Misery

Plot synopsis:
In this darkly humorous thriller, James Caan portrays Romantic novelist Paul Sheldon, famously renowned for his trademark character, the film's namesake 'Misery' Chastaine. shortly after finishing his latest book, he drives of back to New York from the Silver Creek lodge. After a while, his car swerves off the icy road in a blizzard. In the car, he has a flashback in which he is talking to his agent (portrayed by Lauren Bacall) about his last Misery book. He is rescued by nurse Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) who takes him back to her house for two days and reveales that she is his number one fan, hence the infamous quote "I'm your number one fan". When Annie asks if she can read his new book (in manuscript form) she proves to be more than a little eccentric when she lashes out in a fit of rage over the swearing in his book. When she leaves the room he seems fraked out and looks like he wants to leave quickly. The next day, Annie brings home a copy of the final Misery book and over the days reveals how many pages she has read. During which, she introuces him to her pet sow, Misery.The following night, she nearly kills him over the fact that he has killed Misery in his final book, tells him that she never called the local hospital (which she said she had) and threatens to kill him if anything happens to her. He immediately tries to escape but fails. The next day, Annie seems happy and tries to persuade him to burn the manuscript to which he seems reluctant. Later, she reveals she wants him to write a new book in which Misery comes back to life. When he sees a hairpin on the floor, he has an idea to buy time, he asks Annie to buy some different paper because his current paper smudges, to which she responds with another fit of rage. Whilst she is out shopping, Paul uses the hairpin to unlock his bedroom door and escape. However, he soon finds out that the front door is locked as well. He makes a visit to her living room and medicine closet. In the living room he accidentally knocks a small ceramic penguin off the table and puts it back the wrong way (this will become important later). He also realises that Annie's phone is a fake one, cancelling his chances of contacting the outside world. In the medicine closet, he takes some of the pills the Annie had been giving him for his fracture. He also tries to escape through her back door in the kitchen but cannot open it (I forgot to mention that he was bedridden for a few days and currently in a wheelchair). Soon, he hears Annie returning and immediately races back to his room. Fortunately, he gets back to his room in time just when she opens the door. She gets him back into bed and gives him a notepad and his pills (which he pretends to swallow).The following night, he saves up a lot of powder from the pills. In the morning, an argument starts between Paul and Annie about the book, which escalates into a humorous fit of rage about her growing up in Bakersfield watching chapter plays. Meanwhile, the local authorities find Sheldon's '65 Mustang buried in the snow. When Annie reads some of Paul's new manuscript she responds happily. Paul requsts that Annie have dinner with him to celebrate Misery's return. At the dinner, Paul makes a toast to Misery's return but asks if she has any candles. Whilst Annie is looking for them, Paul puts the powder in her wine. When she returns she almost makes the toast but drops her drink in the process, ruining Paul's plan.The next scene shows a line of clips of Paul writing the book. In the last clip, Annie gives him his pills and talks about committing suicide. When she leaves the house, he goes out of his room again and reads her scrapbook. It includes many newspaper clippings, revealing that she killed her father, her college roommate and many patients in hospitals. He grabs a knife from the kitchen and wheels himself to his room. Later, he awakens to the sight of Annie as she forcibly sedates him. In the morning, she ties him to the bed and reveals that she knows that he has been out of his room (the scrapbook, the ceramic penguin, the hairpin). Then, she 'hobbles' him (puts a block of wood betwen his feet and hits them with a sledgehammer)In the next scene, 'Buster' the local sheriff sees an emotional outburst in the town and researches her history. Later, he pays a visit to her house to look around. When he leaves, he hears a noise and goes back inside to find Paul in the basement and is shot by Annie. When she says she wants to kill him then herself, he requests finishing the book first. later, he is writing the book and requests 3 things: a cigarette, matches, and Dom Perignon champagne. When Annie returns, he also requests two glasses. whilst she is out of the room, he pours flammable liquid onto the manuscript and burns it, which escalates into a brawl resulting in Annie's death.18 months later, Paul is seen in a restaurant with his agent, refusing to write a book about his experiences. He mistakes a waitress for Annie in a haunting vision as she repeats Annie's line: "I'm your number one fan".

Tags: psychological, neo noir, murder, mystery, dramatic, violence, revenge, horror, insanity, claustrophobic, suspenseful, sadist

Review:
She keeps Sheldon in her home; he has to bring the character back to life in his next novel.Bates, who won an Oscar, is terrific as Annie, one of her finest performances.
In my opinion Misery is one of the better adaptations of Stephen King's works and truly a movie that cannot be missed, especially for the genre fans.Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is the author of a successful series of romance novels about a character called Misery, who decides to take a more serious approach regarding his future novels.
Claiming to be his number one fan, Annie discovers that in his last Misery novel her favorite character dies and then her obsession about him takes a dark and twisted turn as a long story of captivity and abuse begins.The direction by Rob Reiner is phenomenal and on a hitchcockian level as the film has a plethora of perfectly crafted suspenseful moments that have the audience on the edge of their seats from the beginning till the amazing climax.
The movie received a lot of critical acclaim, especially due to Kathy Bates' chilling and memorable performance as Anny Wilkes that earned her the 1990's leading actress Oscar award, which remains the only Oscar ever given to a Stephen King film adaptation.
No matter how great Kathy Bates' Oscar-winning performance is, James Caan's cannot go unnoticed as it definitely qualifies as one of the best performances in his extensive career, despite how demanding and challenging his role as Paul Sheldon was.In conclusion, Misery is a dark and tense masterpiece that is an amalgamation of excellent direction, skillful writing, taut editing, amazing cinematography and stellar performances, which succeeds into creating the feeling of captivity and helplessness that the thriller genre was purposefully built for, and that makes it one of the best movies of the 90's and one absolute classic in its genre..
Caan is solid and underplays beautifully, and the inimitable Kathy Bates carries the film with her alternately hysterical or ridiculously-sappy Annie, the psychotic Sheldon fan.
A bestselling romance novelist named Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is on his way to the countryside to work on his next book when a blizzard causes his car to crash, leaving him severely injured and unable to walk.
At times, the movie almost comes off as a demented parody of a normal relationship between a man and woman living together.The very best of the Stephen King horror movies, "Misery" is a film which I count among my favorites even though it is so intense I sometimes have trouble sitting through the whole thing.
All I can say is that I was definitely not disappointed; this was an amazing movie.Misery is the story of writer Paul Sheldon (James Caan), who is driving through a snowstorm after just having finished his newest novel.
Bates, perfectly cast as loony tune Annie Wilkes, won an Oscar for Best Actress as the self-proclaimed `#1 fan' of bodice-ripping novelist Caan, who finds himself in her web of horror after a car crash landing him in the snow engulfed remote home of his sociopathic, homicidal nurse who will not take no for an answer.
William Goldman expertly adapts the Stephen King best seller with a few nice nasty turns here and there and Rob Reiner gives just enough gruesomeness (watch the sledgehammer scene a few times; you'll see what I mean) for frightful flavor..
Riding high after a string of popular films The Princess Bride, When Harry met Sally and Stand By Me (Another King adap), director Rob Reiner brings one of King's best novels to the screen.Kathy Bates is terrifying as unhinged psychotic Annie Wilkes and James Cann is brilliant as Paul Sheldon, the imprisoned writer.
Misery has a straight-forward, no-nonsense plot - about a fan obsessed woman (Annie Wilkes) who rescues her favorite author (Paul Sheldon) from a car wreck without telling anyone and nurses him back to health, but house-arrests him until he rewrites his latest novel to her liking.
Kathy Bates' outstanding portrayal in the role of Annie Wilkes is something to reckon with; she grows on the audiences from her seemingly sweet personality at first after rescuing Paul Sheldon, then, creeps everybody out as you see her mental instability progress from obsession to threatening.The suspense of Annie's unpredictability to Paul's no-escape predicament is a good edge-if-your-seat experiment.
Annie reads Paul's manuscript and demands a rewrite.Director Rob Reiner brings this Stephen King novel to life.
And more than that, leaves the doubt to the spectator, making he think about the movie after it's over."Misery", thought not perfect, is a great original work with good actors that will deliver you a good time and keep you on the edge of your seat..
So after a lot of years of watching horror movies and loving horror movie adaptations of Stephen king books, i realised i had never watched Misery, after watching it i realised i should have took the time to watch it many years ago.The story is about a writer who having finished a book decides to return home, but on his return he has a accident and is rescued by his number one fan after that things take a dark twist while he is trying to recover from the accident, the story in this film is brilliant and gripping, you are always on edge of your seat wanting the main character to succeed its very believable which makes you fully emerged in the film.The acting in this is brilliant and makes this film stand out, James Caan and Kathy bates are so believable, you genuinely hate but want to understand Kathy Bates's character and you are constantly behind James Caans character wanting him to succeed.A great movies for horror and Thriller fans, Worth a watch to anyone who's interested in either genre..
Sheldon quickly finds himself in a lot of trouble as his own life is threatened by this deranged fan of his.Misery is an all around wildly entertaining film that incorporates horror, suspense, and even a little bit of dark comedy.
Keeping him just where he is, Annie demands that he rewrite the book and continue the story, becoming all the more unreasonable the more Paul resists.The old adage goes that if you must adapt a Stephen King story then make it one of the short ones rather than one of his tomes, however with Misery director Reiner takes one of his novels and makes it into a wonderfully tight thriller.
The writing is good but it is key that both Caan and Bates turn in great performances in the lead two roles  bringing the mental battle and instability of Annie to life in a consistently tense fashion..
Kathy Bates is the crazed fan of James Caan's fluent writer, Paul Sheldon, who has finally ended his Misery series.
And the best thing about this is how well Kathy Bates carries the character.I read the novel "Misery" by Stephen King.
I personally enjoy the film a bit more than the novel.In the book, I imagined Kathy Bates the whole time as Annie Wilkes.
Anyways, Misery is about a writer named Paul Sheldon(James Caan) who gets into a terrible car accident and a crazed fan of his Annie Wilkes(Kathy Bates) saves him and makes him a prisoner in her home.
Having said that, what we also have here is a movie that - in my opinion - didn't reach the heights that are often claimed for it.James Caan was believable (albeit surprisingly unemotional I thought, given the circumstances) as writer Paul Sheldon, "rescued" from a car accident by his self-proclaimed biggest fan Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) who then holds him hostage to force him to write a novel bringing back her favourite character (Misery) whom he had killed off in the last installment in the series.
Her performance as the insane Annie is very believable (although, I thought, at times a little too over the top.) Richard Farnsworth on the other hand (as Sheriff McCain) I found irritating and totally unnecessary (and, although I have never read the novel on which this is based, I understand that his character was added to the movie, for no apparent reason that I could see.) Rob Reiner directed.
The material is like a crazy Lifetime movie done by Alfred Hitchcock, with the source always very obviously- and lovingly- King.The premise is a batch of not-quite-coincidences; a writer of a pulp trash series called Misery (James Caan) drives from his Maine retreat with a new book, and crashes his car in a blizzard.
Persistently looming with a sense of dread and uplifted by terrific performances, it's a manifestation of every celeb's worst nightmare.The story of Misery concerns the author of a best-selling novel series who crashes his car during a blizzard and is rescued by a former nurse who considers herself to be his number one fan.
Kathy Bates deserved that oscar, great film adaptation of Stephen King's book even if there were differences, I think they adjusted well.That bi-polar Annie Wilkes character was played realistically and amazingly by Kathy Bates, while James Caan's character is still more underplayed, he still managed to pull off a few of those most desperate moments.Supporting characters were good too, very chilling/disturbing moments mainly done by the psychological projection of those characters and scenes - hardly any physical visual scenes needed (apart from the one or two max of the infamous ones)..
MISERY - 1990Directed by Rob ReinerStarring James Caan, Kathy Bates and Richard FarnsworthPlot Overview: After his car crashes on an icy day, renowned author, Paul Sheldon(James Caan) is picked up by sweet seeming Nurse, Annie Wilkes(Kathy Bates), whom all happens to be his number 1 fan.
It is truly a remarkable performance and 100% deserved the Oscar.A performance that goes under-looked in this film due to Bates' focus that I think is unjust is James Caan's excellent performance as Paul Sheldon.
"Misery" feels like a Stephen King story in every sense of the word; and even though I'd heard of the infamous scene years ago (let's just say it involves a sledgehammer and a two-by-four), I'd never given this much credit as a horror movie.
I watched this film as I've recently finished the Stephen King novel that it is based on, so I wanted to see how the two compared.Short answer, the film is just as good as the novel.Kathy Bates is absolutely brilliant but terrifying as Annie Wilkes.
Based on Stephen King's novel of the same name, Misery tells the story of novelist Paul Sheldon (James Caan), who makes the mistake of trying to motor his just-finished manuscript from the Colorado Mountains to New York during a blinding snowstorm.
Enter his "number one fan" Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), who rescues him from a snowy grave, pops his dislocated shoulder back into place, puts his broken legs in splints, and hooks him up to the old intravenous in her isolated farmhouse.She cares for Paul in her traditional nursing garb for all the sense of authority and implied compassion it affords her.
Misery is the adapted film from the great Stephen King about novelist Paul Sheldon, played by James Caan, the successful writer of the "Misery" series.
The way Paul is going to escape from the clutches of Annie is what makes this movie interesting, and in this sense Misery is particularly efficient because this plot offers tense scenes and manages to captivate the viewer's attention from start to finish.
I had mixed emotions about Misery, on the one hand, I thought that Misery was a good adaptation of the Stephen King novel, but on the other hand I thought that it was quite cheesy and came nowhere near to being as good as the book.The acting coming from James Caan is okay, and the acting coming from Kathy Bates is amazing.One of the things that I like about Misery is the fact that the whole movie is not based just on the book.
When she discovers that Paul has killed off the heroine in her favourite novels, her reaction leaves Paul shattered (literally)...I was on edge of my seat watching this movie, one scenes made me look away from scene did make me look away, it some scenes I was shouting at at the screen.Kathy Bates was incredible in this movie, she was fantastic playing evil Annie Wilkes so well in this movie and James Caan was Fantantic too.A Great Thriller, I give this movie a 10 out 10.
KATHY BATES turns MISERY into one of the scariest horror films ever made from a Stephen King novel.
It's a compact thriller with a plot that is never too complicated and characters that are just deep enough to make it an above average piece of entertainment if you like the King's brand of pulp fiction.Bates is the obsessed fan of writer Sheldon (JAMES CAAN), so much so that she has no regrets about punishing him for his transgressions, such as letting her favorite Sheldon heroine, Misery, die in the course of his latest book.
Determined to keep him prisoner until he writes a new novel bringing Misery back to life, she deliberately breaks his ankles (this scene is a shocker) so he can no longer try to escape from the typewriter and wheelchair by the window.The Maine atmosphere is there (as always, with a King story, the setting is rural Maine), and all the performances are first rate with a nice job by Robert Farnsworth as an inquisitive sheriff on the trail of the captured writer he suspects might be in the Bates home.It's a straightforward horror tale in the best tradition of such material, with a stunning physical battle between Bates and Caan for a smashing finale with good triumphing over evil.Undoubtedly, a tale well suited to the screen and one of the best adaptations ever of a Stephen King novel.
She begins to bring him back to health but before long the writer realizes that this woman isn't all there mentally.MISERY is a rare Stephen King adaptation that actually manages to be extremely good and director Rob Reiner certainly deserves a lot of the credit.
This film is a Stephen King original and Oscar-Winner.Misery is a popular romance novel written by author Paul Sheldon.
This movie sort of over achieves itself, the plot is nothing special, the characters are kind of one-sided, but, in my opinion, Kathy Bates's performance is what really shines here, making this seemingly simple film a true masterpiece.People say it is the greatest movie adaptation of a Stephen King book, which personally i have not read, but that seems to be the case.
A very tense thriller, it grabs your attention and leads you down a dark path into the twisted mind of Annie Wilkes.Paul Sheldon is a writer; he has been writing a very successful series of romance novels featuring the heroine Misery.
And ultimately, this is a story about Annie Wilkes, not Paul Sheldon.Competent cinematography, detailed set design, amplified sound effects, and good support performances all enhance the film's production.My only quibble is the casting of pugnacious James Caan as Paul; I would like to have seen what Dustin Hoffman or Robert Redford could have done with the role.
In 1990, director Rob Reiner brought back to the screen, the legendary James Caan in his comeback role as novelist Paul Sheldon in Stephen King's "Misery." Also starring is Kathy Bates in her Oscar winning role as Annie Wilkes, Sheldon's number one fan.It all starts when Sheldon is finished writing his latest novel, his masterpiece.
Stephen King's novel had a smashing premise that the film only partially succeeds in capitalizing on.It's clear that "Misery" is an author's (or at least King's) worst nightmare: a writer of disposable potboilers (James Caan) is in an accident and finds himself convalescing in the home of his self-proclaimed #1 fan (Kathy Bates).
Kathy Bates gives an outstanding performance as Annie Wilkes, a psychotic, yet caring woman who takes in author James Caan after a car accident.
this is one of the best Stephen King novels adapted for the big screen.this movie is well acted,well written and well directed.Kathy bates makes a great homicidal maniac.James Caan plays novelist Paul Sheldon who ends up being tormented by Annie Wilkes,who is his biggest fan.she goes to great lengths to prove just how big a fan she is.of course,she is also very angry at Sheldon,so of course he must be punished.i won't reveal how he comes to be tormented by her,or why she is angry at him,but she has her reasons,sick and twisted they may be.Caan is also convincing as a man who believes his life is in danger and is desperate to survive.anyway,the suspense factor is high in this one,as is the creepiness factor.for me,Misery is a 7/10.
Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is a very successful author of romance and thriller books, one snowy night he crashes his car and a lonely woman named Annie (Kathy Bates) rescues him then provides shelter for him.
Annie takes care of Paul Sheldon (Caan); a writer wanting to wrap up his recent series of successful books about a girl called Misery, with very efficient professionalism that gradually becomes efficient obsession.The reason this film stands out so well is that individual brilliant acting performances and the way in which the tension is utilised to an effective manner stick out.
When famous writer Paul Sheldon (James Caan) flips his car during a blizzard, he is miraculously "rescued" by Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates)  his self-confessed number one fan.
the film is about james caan, a writer, being captured by a crazed fan played by kathy bates.
Everything in life is alright for Paul Sheldon(Caan) until he crashes his car and wakes up inside the house of his number one fan, Annie Wilkes(Bates).
He ends up at the home of his "number one fan." The fan, Annie Wilks, played by Kathy Bates, is such a troubled woman, and the way she acts towards Paul makes us realize our obsessions, and what we would do to get them.