The Dark Tower reviews are in... and they're dreadful

After a difficult journey to the silver screen – with reports of a troubled production and the release date being moved back twice – The Dark Tower has finally arrived to a dreadful reception from critics.

The Stephen King adaptation, starring Idris Elba as gunslinger Roland Deschain and Matthew McConaughey as the Man in Black, mixes western with horror and sci-fi and focuses on a dark tower, which protects both the world we know and a far more mysterious land called Mid-World.

A Guardian reviewer branded it a “uniquely flavorless slog”, suffering from a “shambolic script” and a "ramshackle plot". They also questioned the point of monsters who seemed to have “no tangible effect” on the storyline.

Meanwhile, The Hollywood Reporter said that while The Dark Tower has a good cast and is “satisfying enough to please many casual moviegoers”, it will likely “disappoint many serious fans”.

Mashable describes the film as "akin to listening to someone describe a dream they had last night – it's full of sloppy and-then-this-happeneds and oh-right-did-I-forget-to-mentions. It's just as difficult to follow, and almost as boring."

Variety simply concluded that the film “summons an emotional impact of close to zero”.

But Uproxx critic Mike Ryan holds nothing back when he writes: "The Dark Tower is so astoundingly awful that when you leave the theater you’ll likely be less mad you wasted your time than flabbergasted that something like this could a) happen and b) be released as something that, theoretically, is going to launch a multi-platform franchise."

The Dark Tower is released in UK cinemas on 18th August