Now Streaming on Netflix
Directed by: Zak Hilditch
Starring: Thomas Jane, Molly Parker
1922 is the newest Stephen King adaptation to make it to the big screen, via the small screens of Netflix. It also marks the sixth Stephen King adaptation this year alone – following films The Dark Tower, It, Gerald’s Game, and the TV shows The Mist and Mr. Mercedes. It’s like those years where Alicia Vikander or Jessica Chastain just happen to be in 10 movies. I’ll be honest and say I hadn’t even heard of the novella before hearing of this new Netflix horror flick – it seems like they’re coming out of the woodwork now. Is it worth it to return to the well once more for 1922? Surprisingly, yes.
There’s a horrible turning point in the lives of these characters that hovers over the movie for the whole running time. It’s featured in the brief Netflix description as you hover over the icon, so I don’t feel bad spoiling it. In 1922 (the movie, not the year), Wilfred Leyland James (Thomas Jane), a Nebraska corn farmer checks into a hotel room to write a confession about his involvement in the murder of his wife Arlette (Molly Parker) years ago in 1922 (the year, not the movie). Her death is just the beginning of a macabre tale (literal tagline from the description). The middle and end of the movie are bleak, hopeless and mean-spirited – in short, a true Stephen King adaptation. I say mean-spirited, but it’s not unfair to its characters, who are punished by the film’s karmic universe for mistakes made, and not happenstance (like in the Saw or Hostel movies). With a worldview this grim, the movie is still fun because of Thomas Jane and the time spent on the environment.
Thomas Jane (of Homeless Dad fame) has an uphill climb in this film. Jane, Hollywood movie star from Baltimore, has to be a believable Nebraska corn farmer in the 1920s (1922 specifically). As the movie started and I saw how truly rural this world was, I was a little nervous about hearing Jane’s voice for the first time. The first time I did – I was delighted. In this somber movie, Jane’s accent hugged me like an old friend and told me everything would be okay. Besides obsessing about that, he’s really great at grappling with the few options he sees around his wife. After that, he has this hidden reserve of steely resourcefulness for how to cover their tracks, which surprises even him. He and the movie treat the cover up with the same methodology as his farm work – even though he’s wiping up blood, his work ethic still can’t be tamped down. Later on, he goes through karmic suffering and really conveys effectively how god-forsakingly miserable he is. The rest of the actors and actresses are pretty decent, but none really jump off the screen in the same way.
What does jump off the screen is the 1920s atmosphere. For a low budget Netflix movie, the movie screens rural 1920s Nebraska. It’s in the small details, like the vest Wilfred wears when he’s going into the city – it nicer than his farm clothes but doesn’t fit quite right and a little dirty at the edges. Likewise, Arlette’s big dream is escaping the farm life is opening a dress shop, so she sticks out in the family and movie with nice dresses – but they too are a little bit faded. Same could be said for the authentically worn, weathered and beaten down house they live in. The wide shots of the farm and farming itself feels smeared with sweat and sepia. The gory aspects and haunting effects are also well-considered. For a director who doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page (at the time of this writing), it’s impressive but unshowy direction.
The movie ends up juggling multiple haunting (and obvious) metaphors, to remind Wilfred James about his choices – some are more chilling than others – some will have you saying, of course this happened to this guy… it continues our metaphor. I don’t want to spoil some of the fun (in a desolate movie), so I won’t. Another surprisingly effective Netflix horror adaptation.
Is It Watchlist-Worthy? Yes. It’s a grim affair, but the direction and Thomas Jane’s showcase performance are Watchlist-worth it.
