Langoliers
A group of 10 passengers awake during a flight and discover they’re the only ones left alive…
Stephen King’s original novella is one of his more overt forays into science fiction, albeit with his usual paranormal and horror twists. Like most King stories, it’s very cinematic in tone, and it’s not surprising that following the success of The Stand as a TV miniseries, The Langoliers followed suit.
Unfortunately, nothing like the same amount of money was chucked at this version, and it shows. When the titular creatures finally show up, they are realised as computer graphics… which would be fine if it were done today, but this miniseries was shot in 1995, when cheap CG really did look exactly that. The cast, notably Bronson Pinchot, try their hardest to react to them, but they basically look like PacMen with teeth. They detract from what is otherwise a reasonable, if occasionally slow-paced adaptation.
Dean Stockwell, no stranger to time travelling after all his years on Quantum Leap, is the mystery writer who deduces that somehow the sleeping passengers have gone back in time, while Mark Lindsay Chapman plays the mysterious Brit who takes charge, allowing David Morse’s airline pilot to try to save the day. There are some suitably creepy moments, particularly those involving a blind 10-year-old who somehow develops an ability to see through a crazy person’s eyes, but there’s no real chemistry between either of the couples paired up by events, which doesn’t help the ending. Paul Simpson
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