Big Driver

It's not great but it's not bad. I rarely feel this ambiguous about a movie to be honest. It seems to be a revenge thriller with an odd light- hearted "Murder She Wrote" sensibility, which honestly makes no sense but results in something quite bemusing & unexpected. I really don't know what I think about this flick but I sort of enjoyed it. Some of the reviewers here giving it negative reviews are so incorrect in their comments I actually wonder if they even watched the movie. Certainly it's doubtful if they DID watch it that they actually paid it much attention. For example, there was no "dead relative" talking to her, that was clearly one of her novel's characters and the other women were part of the "knitting circle" from her books. The point was that she was having trouble separating reality from fantasy, but many have missed that point. There is a lot more to this story than some seem to think so if you are the kind of person who needs everything spelled out to you carefully and/or have the attention span of a flea then you won't like this flick. Others might like it tho. Worth giving a shot but don't expect too much. It just could have been done a whole lot better.

"I'll let the cops know but not tonight. All I know is if I see him again I'll kill him." Tess Thorne (Bello) is a famous mystery writer who is invited to speak to a group of fans. On her way back home she blows a tire. When someone stops to help her she is relieved but that turns to fear. After she is knocked out she wakes up to him raping and beating her then he leaves her for dead. She manages to escape and return home. Rather than calling the cops she decides to investigate on her own. She starts off on her quest for revenge. First thing I have to say is that this movie actually wasn't that bad at all...for a Lifetime movie. I wasn't sure how they could convert a Stephen King book into a Lifetime movie and I will admit that they did a pretty good job and Maria Bello does a pretty good job. Much like the Lizze Borden movie they did with Christina Ricci it wasn't that bad...but again...not that bad for a Lifetime movie. Overall, defiantly felt like a made for TV movie but I have seen worse. I give it a B-.

The lead actress in this movie gives a staggeringly superb performance.

She is a famous fiction writer who becomes the victim of a horrendous crime and decides to seek revenge.

The problem with this film is that it is presented in the screwball style(the story comes from Stephen King) which turns it into what the English call a 'black comedy' with imaginary characters and objects speaking out loud and the dead talking after their demise. Despite these challenges, the lead player still manages to make this a compelling view:

7/10.

Watched the movie despite the reviews because of Steven King's writing it. Couldn't believe I'd seen the same move - it was a good exercise in psychology. To briefly over the story, a successful author is raped. She avoids telling anyone because she fears retribution, both professional and personal. She soon start hunting her assailant. Some of her behavior isn't helpful or rational. Many times you catch the 'heroine' hallucinating, so was she making it all up? Is she the real killer? The tension was well-done. The plot twists were credible and added to the suspense. So what were the detractors watching?? OK, it wasn't a big-budget movie, but it was certainly entertaining.

'Big Driver' is a dark and unexpectedly violent made-for-television adaption of horror master Stephen King's novella of the same name from his 2010 collection 'Full Dark, No Stars.' I haven't seen many Lifetime movies so far, but this one is probably one of the best ever. The movie is dark and graphic but it also includes some comedic elements at the right times. The movie clearly doesn't take itself too seriously, which is a good thing, especially since it's an adaption of of a novella by Stephen King, whose stories are known for their often not all too serious tone and quirky humor. In that regard its very fitting that rock queen Joan Jett has a small role in 'Big Driver.'

The movie has a great revenge story, an evocative setting, and an excellent cast led by Maria Bello ('A History of Violence') and including the fantastic Ann Dowd ('Compliance'). Also highlighted must be Will Harris' ('In Time') both charismatic and terrifying performance as the titular villain Lester 'Big Driver' Strehlke. I don't really remember seeing him in anything else besides 'In Time', but I guarantee that you won't forget him after seeing his performance as Big Driver. Good job! Director Mikael Salomon already directed another Stephen King adaption, namely 2004's two-part television movie 'Salem's Lot', which was a decent effort. Salomon is probably best known for directing the 1998 action movie 'Hard Rain,' which has received generally negative reviews, although I've always liked it. I see stylistic similarities between 'Hard Rain' and 'Big Driver'. Both movies feature good actors in an exceptional setting and both are pretty grim at times and witty at others.

'Big Driver' has the right combination of darkness and humor, which is a feature of every great Stephen King story. I'd say Salomon did a good job bringing King's novella to the screen. It's definitely one of the better Stephen King adaptions and one of the best ones made for the small screen.