5. Cujo
Cujo was released in 1983 to a mixed reception, more positive than negative. It was a modest box office success and holds a 61% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The novel won the British Fantasy Award in 1982.
Big Names Attached: No one really, other than one or two semi-familiar faces.
Is The Book Better?: Yeah. It's by no means one of King's best, but it's a nice short novel with a Hell of a lot more intensity than the film. The main problem with Cujo is the fact that it is in no way at all scary or intense. Sure, the book isn't his biggest for nightmares or thrills, but it at least conjured up a sense of the fear you'd be feeling in such a situation. In the book, you felt like you were there with the woman and her son, dying an agonizingly slow death, feeling so utterly helpless. And the ending of the book, although bleak as hell, felt more engaging. At least you felt like something actually happened in the story. Unfortunately, the movie altered it quite drastically, and it ends the same way it begins; boringly.