'Storm' thrills with standard horror story

What were you doing last time a biblical demon and a torrential blizzard hit your town? Maybe you were like dear Mrs. Clarendon, who was sipping warm tea in front of the television moments before her face was hacked off. Maybe you were like fireman Lloyd, who was doing maintenance work before he suddenly felt compelled to split his head in two with a short-handled axe.

Stephen King assures that his new miniseries "Storm of the Century" is pure entertainment. "Storm" is a fairly conventional horror film, contrasting some of King's more recent work on TV such as "The Langoliers" and "The Stand," both adapted from his novels. With time constraints in film, King often prefers the realm of television. As "Storm" is his first work written directly for TV, three two-hour episodes allows the author plenty of time to be thorough.

"Storm" returns to Little Tall Island (also the setting of "Dolores Claiborne"), a small island off the coast of Maine. Although most of Stephen King's stories are set in Maine, this is one of the few to be filmed on location. The miniseries wastes no time getting underway as the Antichrist and the worst snowstorm of the century arrive at the island on the same day.

The demonic Andre Linoge, played by Colm Feore ("Face/Off"), finds an elderly lady and proceeds to savagely murder her, establishing a reign of terror that rocks the foundations of the island community. The local grocer-turned-crime fighter, Mike Anderson, played by "Wings" pilot Tim Daly, is the only resident willing to take a stand against the demon. As more and more people die, the frightened Anderson watches the piling snow further isolate the island from civilization.

As common-man hero Anderson, Daly seems inconsistent in the playing of his role, but he comes across strong and convincing in the end. Canadian actor Feore is excellent as the subtle yet crazed monster in human guise.

"Storm" offers little to challenge the imagination. Fans will not find King treading much new ground in this story. But the miniseries flows very much like his books. As producer, King makes sure everything stays in character. All of his trademark elements are here, including a study of human moral weakness and the feeling of eminent chaos where everything one accepts as truths in the world become false.

The success of "Storm" is carried by the effective direction of Craig Baxley, who keeps a steady stream of suspense and frights. Aside from large piles of snow, the special effects supervised by Boyd Shermis ("Speed", "Batman Forever") are kept to a minimum, which maintains the realism of the situation.

Fans of America's best-selling author may be disappointed in the relatively mundane content of Stephen King's "Storm of the Century." But this is great opportunity for non-fans to get a taste of classic Stephen King. Fan or not, this is six hours of good, nonstop entertainment for all.

02-12-99