Fancast: The Big Picture

Stephen King's The Mist: My full review is here. "The story is simple, yet mysterious. One day in Maine, a strange foggy mist appears over a lake and soon covers the land. No biggie, until it's revealed that the mist is chock full of horrible monsters that kill people instantly. Tentacled things, spider things, giant bugs and land-stomping crustacean beasts. The bulk of the tale, however, is focused less on watching monsters kill people, as it would be in most horror movies, but more on a group of people trapped in a supermarket when the mist hits, and how quickly the social constructs disintegrate. This evaporation of common sense in the face of mind-numbing fear is hurried along by Mrs. Carmody, an unstable religions fanatic played with a frightening zeal by Marcia Gay Harden. She's known as the town kook, but as David Drayton (Thomas Jane) says, civilized society only lasts as long as the phones work and people can dial 911. Isolate them and scare the crap out of them, and 'civilization' doesn't last long."

I'd also recommend reading the original story. The new ending that Frank Darabont has written is a good one, but if you want the lingering effect of The Mist that King's original gives, read it. Then you'll know when to turn off the DVD to get the same open-ended denoument.

The Kite Runner: The strong Oscar push for this film didn't materialize, but the story of two best childhood friends in Afghanistan torn apart by betrayal, tragedy and distance is still considered by many to be the best film released in 2007. This one man's return to the Taliban-controlled homeland to find his own redemption by facing down his past is a must-see for everyone.