‘The Dark Tower’ movie is incredibly badass, and so is Idris Elba
By Jeremy Dick
The Dark Tower movie hits theaters today after years of waiting for fans of Stephen King, and after seeing it, I can say the wait was more than worth it.
The man in black fled across the desert and the gunslinger followed.
As of today, Nikolaj Arcel’s The Dark Tower finally had its premiere in theaters. Starring Idris Elba as Roland Deschain and Matthew McConaughey as his arch-nemesis, the Man in Black, it serves as the first feature film adaptation of the popular Stephen King book series.
By now, you may have seen some of the early reviews flooding in, and many of them are negative. I couldn’t help but let it make me feel a little nervous going in. Was this going to please me as a big fan of Stephen King stories, or was this just going to wind up becoming a massive dud?
Fortunately, I had a totally different experience, as I feel those sad critics couldn’t be any more wrong. I absolutely love The Dark Tower. It not only met my expectations as a fan of the King, but it surpassed them. Honestly, I just don’t know what the hell people were expecting… though I do know many were writing off the film before it was even out because of Roland’s skin color. This preconceived notion that the film would suck just because of that may have bled into the public perception of the film.
Via Columbia Pictures
Some people think this isn’t badass, for some reason.
From my point of view, it told an awesome story and was compelling as hell from beginning to end. Anyone who says Idris Elba isn’t a good choice to play the Gunslinger needs to have their heads examined. Idris typically owns every role he takes on, but I truly feel Roland is his absolute best so far — the way he handles those revolvers is one of the most badass things I’ve ever seen.
In the flick, Roland (Idris Elba) takes on the task of protecting a young boy named Jake Chamber (Tom Taylor) from the sinister Man in Black (Matthew McConaughey). Jake has psychic powers (they refer to it as “the shine”… sound familiar?) which “Tall, Dark and Handsome” wants to harness to make the Dark Tower fall. Doing so will bring about an apocalypse for all civilization across different worlds. With Jake under his wing, the Gunslinger is hellbent on killing the Man in Black and keeping the tower standing.
Walter (Matthew McConaughey) and Roland (Idris Elba) in Columbia Pictures THE DARK TOWER.
The feud of the century.
From the start of the flick, the story hooked me in. Elba was totally badass as Roland and he totally kills it in the awesome action scenes. The compelling story and strong acting talent also helped keep my interest (seriously, what incredible casting this movie has). It even had just the right amount of comic relief, usually from the awkwardness of Roland trying to fit in to our version of Earth (he asks, “What breed?” after being told what he’s eating is a hot dog).
I can’t really even think of anything to complain about, other than the fact that it had to end. I’m already ready for the sequels… and what about that rumored TV series? I just had such a great time watching this film in the theater. Which, again, leads me to wonder just what the hell other people were expecting.
Next: It's a wonderful time to be Stephen King
If you’re not bothered by the idea of Elba playing Roland (and I really don’t think you should be), I highly recommend you buy yourself a ticket to this flick. It’s awesome. That’s my opinion and I’m sticking to it, inexplicably low percentages on Rotten Tomatoes be damned.