By Geno McGahee
(Note: Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the DVD I reviewed in this Blog Post. The opinions I share are my own.)
On August 9th, the Stephen King number one, best-selling novel turned mini-series “11.22.63” was released to Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital HD. Executive Produced by Emmy® winner J.J. Abrams (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Lost), Stephen King (The Shining, The Shawshank Redemption, Stand By Me), Bridget Carpenter (Friday Night Lights. Parenthood), Bryan Burk (Star Wars: The Force Awakens) and Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland) the event series includes all 8 episodes (9 hours) as well as a brand new featurette. 11.22.63 is priced to own at $39.99 SRP for Blu-ray and $29.98 for DVD.
Al Templeton (Chris Cooper) is sick and has a secret and he must inform somebody he trusts. High school teacher, Jake Epping (James Franco), has made it a point to try to do something meaningful in his life, especially after it has fallen apart. After closing hours at Al’s diner, Jake is taken aside and asked to walk into the closet, which is initially met with great confusion. When he walks through, he ends up in 1960. Immediately, this series is visually great. The look of the film mixed with the attention to detail and music make it easy to feel like time has been rewound. Jake quickly goes back into the porthole and is asked to do something incredible.
Templeton is a beaten man and has been on a quest that has failed. He wants to save JFK from assassination and he is now in a losing battle with cancer and is on his last leg. Jake initially turns down the offer but soon realizes that this purpose is very important. From the jump of this series, I was immediately hooked and the way that so many conspiracy theories are tied into this production is very compelling.
Jake agrees to stay in the past for three years. The first part of the mission to find out who really killed JFK. The other part is to stop it. He settles in, finds a job, and finds a girlfriend, but as Al warned him, the past will push back if somebody attempts to change it. Jake decides that saving JFK isn’t the only good thing that he can do and he starts fixing other matters but finds out that by fixing something, another thing becomes problematic.
The overall mystery and suspense are about as high as it gets and I found myself binge-watching the entire series. James Franco gives the best performance that I’ve seen and he is involved in the production. This was something meaningful for him and it absolutely shows in his portrayal of Jake Epping. The attention to detail makes this series stand out more than the rest and it really brought me back to the days of Quantum Leap, with this having a higher production value, but bringing the same sort of joy I had for that show.
We chase the killer(s) with Jake and there is trouble around every turn. Turning back the clock to a better time was interesting too and it shows just how much our daily lives have changed from those of the 1960s. Sarah Gadon was also very notable in this series, playing across from Franco much of the time, and their conflicted relationship adds to the overall enjoyment of this series. As the viewer, your feelings become as mixed as Jake’s . Should he stay or should he go?
11.22.63 is as good as it gets. I highly recommend it. I enjoyed it from start to finish with my only complaint being that there were no more episodes. This would rate up there with King’s best mini-series and surely is better than most that he’s been behind. If you enjoy the entire conspiracy surrounding the JFK assassination or just want a good show to watch, this is it. It’s also good if you liked Quantum Leap. I know I’ve already said that, but I really did like Quantum Leap.
SPECIAL FEATURES
• When the Future Fights Back
o King, Abrams, Carpenter and star James Franco talk about elements of the production that turned King’s bestselling novel into an event series.
8 EPISODES
1. The Rabbit Hole /The Rabbit Hole Part 2
2. The Kill Floor
3. Other Voices, Other Rooms
4. The Eyes of Texas
5. The Truth
6. Happy Birthday, Lee Harvey Oswald
7. Soldier Boy
8. The Day in Question
About Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc.
Warner Bros. Home Entertainment (WBHE) brings together Warner Bros. Entertainment’s home video, digital distribution and interactive entertainment businesses in order to maximize current and next-generation distribution scenarios. An industry leader since its inception, WBHE oversees the global distribution of content through packaged goods (Blu-ray Disc™ and DVD) and digital media in the form of electronic sell-through and video-on-demand via cable, satellite, online and mobile channels, and is a significant developer and publisher for console and online video game titles worldwide. WBHE distributes its product through third party retail partners and licensees.
