The Mistborn Movie Should Lean Into The Horror Of 2 Disturbing Characters From The Books

A Mistborn movie has the opportunity to really exaggerate the horror of two characters from the books, and doing so would help add more complexity to a later Well of Ascension storyline. There are many disturbing aspects to the world found within Brandon Sanderson’s books, including the brutal and barbaric Allomantic art known as Hemalurgy — the gruesome addition of metal spikes through one’s vital organs to grant them Allomantic power. However, Mistborn‘s movie adaptation should lean into the disturbing elements of one species in particular, as the books don’t emphasize it enough.

Sanderson drops very subtle hints about the kandra in The Final Empire, but it isn’t until Kelsier’s death towards the end of the book that Vin, and therefore the reader, finally understand what Lord Renoux truly was. It is later revealed that the kandra, an evolved form of mistwraith, can consume the bones of the dead in order to impersonate their charges. And in order to sufficiently stress the horror of this scenario, the Mistborn movie must change how the kandra are presented early on.

The Mistborn Books Don’t Lean Far Enough Into The Disturbing Nature Of The Kandra

The Movie Should Give The Species A Larger Focus Early On

Throughout Mistborn Era 1, readers are introduced to two kandra who have pivotal roles in the stories’ central plot: Oreseur and TenSoon. However, the books don’t lean into the horror elements of their characters’ species nearly as much as they should. The book initially introduces the idea of a mistwraith, a similar species to the kandra, as they absorb and build their own skeleton using the bones of other creatures. While Sanderson does a phenomenal job describing what they look like, the Mistborn movies have the opportunity to expand on their disturbing features in much more detail.

It’s known early on in the books that Vin is greatly bothered by the idea of a mistwraith absorbing the bones of another, and once the idea of the kandra is presented, she’s completely disturbed. Her uneasiness surrounding the creatures worsens once it’s revealed that Oreseur consumed Kelsier’s bones after his death. Since the first book does not include Oreseur’s POV, readers are not given a full picture of how a kandra can accomplish such a task. This is something the Mistborn movie can build on to make the kandra appear much creepier on screen.

The Mistborn Movie Can Make Its Kandra Story Much Creepier Than The Books

The Movie Can Tease Their Nature Much Earlier

Based on Sanderson’s descriptions, it’s known that the kandra have amorphous bodies of muscle that can form around any shape, depending on the bones they’ve digested. However, readers don’t get a detailed view of this process until TenSoon’s narration in The Hero of Ages. To succeed in portraying the horror of this process throughout the series, the adaptation must implement a much-needed Mistborn book change and show this earlier. Obviously, doing so will have to be done strategically and carefully as to not ruin Lord Renoux’s reveal towards the end of the book.

For audiences to truly feel disturbed and afraid of such a character, the movie needs to highlight their monstrous depiction from the start. To accurately foreshadow the events later in the book, it would be great to see the Mistborn movie embrace the horror of the kandra by introducing a “monster” to the overall storyline — teasing glimpses of a creature that can become whomever they’ve digested. This would help to add an element of suspense throughout the movie, and it would leave audiences questioning who to trust.

The Adaptation Must Balance Kandra Horror With Oreseur & TenSoon’s Characterization

The Kandra Are Simply A Misunderstood Species

While it’s important that the Mistborn adaptation captures the horror of the kandra early on, it must also be careful to leave room to accommodate for both Oreseur and TenSoon’s characterization. Once it is revealed that Lord Renoux is, in fact, the kandra Oreseur, he explains to Vin that Kelsier passed on his contract to her. Vin is clearly distressed to have a kandra in her employ, and while they don’t get along for much of The Well of Ascension, he proves to be a loyal partner — even though it’s TenSoon posing as Oreseur for much of the book.

As the story progresses, Vin and TenSoon form the beginnings of a friendship, and more of the kandra’s true nature is revealed to the reader. While the kandra’s abilities are still quite disturbing, it’s disclosed later that they’re simply a misunderstood species. Bound by contracts to humans, the kandra are used as spies, acting upon orders given to them by whomever they are employed. If the Mistborn movie builds upon the dynamic nature of the kandra carefully, it will help to upend expectations more easily and make The Well of Ascension‘s plot twist even better.