Misery (1990) – 8/10 – Classic suspenseful psychological thriller that terrorizes
Overall
MISERY is a psychological horror-thriller adaptation of the Stephen King novel of the same name. Director Rob Reiner did a wonderful job here in keeping us on the edge of our seats throughout. The line between a fan (short for fanatic) and an actual insane person is thin and often converges. I’m sure our favorite team, author, or artist has frustrated us sometime. How might you respond if you could get your hands on them? We see that play out here from one individual. The themes include control, power, fear, isolation, survival and psychology. After watching most of Hitchcock’s movies, this mirrors something he might direct—the legendary movies REAR WINDOW (1954) and PSYCHO (1960) come to mind. Focus here centers on the two main characters, with Kathy Bates winning the Best Actress Oscar in 1991. My rating is 8/10.
Plot (spoiler-free)
A famous author, Paul Sheldon (James Caan), finishes his latest novel and is eager to get the book to his publisher. In his excitement, he crashes his car while speeding home in snowy conditions. A fan of his, former nurse Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), finds and rescues him. After bringing the injured Sheldon to her isolated house, Annie informs him she is his number one fan. He allows her to read his newest novel in return for saving him. Things go wrong once she reads the novel’s ending and becomes enraged. Sheldon, stuck in bed, must plan his escape while he still can. The small-town Sheriff Buster (Richard Farnsworth) gets word of Sheldon’s disappearance and must investigate.
Technicals
MISERY keeps you on your toes, waiting to see what’s next and whether the protagonist will live. Direction, fast pacing, cinematography, brilliant acting, writing, and tight editing are the best things here. The performances are the highlight because everything happens around or involves the two characters. Kathy Bates’ character brought back chilling memories of Norman Bates from PSYCHO and Nurse Ratched from ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST (1975). If either does not perform effectively, the movie falls apart. You never know what to expect from her during a scene. Issues? First, MISERY lacks story depth. It is straightforward and often predictable. I have not read King’s novel, so I’m unsure if the source material is like that. Despite the predictability, you stay glued until the credits roll. Second, we know little about Sheldon’s history. His characterization could be better. Third, most Hitchcock movies have solid background sounds and music to build atmosphere. The music here doesn’t do it justice, something Hitchcock would change if he were directing. Reiner is a skilled director but no Hitchcock.
Trivia Tidbits
The two chief actors clashed over their acting styles. While Bates preferred doing rehearsals for practice, Cann believed in limited rehearsals to keep the performances natural. They became friends after the filming. Jack Nicholson refused the Sheldon role, which would have fit him perfectly. Fifteen other popular actors received offers, but none accepted except Cann. Bates was their first choice for Annie, and she accepted. King sold the film rights for this on the condition that Rob Reiner either direct or produce after his work in STAND BY ME (1986), a film King also wrote. Interestingly, Reiner had never done a thriller or horror before this. Cann had to stay in bed for most of the fifteen weeks of filming. Reiner studied Hitchcock’s thrillers before directing this. King, years later, said part of his inspiration for writing Misery was himself and his drug addictions.
Would I recommend this?
Yes, this movie is a gem. It may not be worth a second viewing, though. I rarely watch scary movies, though this is more thriller than horror, except for two gruesome scenes. This isn’t your typical horror with bloodthirsty vampires or aliens or brainless zombies, but one where the monster is, in fact, human. The scariest part is that it can happen to anyone, particularly someone famous.
*Obtained trivia facts from IMDb’s trivia page and plot/basic history/names information from Wiki