The Dark Tower Reviews: 9 Early Reactions You Need To See
2. The Dark Tower Doesn't Work On Screen
"It’s a film that feels claustrophobic and oddly contained when it should’ve felt sweeping and epic. After decades of waiting, after months of keeping our fingers crossed and hoping for the best, it brings me zero pleasure to report that The Dark Tower doesn’t really work.” - Birth Movies Death
"The Dark Tower has been in production for around ten years in some form or another. This final product reminds me a lot of the GOP healthcare plan: You've had all this time and THIS is what you come up with? I can already picture John McCain strolling into a theater this weekend, giving a dramatic thumbs down, killing The Dark Tower forever." - UPROXX
There were those he tried to warn them, voices of reason pointing out that it isn't possible to adapt a 4,250-page cocktail of mind-bending alternate universes, Arthurian legend and Lord of the Rings-style fantasy for cinema.
Perhaps they should have listened, because a number of reviews flat-out state that The Dark Tower simply doesn't work, despite the creative team's efforts to condense the books into a more palatable sequel of sorts.
Director Nikolaj Arcel's approach is seemingly at fault here as the off-kilter way he's brought the saga to screens makes it no more accessible to newcomers, and has alienated fans in its simplification.