Stephen King's Thinner Movie Review 1996

Holland takes all the meat out of this supernatural horror by turning it into a formulaic pursuit-of-justice bore. Porcine lawyer Billy Halleck (Burke) accidentally hits a gypsy with his car and is cursed with a case of perpetual weight loss. Conveniently for Billy, the client he has just gotten an acquittal for is local mobster Richie "The Hammer" Ginelli (Mantegna) who is now determined to save him. Ponderous plot and lackluster-looking latex is redeemed by decent acting. King makes his requisite cameo as Dr. Bangor (get it, Maine?) Originally published in 1984 under King's pseudonym Richard Bachman.

Distribution

Lions Gate Entertainment, 2700 Colorado Ave., Santa Monica, CA 90404, Phone: (310)449-9200, Fax: (310)255-3870, URL: http://www.lgf.com, Remarks: Does not handle retail queries from consumers; contact your local video distributor.

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 92 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Supernatural Horror, Books to Film: Stephen King, Motor Vehicle Dept., Law & Lawyers, Magic, Gypsies, Organized Crime, Metamorphosis

Screenplay

Michael McDowell, Tom Holland

Cast

Robert John Burke, Joe Mantegna, Lucinda Jenney, Michael Constantine, Kari Wuhrer, John Horton, Sam Freed, Daniel von Bargen, Elizabeth Franz, Joy Lentz, Jeff Ware

Cinematography

Kees Van Oostrum

Director

Tom Holland

Music

Daniel Licht

Other

Stephen King

Producer

Richard H. Rubinstein, Mitchell Galin, Stephen F. Kesten, Spelling Productions, Paramount Pictures