Odd Thomas (2013)

In a California desert town, a short-order cook with clairvoyant abilities encounters a mysterious man with a link to dark, threatening forces.

Director:

Stephen Sommers

Writers:

Stephen Sommers (screenplay by), Dean R. Koontz (based on the novel "Odd Thomas" by)

Stars:

Anton Yelchin, Ashley Sommers, Leonor Varela

1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anton Yelchin	...	Odd Thomas
Ashley Sommers	...	Penny Kalisto
Leonor Varela	...	Odd's Mother
Matthew Page	...	Harlo Landerson (as Matthew Daniel Page)
Casey Messer	...	Pool Mom
Barney Lanning	...	Stevie
Nico Tortorella	...	Officer Simon Varner
Kyle McKeever	...	Officer Bern Eckles
Willem Dafoe	...	Chief Wyatt Porter
Carmen Corley	...	Levanna
Maisha Diatta	...	Nicolina (as Maisha Diata)
Gugu Mbatha-Raw	...	Viola Peabody
Addison Timlin	...	Stormy Llewellyn
Jack Justice	...	Young Odd (as Jack Justice Brown)
Robin Lanning	...	Young Stormy

Storyline

Small-town fry cook Odd Thomas (Anton Yelchin) is an ordinary guy with a paranormal secret: he sees dead people, everywhere. When a creepy stranger shows-up with an entourage of ghostly bodachs - predators who feed on pain and portend mass destruction - Odd knows that his town is in serious trouble. Teaming up with his sweetheart Stormy (Addison Timlin) and the local sheriff (Willem Dafoe), Odd plunges into an epic battle of good vs evil to try to stop a disaster of apocalyptic proportions. Based on the best-selling thriller by Dean Koontz.

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Plot Keywords:

bodach | supernatural ability | seeing the dead | able to see the dead | seeing ghosts | 

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Taglines:

When evil comes to town, he is the only one who can stop it.

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Genres:

Comedy | Fantasy | Horror | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

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Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

28 February 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cudni Thomas

Filming Locations:

Plaza Cafe Downtown - 54 Lincoln Ave., Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$27,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fusion Films (II),Future Films,The Sommers Company

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Scenes that included Odd and Stormy's origins were cut from the film. One including young Stormy and her step-father and another including young Odd and his mother. Odd's mother put a gun to his head and is later taken away while cutting paper roses. DJ Shamus and most of Ozzy's scenes were also cut from the film.

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Goofs

The ending shows Odd walking through the desert and approaching Las Vegas on foot; however, if he walked from California, he'd be approaching from the West, but the view of Las Vegas he sees is that of approaching from the East, judging from the arrangement of the casino hotels on the Las Vegas Strip.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Odd Thomas: My name is Odd Thomas, though in this age when fame is the alter at which most people worship, I'm not sure why you should care.

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Connections

References The Mummy (1999)

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Soundtracks

Fire
Written by Jeffrey Innes, Graham Jones, Brandon Scott, John Jeffrey
Performed by Yukon Blonde
Courtesy of Dine Alone Records

User Reviews

Good Adaptation

Firstly, I am a huge Koontz fan and a huge Odd Thomas fan. I've been waiting years for this movie so my expectations were pretty high. I'm sure that figures into my analysis of the movie, as I have been largely let down by adaptations from novels in the past. That being said...

Overall, good movie, good adaptation. Moving a story from a book to a movie always presents problems; always there will be portions of the story and significant nuances left out. This is no exception. The casting of Odd was very good. Yelchin did a fantastic job capturing the strong albeit naive nature of Odd. I was skeptical about Timlin as Stormy, but she not only pulled it off but, in my mind, perfectly captured Stormy. I will no longer be able to think of Stormy without seeing her face. I wish we could have seen more interaction between Odd and Ozzie; in the books this is a very important relationship for Odd. Also, in the books, Ozzie is 350 or so pounds and Oswalt is considerably smaller. That being said, I think his size in the books is more of a testament to his larger-than-life character and less about his physical size, which I believe, given the chance, Oswalt would have perfectly captured. He is a largely underrated actor.

As for the story, it sticks to the book even though there are a few things left out. It would have been nice to know more of Odd's background but it would have unnecessarily stretched the movie out. Well told, with appropriate use of flashbacks, and good use (and not overuse) of narration, just as in the books. One thing I really enjoy about Odd Thomas books is the quick-paced, quick-whited dialogue. I've rarely read another author that could match Koontz in this aspect. This was transferred to the big screen very well.

As I said, I've been waiting for this movie for a while and whereas I wish they'd done it as an eight hour miniseries and captured every nuance of the book, this was a superb adaptation and an excellent movie. I really hope they make more because Odd's adventures keep getting better.

8 of 10