If ever there was a reason to subscribe to Apple TV+ it’s to see the spellbinding mini-series Lisey’s Story, based on a novel by Stephen King and starring a luminous Julianne Moore in the lead as the widow of a famous, best-selling author- Scott Landon (Clive Owen). According to Stephen King, Lisey’s Story is one of his favorite books, and he pens the screenplays for all 8 episodes, which are brilliantly directed by Pablo Larrain.
Moore plays Lisey, who is dealing with the long-range effects of grief, mixed with memory of the deep love she shared with her writer husband. Scott privately related to her his nightmare childhood, raised, with his doomed brother, on a squalid farm by a psychotic father (an almost unrecognizable, chilling, Michael Pitt). Scott also allowed a glimpse into the secret world he shared with his brother after bouts of manic madness from his father. They transported themselves to another dimension filled with other lost souls, not to mention a terrifying monster they nickname “Longboy.” Scott has also left Lisey a scavenger hunt of sorts, which he and his brother called a “Bool Hunt.” Scott teases Lisey from beyond the grave by written clues suggesting at the end she will discover a “surprise.”
A professor (Ron Cephas Jones) has been relentlessly hounding her for Landon’s papers to be properly housed at his college, and she has been repeatedly turning him down. But the professor has an ally in one of the author’s most rabid fans- Jim Dooley (Dane DeHaan), one of the loony fringe Scott referred to as “deep-space cowboys.” In fact, one of those fan/nuts even shot him at a public appearance in the past, which he recovered from.
Lisey is also dealing with her older sister Amanda (Joan Allen), prone to depression and cutting, who always shared a special bond with Scott. Lisey also has a slightly contentious relationship with her other sister Darla (Jennifer Jason Leigh). But when Amanda is hospitalized they come together to help her recover.
But Jim Dooley (DeHaan) has decided it’s his mission to retrieve the writer’s papers at any cost and he is coming for Lisey. And, in incredibly frightening ways. Dane DeHaan is absolutely terrifying in that role. His insane contempt and brutality towards Lisey is so beyond the pale you cannot believe what you’re watching. I have rarely seen a villain as genuinely scary as he is here. He makes super-fan Annie Wilkes from Stephen King’s Misery look like Mary Poppins.
The mix of fantastical and horrifying is also balanced by the love that Lisey and Scott shared- the chemistry between the two leads is achingly palpable. This is Julianne Moore’s story after all- and to watch her come through the grief and loss while courageously battling the deranged Jim Dooley is to watch an actress at the top of her game- she’s just astonishing. The casting is masterful. I mean, really- three sisters played by Julianne Moore; Jennifer Jason Leigh and Joan Allen? That’s genius. The cinematography by Darius Khondji is also stunning.
One can imagine why Stephen King feels such an affinity for Lisey’s Story– it really is about the support and boundless love of the partner of a writer. If anything, it’s a love letter to King’s wife. What’s so great about this series is, while it’s always incredibly suspenseful, you also really feel this deep bond between the author and his spouse. That’s thanks to the sensational performances of Clive Owen and Julianne Moore. If you miss this, you are really missing something thrilling, fantastic, nerve-shredding and, ultimately, incredibly moving.
It also might increase the sale of shovels.