The Man in the Black Suit (Collected Within Everything’s Eventual)
Dream Director: Alexandre Aja (Horns, Mirrors)
“The Man in the Black Suit” might be one of King’s shorter stories, but it’ll stick with you almost as much as Gary’s encounter with the titular character would haunt him for the rest of his life. Basically, a young Gary (he’s narrating the story as an old man, recounting the incident) wakes up in the woods and encounters the villainous Man in the Black Suit. King spends an exceptional amount of time on describing this horrifying man, whether its his burning eyes, razor-sharp teeth, or his smell of burnt match heads. Just as much time is spent on the insults that the Man flings at young Gary, telling him that his father plans to molest him and that his mother is dead. Gary clues in that this Man is in fact the Devil, and while he manages to escape him, the encounter never leaves his mind for the rest of his life. It’s one thing to outsmart the Devil and beat him based on merit, but this is simply luck on Gary’s case and he’s not sure he’ll have as much if he happens to encounter the Man again. Not to mention the complete random nature of the Devil’s appearance.
Granted, “The Man in the Black Suit” has seen an adaptation via a short film courtesy of Nicholas Mariani, but a full-length feature that digs even deeper into this rich story would highlight King’s work in a whole other way. Seeing Gary having to encounter The Man in the Black Suit a second—or several more times—could add a whole new dimension to things. The sort of adolescent, naïve quality to the story is not unlike the work found in Alexandre Aja’s adaptation of Joe Hill’s (Stephen King’s son) Horns. Aja channeling that sort of atmosphere here, while indulging in his Haute Tension and Mirrors sensibilities would mix perfectly here.
