Richard Archer

This adaptation needs to be rubbed out and started again. Stephen King's greatest work deserves better than this. Shallow characterisation, inaccurate depictions and poor casting are central problems. The over the top depiction of New Vegas is way off the mark. Small deviations from the book are OK, but this one is too much. Some of the acting isn't bad, for example Nadine and Flagg, but overall this is a disappointing mess.

Dodgy, roaring CGI Martians which would have looked more at home in The Phantom Menace, wooden acting and very wooden dialogue, increasingly boring flash forward scenes, no suspense, unnecessary and over thought reworkings of the novel. Oh, and a patronising/borderline racist monologue at the end by Mrs Poldark. In short, typical BBC middle of the road rubbish.