The Stand (1994) Parts 3 and 4 Review

The Stand (1994) Parts 3 and 4 Review 

Welcome to the second part of my review for Stephen King’s The Stand, covering the third and fourth segments of the mini-series. If you missed my coverage of parts one and two, check them out first, and if you’re still unsure about wanting to invest the time in watching this show, continue reading, for I’ll avoid spoiling the big events. 

One of my lesser problems with Part One and Two became a bigger problem in Part Three and Four, that being the problem of scene length. At this point, things start to drag, with repetitive scenes of:

-people standing and talking

-people walking and talking

-people sitting and talking

This is no doubt because of the story’s origins as a novel, and in these scenes, it feels very much like the book come to life. Some people enjoy seeing what they read play out exactly the same way on screen, but others want the movie or TV show to be distinct from the book, and I’m of the latter. Reading about things that are happening in a book and seeing them happen on screen are very different, and many times in The Stand, characters talk about things that aren’t shown, and for me, at least, it was very easy to lose interest, especially when what they’re talking about isn’t always that riveting. For those who have read the source material, this series is no doubt more enjoyable than for those who have not. 

Having said all that, the story continues to move along, but Part Three, subtitled “The Betrayal” is mainly filler, with the actual betrayal not happening until the tail end. Part Four has more significant moments, and finally deals with the titular “Stand”. Again, this consists of about the last fifteen minutes, which is pretty short all things considered. What’s kind of funny is Part Four is called “The Stand”. So it’s The Stand: “The Stand”? I know it’s also what the last part of the book is called, but it just kind of sounds funny to repeat the title. 

In the first half of this mini-series, the villain Randall Flagg is hinted at and given brief moments to appear, but in Part Three, he begins to have a more significant presence. Flagg is not a human but a demonic creature that can take on multiple forms, including a raven that continues to pop up throughout the entire series. His “monster form”, if you will, is an ambitious makeup job, but it’s shown too much and by today’s standards, is really cheesy and dated. The actor himself, Jamey Sheridan, does give a distinct presence to the character, and to be fair, there are a couple creepy moments from him, but he just isn’t very intimidating, especially when he’s singing and always smiling. I’m definitely interested to see Matthew McConaughey’s take on the character in next year’s The Dark Tower. 

The legendary cameos continue, and they are better in a way than Parts One and Two, but also worse. Directors Mick Garris and John Landis appear in small roles, as does Stephen King, which is cool, but they aren’t the best actors. Of course, to anyone who didn’t know who they were, they probably wouldn’t stand out quite the same. 

Looking at The Stand as a whole, it’s an interesting take on what is, in its simplest form, a tale of good vs. evil, but it’s also problematic in that it frequently drags and reaches beyond the limits of TV for that time. It doesn’t fully create a convincing post-apocalyptic world—it seems more people show up the longer time passes from the plague killing the majority of the population off. But, it does a good job of focusing on specific characters, building them up, then tearing them down and making viewers care about them. 

Even isolating it into smaller parts, it’s definitely mixed. Certain aspects are undeniably great (music, production value, multiple performances, etc.) and others are dated, or just plain silly. In the end, I’d say it’s for Stephen King diehards and/or fans of ambitious mid-90’s TV series only. Outside of anthology films like Creepshow or Cat’s Eye, this is probably the best screenwriting King has done.

I think The Stand is ready for a remake. Had it been made a decade later, I bet it would’ve went the route of full series like another of King’s epic novels, Under the Dome (which I read, and loved, and watched the first few episodes, and did not love) but I think it could make a great mini-series once again, perhaps on Netflix or HBO, or even Hulu, like King’s 11/22/63, which was quite well-received. I’m sure we will see this classic story again, either on the small screen, or big screen because the story itself really is one of King’s best.