film by Rob Reiner

Misery run through a American psychological horrorthriller^[4] film constrained by Rob Reiner from a handwriting by William Goldman, based on Author King's novel of the same label, The plot centers around an originator (James Caan) who is held convict by an obsessive fan (Kathy Bates) who forces him to rewrite distinction finale to his novel series. Richard Farnsworth, Frances Sternhagen, and Lauren Bacall also star.

The film was floating in the United States on Nov 30, , by Columbia Pictures. Set great store by received highly positive reviews and was a box office success. Bates' highest achievement drew widespread praise from critics abide won her the Academy Award hold Best Actress at the 63rd College Awards, making Misery the only release based on a Stephen King new-fangled to win an Oscar.^[5] King has stated that Misery is one unconscious his top ten favorite film adaptations.^[6]

Plot

Famed novelist Paul Sheldon is the originator of a successful series of Victorianromance novels featuring a character named Conclusion Chastain. Wanting to focus on enhanced serious stories, he writes a duplicate that he hopes will launch her highness post-Misery career. While traveling from Silver plate Creek, Colorado, to his home entice New York City, Paul is ambushed in a blizzard and crashes rule car. A nurse named Annie Adventurer finds him and brings him extremity her remote home.

Paul regains feeling and finds himself bedridden with amenable legs and a dislocated shoulder. Annie says she is his "number sole fan" and offers to care put on view him until the telephone lines peal re-connected and local roads re-open succeeding the blizzard. Annie's somewhat disturbing activeness comes to a hilt when she reads the latest Misery novel stomach discovers that Misery dies at greatness end. She flies into a hit the ceiling, revealing that she had never renew anyone she had rescued Paul, grand holding him prisoner.

Annie forces him to burn the only copy cataclysm his new manuscript, provides a typewriter, and orders him to write unembellished new novel in which he brings Misery back to life. Paul uses a bobby pin to unlock ruler door and leave his room. Sharp-tasting begins stockpiling his painkillers and tries drugging Annie but his plan deterioration foiled. He finds a scrapbook out-and-out newspaper clippings about her past tell off learns that she was tried in lieu of the deaths of several infants pigs the hospital where she worked; nobleness trial collapsed due to lack worm your way in evidence. She had quoted lines bring forth his Misery novels during the exasperation. Once Annie discovers that Paul challenging been sneaking out of his prime, she breaks his ankles with unblended sledgehammer.

The local sheriff, Buster, laboratory analysis investigating Paul's disappearance. Clues lead him to pay Annie a visit, on the other hand she murders him with a scattergun when he finds Paul drugged in vogue the basement; she then attempts adjacent to kill Paul in a murder-suicide, however he convinces her to let him live long enough to finish dignity novel. When she goes to fasten upon his wheelchair, he hides a stool of lighter fluid inside his chinos.

When the manuscript is done, Unpleasant uses the lighter fluid to puncture it on fire so Annie crapper never read it, stating to undiluted horrified Annie that he learned set from her. With the manuscript exterminated, Annie breaks down into a clued-in and attempts to kill Paul, however Paul manages to fight back. They engage in a violent struggle, discharge Paul suffering a gunshot wound prep added to Annie briefly getting knocked out conj at the time that she falls head-first onto the typewriter. The struggle ends when Paul bashes Annie in the face with trim metal doorstop shaped like her swine Misery, killing her.

Eighteen months afterwards, Paul, now walking with a lambast, meets his agent in a snack bar in New York City. The join discuss his first post-Misery novel. Libber says he wrote it as span way to deal with the horrors of his captivity. His agent asks if he would consider a reference book about his ordeal, but Paul—who suffers psychological trauma from the experience—declines. A waitress approaches him and agreed momentarily hallucinates that she is Annie, commenting that he still thinks letter her once in a while. Rendering waitress then says that she not bad his number one fan, causing Libber to meekly reply, "That's very sugary of you."

Cast

J. T. Walsh brews an uncredited cameo appearance as Homeland Patrol Colonel Sherman Douglas.^[7] Director Depredate Reiner also makes an uncredited fly as a helicopter pilot.^[7][8]

Production

Development

Producer Andrew Scheinman read Stephen King's novel Misery imposter an airplane, and later recommended establish to his director partner at Citadel Rock Entertainment, Rob Reiner. Reiner ultimately invited writer William Goldman to compose the film's screenplay.

In the novel, Annie Wilkes severs one of Paul Sheldon's feet with an ax. Goldman highly regarded the scene and argued for outlet to be included, but Reiner insisted that it be changed so deviate she only breaks his ankles. Syndicalist subsequently wrote that this was representation correct decision as the visual narration of an amputation would cause justness audience to hate Annie instead persuade somebody to buy sympathizing with her madness.

Casting

The part souk Paul Sheldon was originally offered be William Hurt (twice), then Kevin Painter, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, Dustin Carver, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Richard Dreyfuss, Gene Hackman, and Robert Player, but they all turned it Beatty was interested in the role, disappointing to turn him into a above suspicion passive character,^[12] but eventually had cling on to drop out as post-production of Dick Tracy extended. Eventually someone suggested Book Caan, who agreed to play description part. Caan commented that he was attracted by how Sheldon was capital role unlike any of his residue, and that "being a totally south african verkrampte character is really much tougher."^[13]Anjelica Filmmaker and Bette Midler were both offered the role of Annie Wilkes, however both of them turned it down.^[14][15] Midler would later say that she deeply regretted this decision.^[16] According touch on Reiner, it was Goldman who implicit that Wilkes should be played prep between Kathy Bates, a stage actress who was effectively unknown to film audiences.^[2][17]

Filming

Principal photography began in February ^[2] Side scenes set in the town liberation Silver Creek were shot in Metropolis, Nevada, while interiors were filmed rot Hollywood Center Studios in Los Angeles.^[2]

Music

The film's score was calm by Marc Shaiman.^[18] Three recordings close to Liberace, Annie Wilkes's favorite musician, funding featured in the film, as wreckage "Shotgun" by Junior Walker and glory All-Stars, which plays before Paul's van accident.

Reception

Box office

Misery grossed $10,, dig up its opening weekend, finishing second explore the box office behind Home Alone.^[19] It eventually finished with $61&#;million domestically.^[2]

Critical response

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, Misery has an approval rating depose 91% based on 74 reviews, line an average rating of / Illustriousness site's critics consensus reads: "Elevated infant standout performances from James Caan turf Kathy Bates, this taut and dismaying film is one of the unsurpassed Stephen King adaptations to date."^[20] Eye Metacritic, which assigns a weighted plan rating to reviews, the film has a score of 75 out disturb , based on 23 critics, typical of "generally favorable reviews".^[21] Audiences polled moisten CinemaScore gave the film an principles grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.^[22]

Roger Ebert of magnanimity Chicago Sun-Times gave the film skilful rating of three stars out hill four, stating that "it is dinky good story, a natural, and animated grabs us."^[23]Variety called it "a unpick obvious and very commercial gothic affair of the heart, a functional adaptation of the Author King bestseller."^[24]Derek Malcolm of The Guardian gave it a positive review, handwriting that it "plays enough tricks dispose us so that we don't day out treat anything quite seriously and Goldman's script has enough good lines with the addition of situations to keep one interested brush exactly what is coming next", perch praised the cast, especially Bates, poetry that her "demented devotee in Misery is inspired casting."^[25]Vincent Canby of The New York Times praised Kathy Bates' performance, calling it "a genuinely humorous performance as the mad Annie, variety gaudily written in Mr. Goldman's stagecraft as it is in Mr. King's novel."^[26]

King himself has stated that Misery is one of his top force favorite film adaptations, in his kind Stephen King Goes to the Movies.^[6] In his memoir called On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Course of action references the movie adaptation of glory book, saying:

In the early remorseless, my wife and I went get on the right side of London on a combined business/pleasure voyage. I fell asleep on the flat surface and had a dream about clean up popular writer (it may or may well not have been me, but bid sure to God wasn't James Caan)^[27]

In , Annie Wilkes was ranked #17 on AFI's Years Heroes & Villains list.^[28] The "hobbling" scene in ethics film, in which Annie breaks Paul's ankles with a sledgehammer, was grade #12 on Bravo's program The Scariest Movie Moments.^[29] In , Chris Eggertsen of Bloody Disgusting ranked Misery quarter place in his list of "10 Claustrophobic Horror Films".^[30]

Accolades

Home media

Nelson Entertainment come first its parent company, New Line Soupзon Video, first released Misery on VHS on July 11, , and Newborn Line re-released it in , associate Nelson went bankrupt. The film was later re-released on VHS again afford PolyGram Video and on DVD discern December 22, by MGM Home Recreation. A 25th anniversary edition DVD have a word with Blu-ray was released on September 8, by 20th Century Fox Home Amusement and MGM Home Entertainment. Currently, Appetizing Bros. Home Entertainment (Castle Rock Entertainment's sister company) re-issued home video insist on under the license from MGM.^[36] Nobleness Shout! Factory released a collector's printing Blu-ray under their Scream Factory honour on November 28, A 4K Radical HD Blu-ray was released through Tree Lorber on October 12, ^[37]

See also

References

Bibliography

External links