Thinner (film)

Last updated
Thinner
Thinnerposter.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Tom Holland
Screenplay by
Based on Thinner
by Richard Bachman [lower-alpha 1]
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Kees Van Oostrum
Edited byMarc Laub
Music by Daniel Licht
Production
company
Distributed by
Release date
  • October 25, 1996 (1996-10-25)
Running time
92 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$8 million [1]
Box office$15.3 million (domestic) [2]

Thinner (marketed as Stephen King's Thinner) is a 1996 American body horror film directed by Tom Holland and written by Michael McDowell and Holland. The film is based on Stephen King's 1984 novel of the same name (which he wrote under the pseudonym Richard Bachman) and stars Robert John Burke, Joe Mantegna, Lucinda Jenney, Michael Constantine, Kari Wuhrer, and Bethany Joy Lenz. In the film, an obese lawyer who accidentally kills a Romani woman is cursed by the woman's father to rapidly lose weight.

Contents

Thinner was released in the United States on October 25, 1996, by Paramount Pictures. It received mostly negative reviews and grossed $15.3 million against a budget of $8 million.

Plot

Billy Halleck is an obese upper class lawyer who lives with his wife Heidi and their daughter Linda in Connecticut. He recently defended Mafia boss Richie "The Hammer" Ginelli in court and is now celebrating his acquittal on a murder charge. Heidi, trying to persuade him to forget about his obsession with food, tries to give Billy oral sex as he is driving. Distracted, Billy accidentally runs over an elderly Romani woman named Suzanne Lempke, killing her. He is tried and acquitted of manslaughter by his friend Judge Cary Rossington after getting police chief Duncan Hopley to commit perjury.

Outraged by the injustice, Suzanne's father, Tadzu Lempke, places a curse on Billy on the steps of the courthouse by touching his face and uttering "thinner". Soon afterward, Billy begins to lose weight rapidly despite not exercising or sticking to his diet. Heidi, fearing the weight loss may be due to cancer, calls Dr. Mike Houston, with whom Billy begins to suspect his wife is having an affair. Billy learns that Rossington and Hopley have also been cursed; Rossington is now a hideous lizard-like being, while Hopley develops purulent ulcers on his face and hands. Both men ultimately commit suicide. Billy tracks down the Romani camp and tries to reason with Tadzu; Tadzu refuses to help and banishes him from the camp. Gina, Tadzu's great-granddaughter, uses her slingshot to shoot a large ball bearing which goes through Billy's hand, infuriating him into vowing revenge against the Romani.

Billy enlists Ginelli to attack the Romani camp and persuade Tadzu to lift the curse. Ginelli impersonates an FBI agent and kidnaps and threatens Tadzu's granddaughter. Tadzu finally agrees and meets Billy. Chanting a spell, Tadzu mixes Billy's blood into a strawberry pie. He states that if someone else eats the pie, the curse will kill them quickly and Billy will be spared. He urges Billy to eat the pie himself and die with dignity, but Billy refuses. Billy arrives home and gives Heidi the pie, which she eats. The next morning, Billy finds her desiccated corpse next to him. He is gleeful to be free of the curse and of what he believes is his disloyal wife. However, when he goes downstairs, he discovers that his daughter has eaten some of the pie for breakfast. Wracked with guilt, he prepares to eat the rest, only to be interrupted by Mike at the door. Mike grows uncomfortable and struggles to explain his unannounced presence, seemingly confirming Billy's suspicions of an affair. Billy invites Mike in for some pie and closes the door with a smirk.

Cast

Production

In order to accurately depict Halleck's obesity, makeup effects artist Greg Cannom created a number of fatsuits for actor Robert John Burke with matching latex pieces for his face and hands. [3] For the shower scene where Halleck's chest is exposed, a fatsuit was rigged with silicone breast implants. [3] Additional prosthetic makeup was also created to depict the curses inflicted on the judge and the police chief, and a dummy was fashioned to portray Halleck's wife dying after eating the pie. The film's effects won it the Saturn Award for Best Makeup.

Stephen King reportedly wanted John Candy to portray Halleck. [4]

Critical reception

Thinner received mostly negative reviews from critics. The film holds an approval rating of 19% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 26 reviews, with an average rating of 3.6/10. [5] The critical consensus reads: "A bland, weightless horror film that seems to want to mock itself as the proceedings drag on." [5] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 33 out of 100 based on 14 critic reviews, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews". [6]

James Berardinelli gave the film two stars out of four, writing: "Thinner could have been an opportunity to examine the ethics of a slick lawyer who refuses to accept responsibility for his actions. [...] Unfortunately, questions of morality are of secondary importance to a film that emphasizes its Death Wish aspects." [7] Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a "D" rating, writing: "Like too many Stephen King movies, Thinner is all (emaciated) concept and no follow-through." [8] The Austin Chronicle 's Marc Savlov gave the film a rating of one out of five stars, writing that, "Apart from its rushed pacing and occasionally stale dialogue, Thinner suffers even more from the fact that it has no redeemable characters." [9]

Variety 's Leonard Klady referred to the film as a "banally scripted and directed effort", as well as "one of the more pedestrian translations of the shockmeister's books". [10] A more positive review came from Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle , who called Thinner "one of the better Stephen King-derived movies." [11] Lawrence Van Gelder of The New York Times , in his review of the film, wrote: "The production is slick, the Maine scenery is bracing, the characters are well-acted, and in a mumbo-jumbo movie with a few loose ends, the makeup central to the plot and applied by Greg Cannom and Bob Laden to Robert John Burke in the leading role is most admirable." [12]

In a retrospective review, Nathan Rabin of The A.V. Club gave the film a "D−", writing that "Thinner's problems begin with a grotesquely unconvincing fat suit and makeup", and that Burke's "cartoonish performance matches the tone of a film that's broadly comic and often just plain broad without containing much in the way of jokes, let alone genuine wit or suspense." [13]

Notes

  1. ↑ The novel was written by Stephen King, who published it under the pen name "Richard Bachman".

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynyrd Skynyrd</span> American rock band

Lynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida. The group originally formed as My Backyard in 1964 and comprised Ronnie Van Zant, Gary Rossington (guitar), Allen Collins (guitar), Larry Junstrom, and Bob Burns (drums). The band spent five years touring small venues under various names and with several lineup changes before deciding on "Lynyrd Skynyrd" in 1969. The band released its first album, (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd), in 1973. By then, they had settled on a lineup that included bassist Leon Wilkeson, keyboardist Billy Powell, and guitarist Ed King. Burns left and was replaced by Artimus Pyle in 1974. King left in 1975 and was replaced by Steve Gaines in 1976. At the height of their fame in the 1970s, the band popularized the Southern rock genre with songs such as "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird". After releasing five studio albums and one live album, the band's career was abruptly halted on October 20, 1977, when their chartered airplane crashed, killing Van Zant, Steve Gaines, and backup singer Cassie Gaines; and seriously injuring the rest of the band.

<i>Carrie</i> (novel) 1974 novel by Stephen King

Carrie is a 1974 horror novel, the first by American author Stephen King. Set in Chamberlain, Maine, the plot revolves around Carrie White, a friendless, bullied high-school girl from an abusive religious household who discovers she has telekinetic powers. Feeling guilty for harassing Carrie, Sue Snell invites Carrie to the prom with Tommy Ross, but a humiliating prank during the prom by Chris Hargensen leads to Carrie destroying the town with her powers. The narrative contains fictional documents in approximately chronological order that present multiple perspectives on the prom incident and its perpetrator. Carrie deals with themes of ostracism and revenge, with the opening shower scene and the destruction of Chamberlain being pivotal scenes.

<i>Stand by Me</i> (film) 1986 American coming-of-age film directed by Rob Reiner

Stand by Me is a 1986 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Rob Reiner. Based on Stephen King's 1982 novella The Body, with the title deriving from the song of the same name by Ben E. King, the film is set in the fictional town of Castle Rock, Oregon, in 1959, and stars Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, and Jerry O'Connell, as four boys who go on a hike to find the dead body of a missing boy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sweet Home Alabama</span> 1974 single by Lynyrd Skynyrd

"Sweet Home Alabama" is a song by American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, released on the band's second album Second Helping (1974). It was written in response to Neil Young's 1970 song "Southern Man", which the band felt blamed the entire South for American slavery; Young is name-checked and dissed in the lyrics. It reached number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1974, becoming the band's highest-charting single.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allen Collins</span> American guitarist (1952–1990)

Larkin Allen Collins Jr. was an American guitarist, and one of the founding members of the Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. He co-wrote many of the band's songs with frontman and original lead singer Ronnie Van Zant.

<i>(Pronounced Lĕh-nérd Skin-nérd)</i> 1973 studio album by Lynyrd Skynyrd

(Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd) is the debut studio album by American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, released on August 13, 1973. Several of the album's tracks remain among the band's most well-known: "Gimme Three Steps", "Simple Man", "Tuesday's Gone", and "Free Bird", the last of which launched the band to national stardom.

<i>One More from the Road</i> 1976 live album by Lynyrd Skynyrd

One More from the Road is a live album by Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, capturing three shows recorded in July 1976 at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Georgia. Since 1974 Lynyrd Skynyrd had supported rock promoter Alex Cooley so that the theatre could be saved from demolition. This record was the band's first live album, and the only live album from the band's classic era of 1970 to 1977, prior to the plane crash that killed lead singer and songwriter Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and backing singer Cassie Gaines. The album was released in September 1976. It was certified gold by the RIAA on October 26, 1976, platinum on December 30, 1976 and 3× platinum on July 21, 1987.

<i>Thinner</i> (novel) 1984 novel by Stephen King as Richard Bachman

Thinner is a horror novel by American author Stephen King, published in 1984 by NAL under King's pseudonym Richard Bachman. The story centers on morbidly obese lawyer Billy Halleck, who, driving carelessly, kills an old Romani woman while she is crossing the street. He escapes legal punishment due to his connections, but the woman's 106-year-old father then curses Halleck to physically waste away, and the lawyer must find a way to undo the curse. King, who was overweight at the time of the novel's writing, created the novel’s outline following an annual medical examination.

<i>A Beautiful Mind</i> (film) 2001 film by Ron Howard

A Beautiful Mind is a 2001 American biographical film about the mathematician John Nash, a Nobel Laureate in Economics, played by Russell Crowe. The film is directed by Ron Howard based on a screenplay by Akiva Goldsman, who adapted the 1998 biography by Sylvia Nasar. In addition to Crowe, the film's cast features Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly, Paul Bettany, Adam Goldberg, Judd Hirsch, Josh Lucas, Anthony Rapp, and Christopher Plummer in supporting roles. The story begins in Nash's days as a brilliant but asocial mathematics graduate student at Princeton University. After Nash accepts secretive work in cryptography, he becomes liable to a larger conspiracy, through which he begins to question his reality.

<i>Salems Lot</i> (1979 miniseries) 1979 American TV miniseries

Salem's Lot is a 1979 American two-part vampire miniseries based on the 1975 horror novel 'Salem's Lot by Stephen King. Directed by Tobe Hooper and starring David Soul and James Mason, the plot concerns a writer who returns to his hometown and discovers that its citizens are turning into vampires. Salem's Lot combines elements of the vampire film and haunted house subgenres of horror.

Robert John Burke is an American actor known for his roles in the early films of Hal Hartley as well as his roles in RoboCop 3 (1993), Tombstone (1993), and Thinner (1996). During the 2000s Burke became well known for his portrayal of Mickey Gavin on Rescue Me (2004–11), Bart Bass in Gossip Girl (2007–12), Ed Tucker in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2002–20), and a number of other film and television roles including Intrusion (2021).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Burns (drummer)</span> American drummer (1950–2015)

Robert Lewis Burns Jr. was an American drummer in the original lineup of the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norman Rossington</span> British actor (1928–1999)

Norman Rossington was an English actor best remembered for his roles in The Army Game, the Carry On films and the Beatles' film A Hard Day's Night.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Burke (actor)</span> English actor

Tom Burke is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Athos in the 2014–2016 BBC TV series The Musketeers, Dolokhov in the 2016 BBC literary-adaptation miniseries War & Peace, the eponymous character Cormoran Strike in the BBC series Strike and Orson Welles in the 2020 film Mank.

Greg Cannom is an American special make-up effects artist. He is the recipient of several accolades, including five Academy Awards and two Saturn Awards, and has been nominated for four Primetime Emmy Awards and four BAFTA Awards.

<i>Stephen Kings Desperation</i> 2006 television film directed by Mick Garris

Stephen King's Desperation is a 2006 American made-for-TV horror film based on Stephen King's 1996 novel of the same name. King himself wrote the teleplay. The film was directed by frequent King collaborator Mick Garris and stars Ron Perlman, Tom Skerritt, Steven Weber and Annabeth Gish.

<i>American Pie Presents: The Book of Love</i> 2009 film by John Putch

American Pie Presents: The Book of Love is a 2009 American sex comedy film directed by John Putch. It is the fourth installment in the American Pie Presents film series, a spin-off of the American Pie franchise. The film stars Bug Hall, Brandon Hardesty, Kevin M. Horton, Beth Behrs, Jennifer Holland, John Patrick Jordan, Rosanna Arquette, and Eugene Levy. This was Sherman Hemsley's final film appearance before his death on July 24, 2012.

<i>God & Guns</i> 2009 studio album by Lynyrd Skynyrd

God & Guns is the thirteenth studio album by the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, released on September 29, 2009.

<i>Big Mommas House</i> 2000 film by Raja Gosnell

Big Momma's House is a 2000 American crime comedy film, directed by Raja Gosnell, and written by Darryl Quarles and Don Rhymer. The film stars Martin Lawrence as an FBI agent who is tasked with tracking down an escaped convict and his loot, by going undercover as the estranged grandmother of his former girlfriend, unaware of the bond he will form with her. The film also stars Nia Long, Paul Giamatti, and Terrence Howard.

References

  1. ↑ "Thinner (1996)". movierewind.com. Movie Rewind. 29 May 2019.
  2. ↑ "Stephen King's Thinner (1996)". Box Office Mojo . Retrieved September 11, 2009.
  3. 1 2 Von Doviak, Scott (2014). Stephen King Films FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the King of Horror on Film. Applause Theatre & Cinema Books. p. 184. ISBN   978-1480355514.
  4. ↑ Zinski, Dan. "Stephen King Wanted John Candy To Play The Lead In One Of The Worst Adaptations Of His Work". Screen Rant. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Stephen King's Thinner (1996)". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved February 7, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Thinner Reviews". Metacritic . Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  7. ↑ Berardinelli, James. "Review: Thinner". Reelviews Movie Reviews. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  8. ↑ Gleiberman, Owen (November 8, 1996). "Movie Review: 'Stephen King's Thinner' Review". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on May 5, 2017. Retrieved February 26, 2012.
  9. ↑ Savlov, Marc (November 1, 1996). "Stephen King's Thinner". The Austin Chronicle . Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  10. ↑ Klady, Leonard (October 27, 1996). "Stephen King's Thinner". Variety . Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  11. ↑ LaSalle, Mick (October 26, 1996). "Losing Weight, the Stephen King Way". SFGate . Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  12. ↑ Van Gelder, Lawrence (October 26, 1996). "Eat and Be Thin. What's the Catch?". The New York Times . Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  13. ↑ Rabin, Nathan (August 29, 2012). "Thinner". The A.V. Club . Retrieved October 18, 2021.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.