Misery (1990) Review: Kathy Bates Is Still Terrifying After All These Years

Kathy Bates as Annie - Need I say more?

If you have not watched Misery yet, what the hell are you waiting for?

Plot

After a famous author is rescued from a car crash by a fan of his novels, he comes to realize that the care he is receiving is only the beginning of a nightmare of captivity and abuse.

Good Points

• Kathy Bates gives an unforgettable performance

• The tension is incredible

• James Caan provides the perfect balance

• The chemistry between Bates and Caan is fantastic

• Rob Reiner’s direction

• The mix of horror and dark humor works extremely well

• The pacing is excellent

Bad Points

• None

My Thoughts on Misery

A simple story that offers so much

Misery is proof that sometimes all you really need is one person with a serious problem and another person who has absolutely no idea how dangerous they are for it to work - simplicty on the surface, but underneath it offers so much for the film lover to enjoy.

I watched this when it first came out, or maybe slightly after, where it quickly became one of my favorites, and even when you watch it again years later, it still holds up too damn well, where the uncomfortable tension it offers still gets to you even though you know what is going to happen.

And considering it is just two people stuck together - one desperate to escape and the other completely convinced that she is in the right - it probably has no right to be as good as it is really, but everything is damn near perfect for me - the performances, the pacing, the tension - it all just comes together perfectly.

Kathy bates is terrifying

Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes is probably the main reason this movie has remained so memorable for so many years, as she is brilliant playing someone who has completely lost control of her own emotions - one minute she can seem kind and almost sweet, and the next she becomes someone you genuinely fear being around, and it’s that switch that makes her so frightening.

Some of the funniest moments in the movie also come from Annie’s strange personality, as while she is terrifying, she is also unintentionally hilarious at times because of how seriously she takes everything, and her reactions are so extreme that you almost cannot believe what you are watching at times.

Bates completely understood that Annie is not just a scary character - she is also sad, lonely, and completely consumed by her obsession, and she delivers on the role ten fold.

And yes, the famous leg scene is still horrible to watch.

James Caan brings the balance

James Caan does not get talked about as much as Kathy Bates when people discuss Misery, but his performance is also really good, and Caan managed to keep his character interesting where you can see everything happening behind his eyes - he is scared, angry, frustrated, and desperate, but he also knows he cannot simply react emotionally - he has to think carefully about every move he makes.

The contrast between Caan and Bates is also fascinating to witness and watch, and while Kathy Bates is of course brilliant, Caan deserves a lot of praise as well I think.

And a word on Rob Reiner, who is someone probably best known for his comedies and dramas, so it is still impressive how well he handles a darker story like this, as while the film spends a lot of time in a single location, his direction helps to keep things focused, with no unnecessary distractions.

I also really like how the film balances the horror elements with the dark humor elements, mainly from Annie as mentioned, and that balance is definitely something that is difficult to get right, but Reiner handles it perfectly.

A different side of Stephen King

I won’t pretend to be an expert on Stephen King, although I am a fan, but one of the things I also appreciate about Misery is that I think it shows a different side to Stephen King’s storytelling, as people often associate King with supernatural horror, but some of his best stories are simply about ordinary people facing terrifying situations.

The film also explores the relationship between creators and fans in a fascinating way - Annie does not just like Paul’s books, she feels ownership over them, and she believes she has the right to decide what he writes and where his story should go, and that idea is still interesting today because fans can sometimes become incredibly attached to fictional worlds and characters.

There is also something darkly funny about an author being trapped by his own creation, as Paul wants to move on, but the character that made him famous has become the thing keeping him prisoner - it is a clever idea, and the movie does a great job exploring it without becoming too complicated.

All the brilliant tension here comes from just waiting, as you know Annie is dangerous, you know Paul is trapped, and you are constantly wondering when things will finally go wrong, that feeling never disappears, and more than 35 years later, the film still holds up, simply because it does not need anything complicated to work, it just takes a terrifying idea and executes it extremely well.

Final Verdict

Misery remains one of Stephen King’s strongest movie adaptations for me, where everything and everyone delivers - a brilliant psychological horror-thriller and an easy recommendation to make.

Trailer

Film Credits

Directed by Rob Reiner

Screenplay by William Goldman

Based on Misery by Stephen King

Produced by Rob Reiner and Andrew Scheinman

Starring James Caan, Kathy Bates, Richard Farnsworth, Frances Sternhagen and Lauren Bacall

Cinematography by Barry Sonnenfeld

Edited by Robert Leighton

Music by Marc Shaiman

Running time - 107 minutes

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