For the most part I would say Stephen King adaptations have been relatively dreadful, and I am saying this as someone that pretty much owns the complete King library. I will admit that 1408 is pretty good, everyone loves Shawshank Redemption and there is probably a 50/50 opinion on Green Mile. I personally don’t think Kubrick’s Shining is all that, no one has really adapted that book to my liking as I believe it is easily the scariest book I have ever read. So, what is going to happen when Tobe Hooper tackles one of King’s more recent and less talked about books “From a Buick 8”? Who really knows, or cares for that matter?
The book centers on a mysterious Buick stored in a state trooper barracks. After one of the troopers dies, his son becomes obsessed with the mysterious vintage automobile. “Buick 8” happens to be one of the only King novels I never picked up, despite getting it halfway to the pay counter several times. The story just never really intrigued me and while Hooper proved early on with Texas Chainsaw and Poltergeist that he had some talent, what has he done lately? The answer to that is nothing. Poltergeist in 1982 was the last real hit the director had, since then it has been nothing of note.
Hooper told Variety that From a Buick 8 will not be “your stock horror film by any means. There’s a really cool, layered quality to the story. The producers, writers and I shared the same sensibility about the project and responded to it in a similar way.”
Johnathon Schaech and Richard Chizmar wrote the script.
