Gray Matter (Creepshow Season 1 Episode 1) - King's Corner Review
Welcome to King's Corner. A recurring series of reviews based on the Film and TV adaptations of Stephen King's novels and collections, reviewed and released in order of the original source material publishing date.
Director: Greg Nicotero
Starring: Christopher Nathan, Tobin Bell, Giancarlo Espositio, Adrienne Barbeau, Jesse C. Boyd
Written by: Byron Willinger, Philip De Blasi
Produced by: Julia Hobgood, Alex Orr
Cinematography by: Robert Draper
Original Score by: Christopher Drake
Synopsis:
A grieving father living with his son develops a drinking problem with severe consequences.
Thoughts:
In the 2019 adaptation of 'Doctor Sleep', Dan Torrence is tempted to break his sobriety by the ghost of his father in the remnants of The Overlook Hotel. He looks at the glass and recites an old Irish saying (attributed to F. Scott Fitzgerald), “Man takes a drink, the drink takes a drink and then the drink takes a man". It's a powerful moment but throughout his career King's work has talked a lot about the issue of alcoholism. He has written about its devastation and the complexities derived from it and one story that tackles it in a very literal sense is 'Gray Matter'.
First published in Cavalier magazine in 1973 the story would eventually be added to King's short story collection 'Night Shift' in 1978. Initially he wanted his 1972 short story 'Suffer the Little Children' to take its place before his editor Bill Thompson convinced him to keep it in. Set in a convenience store in Bangor, Maine during a bad snowstorm, a young boy named Timmy bursts into the building to tell the people holding up there that there is something wrong with his father, Richie. He slowly reveals to them that his father hasn't been right since he consumed a bad can of beer that has led to horrific changes in him. When some of the locals decide to confront him they come face to face with the full blown horror that Timmy has been living with.
The story was seen as the perfect way to launch the 'Creepshow' television series back in 2019 which makes sense in how it draws parallels to 'The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill' from the 1982 film. The first thing that strikes you about the segment of the episode is the cast which includes Giancarlo Esposito (previously seen shouting "Your mama" to an erratic pinball machine in Maximum Overdrive). It also stars Tobin Bell and Adrienne Barbeau (who got up close and personal with Fluffy in the original 1982 film). Over the years the show has had a number of high profile guest stars within the genre but never as many in one segment, showing the showrunners meant business with the star studded opening. The setup here is almost identical to the story only a snowstorm is replaced by a hurricane with these three holed up in a convenience store owned by Dixie (played by Adrienne Barbeau). Once Timmy (played by Christopher Nathan) enters the store to tell them about how concerned he is about his father Ritchie (played by Jesse C. Boyd) the ball gets rolling.
The main difference between this adaptation and the story itself is by how much emotion writers Byron Willinger and Philip DeBlassi add to it through the way Timmy describes Ritchie's addiction to alcohol in the wake of his mother's death. He isn't the stereotypical angry dunk who would beat him but rather someone who is so weak that alcohol is the only medicine that can get him through the day. Although he always promises to quit, that day never comes and once he consumes the tainted can that starts to change him, the obvious metaphor about how drink can make monsters of us all comes to life and is handled surprisingly well for this kind of a show.
The difference between this segment and other segments through the show's run comes from the restraint Greg Nicotero shows by not leaning in too heavily on it's schlockier EC comic roots (with the exception of the end and the use of comic book panels to progress the story) as he focuses more on the tension of the piece, as you're curious to see how badly Ritchie's condition has become. There is also an atmosphere of impending dread to the segment and when you've an actor like Tobin Bell growling lines like, "Son, there are things in the corners of this world that if you look 'em right in the face, they'll drive you insane." you can't help but be locked into the show and Timmy's predicament. The manner in which Nicotero cuts between Timmy's story and Chief (Tobin Bell) and Doc's (Giancarlo Esposito) investigation of his house only adds to the tension.
In their investigation Chief and Doc discover how Ritchie has transformed into a hulking grey sludge who has a penchant for eating animals and little children. The effects realising Ritchie's monstrous state courtesy of KNB EFX Group are a fine example of why practical effects reign supreme over digital. From the remains of the Grady sisters (in a fun nod to The Shining) to Ritchie's final form, they don't hold back with their creativity as the story reaches its apocalyptic (if not a tad rushed) conclusion where Mrs. Parmalee (played by Adrienne Barbeau) realises that the exponential growth of the creature will lead to the end of the world in 6 days.
For a story that Stephen King didn't want to include in his short story collection, Greg Nicotero does a terrific job at bringing it to life on the small screen. The segment sets the tone for the 'Creepshow' television series which has gone on for a number of seasons so far. With a brilliant cast who are heavily invested in the story and some gooey special effects that feed into the creepy atmosphere of the dreaded tale, 'Gray Matter' is as good an adaptation as you're going to get with this kind of story.
Verdict: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
-Joseph McElroy
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