Now Streaming: Francis Lawrence, From CONSTANTINE to SLUMBERLAND

Stephen King movie adaptations have become so frequent that they tend to blur into one horror after another, yet early reviews of the latest, The Long Walk, have been quite encouraging. (Visit the official site for locations and showtimes.)

Each adaptation for the screen of a book or story by Stephen King -- who wrote The Long Walk, first published in 1979, under his pen name Richard Bachman -- has varied, of course, depending upon the filmmakers. In this case, Francis Lawrence takes the helm.

Born in Vienna, Austria, Lawrence's family moved to Los Angeles, California, when Francis was a child. After graduating from film school, he first made his mark by directing some 60 music videos. For a fuller appreciation of his work in that field, we direct the reader to our own Theodoor Steen's quite fabulous column, published in November 2023, that dove quite deeply into the hows and whys of Lawrence's talents, with two music videos included as samples. Theodoor pointed out: "If Francis Lawrence does one thing exceedingly well, it's the branding and rebranding of stars and characters."

Francis Lawrence made his feature film debut with a rather loose adaptation of Hellbender, a comic-book series created by Alan Moore and Stephen R. Bissette.

Constantine (2005)
The film is not currently available on any streaming services. It is available to buy or recent via various VOD platforms. It is also available in a new 4K release on physical media.

Keanu Reeves stars as cynical exorcist John Constantine. Again quoting from my colleague Theodoor's article: "Lots of his films are attempts to shake off the dust of old classics, put a new spin on them, and rebrand them for the future. Often this comes at the price of being lambasted by fanboys and critics alike, who don't like it that John Constantine in Constantine is now a brown-haired straight American who looks like Keanu Reeves and not a bisexual blond British guy who looks like Sting."

I Am Legend (2007)
The film is not currently streaming. It is available to rent or buy on various Video On Demand platforms.

Will Smith stars as the lone survivor of a worldwide plague that turned everyone else into monsters. They only come out at night, so he spends his days stalking the empty streets of Manhattan, scavaging for supplies for his scientific experiments to discover a cure.

Perhaps because I've seen and quite enjoyed Richard Matheson's original story and the two previous film adaptations, I was not enamored with Lawrence's version when I saw it during its original theatrical run. (The ending infuriated me.) Like Constantine, however, I Am Legend definitely shows that Lawrence knows how to construct memorable sequences with visual storytelling.

From the horrors of his first two films, Lawrence next pivoted to a period romantic drama.

Water for Elephants (2011)
The film is now streaming on HBO Max through September 30.

In a traveling circus, animal caretaker Robert Pattinson and performer Reese Witherspoon fall in love under the baleful eye of her husband, Christoph Waltz.

Since the movie fell outside our usual coverage guidelines, and because none of our regular reviewers at the time signaled an interest in seeing it, anyway, we passed on covering. Still, I went on my own to see it in a theater, and equally distinct memories of not liking it one bit. Little else comes to mind about the experience, except that it was elegantly shot and composed.

Next, Francis Lawrence joined a franchise and made it his own.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)
The film is now streaming on HBO Max.

Jennifer Lawrence stars. Gary Ross departed as director after The Hunger Games (2012), leaving the way open for Francis Lawrence to steer the series.

Our critic Eric D. Snider was quite impressed: "The film runs smoothly and efficiently for its first 90 minutes, effectively mixing dark humor, social commentary, and pure story- and character-driven entertainment. Jennifer Lawrence excels at conveying Katniss' fear and worry over her actions' effects on other people, the grim reality of which the film doesn't shy away from. Strong and self-possessed though she is, Katniss is a teenager with huge burdens on her shoulders, and Lawrence's emotional performance brings it home."

The promised third film got split into two installments, which are both also now streaming on HBO Max, along with the "original."

Francis Lawrence also directed the prequel, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, is now streaming on Starz. Our own Paz O'Farrell reviewed it, writing that it "manages to feel like three movies. The costume design was a pleasure to look at, so I would not have been opposed to smaller fragments. It is a satisfying watch if one knows what they are getting into."

The non-related Jennifer Laawrence starred in Francis Lawrence's foray in spy thrillers.

Red Swallow (2018)
The film is not currently available on any streaming services. It is available to buy or recent via various Video On Demand platforms.

Jennifer Lawrence stars as a prima ballerine who is also an assassin. What's not to love?

Our own J Hurtado reviewed the thriller: "This film is a crazy amalgam of cinematic influences, none quite strong enough to push it beyond the realm of the mildly enjoyable. ... All that being said, apart from the frequently exorbitant run time, Red Sparrow is definitely an entertaining mish-mash of '60s Cold War thriller and early '80s Bond-style espionage action film."

Before returning to the Hunger Games franchise, Lawrence made an adventure that is also a fantasy comedy for the entire family.

Slumberland (2022)
The film is now streaming on Netflix.

Outlaw Jason Momoa seeks to help young Marlow Barkley navigate her dreams and nightmares. To be honest, none of us saw it and/or wanted to write about it, so your guess is as good as mine as to whether it's worth visiting. If you have Netflix, it might be worth a few minutes of your time before watching The Long Walk, which sounds like the complete opposite.

Now Streaming celebrates independent and international genre films and television shows that are newly available on legal streaming services.