigan), their twin babies, and his own survival as an artist. Romero skillfully develops the twin/duality theme to explore the writer's dilemma, and Hutton is outstanding in his dual roles, playing Stark (in subtly fiendish makeup) as a redneck rebel with a knack for slashing throats. Julie Harris adds class in a supporting role, and horror fans will relish Romero's climactic showdown, in which swarms of sparrows seal Stark's fate. It favors a pulp sensibility with clunky exposition to explain Stark's existence, but The Dark Half is a laudable effort from everyone involved. --Jeff Shannon
:
- Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA
1994
Nominated
Saturn Award
Best Director
George A. Romero
Best Horror Film
Best Make-Up
John Vulich
Everett Burrell
Best Supporting Actress
Julie Harris
- Fantafestival
1993
Won
Best Actor
Timothy Hutton
Best Film
George A. Romero
Best Screenplay
Paul Hunt
Nick McCarthy
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