The Dark Tower

A teenage boy (Tom Taylor), haunted by the death of his firefighter father, has mysterious visions of a Dark Tower, a Gunslinger and a Man in Black. His mother worries that he’s unhinged by grief, but it’s all true—as he learns when the Man in Black (Matthew McConaughey) tries to kidnap him and he escapes to another dimension where he meets the Gunslinger (Idris Elba). The script by Akiva Goldsman, Jeff Pinkner, Anders Thomas Jensen and director Nikolaj Arcel is based on Stephen King’s eight-novel series (which King considers his magnum opus, incorporating elements from different genres and his other books). Maybe the story makes sense at 4,250 pages. At 95 minutes it’s just a messy sci-fi-horror-fantasy salad; King’s elements become mere clichés. The actors and special effects crew do their best. J.L.