The Dark Tower

I had hoped to finish the seven books in The Dark Tower series before I saw the movie, but I didn't make it. I finished book six yesterday and saw the film later in the evening at 19:19. The Dark Tower (2017) is very loosely based on the series and on just a few of the characters from the first book.

On the positive side,

• I consider it a blessing I didn't have to endure the Odetta/Detta/Susannah/Mia character from the books.
• I'm always glad to see Idris Elba, and Matthew McConaughey plays it up well. 

On the negative side:

• Roland is the main character in the books while the boy is just one of several supporting characters, but the film focuses on the boy and begins and ends with everything revolving around him and his "shine";
• The Man in Black is a motivating force in the background in the books instead of the scene-chewing CEO of Evil Bad Guys he's turned into in the film;
• The film is short and lacks the depth of the books, leaving out major motivating plot points that drive the books; and
• The iconic beginning in the first novel with Roland in the wilderness seems like the perfect way to begin the movie, and it seems such a wasted opportunity to neglect that.

I'm glad I saw it. If there are more movies made I will certainly watch them. No one will prefer this to the book. There's just too much difference, too much missing, and too much is lost in the translation to film. This story should be made into a miniseries, or the film should've

trailer:

The New York Times, Rolling Stone, and The Guardian have negative reviews.

Rotten Tomatoes has a critics score of 19%.