In
publishing, the term “cozy” describes mysteries in the Miss Marple tradition.
It is often used derisively as short hand for old lady books, until the author
hits the bestseller list, at which point they become divas and we kiss up to
them. Tess Thorne is not there yet, but she was getting close. Unfortunately, a
violent attack will interrupt her well planned life in Lifetime’s adaptation of
Stephen King’s novella Big Driver (promo here), which premieres
this Friday on the cable network.
“Self-promoter”
is a term we also use for authors who are compulsively willing to drive off to
an event where they might sell a few copies. Thorne assumes her latest library
speaking engagement will be that sort of gig. She does fine with her fans, but
she runs into terrible trouble when Ramona Norville, the programming librarian,
suspiciously punches a so-called shortcut into her GPS. Instead, she takes a
detour into Hell when some jagged road debris punctures her tire. At first, she
thinks the man she will eventually know as “Big Driver” is a Good Samaritan,
but he turns out to be a homicidal sexual predator.
Let’s
be upfront and frank about this. The sexual assault Thorne endures is far more
graphic and intense than anything you would expect from anything on commercial cable,
especially Lifetime, for crying out loud. It will be a deal-breaker for many
people, so be forewarned. On the other hand, it certainly establishes the
stakes and lays the dramatic framework for the somewhat dissociative state in
which Thorne plans her vengeance.
Left
for dead by her tormentor, Thorne never considers reporting Big Driver to the
police for a number of mostly rational reasons (sadly). Instead, she tracks
down her assailant employing her mystery writer’s deductive reasoning and
attention to detail. She will do this alone, but her subconscious will offer
commentary in the guise of Doreen, the leader of her novel’s crime-solving
knitting circle and her GPS (this works a lot better than it sounds).
So
yes, Big Driver is dark, but it is
also intense. Screenwriter Richard Christian Matheson (the son of the legendary
Richard Matheson, who has adapted King for television before) really gets into
the dark corners of the human psyche, combining elements of the psycho horror
movie and the Death Wish thriller.
Director Mikael Salomon (the cinematographer on Backdraft and The Abyss)
maintains an atmosphere of dread and moral ambiguity that ought to meet with
the author’s approval. Frankly though, he might push things too far in the
first act.
Maria
Bello gives a brave performance in Thorne’s victimization scenes and is also
impressively fierce during the subsequent payback sequences. As Norville, Compliance’s Ann Dowd continues to make
a name for herself as the go-to creepy late middle-aged lady. Joan Jett also
adds some attitude as Betsy Neal, a bartender who helps Thorne pick up Big
Driver’s trail.
