“Misery”

Movie Review

With James Caan, Kathy Bates, Lauren Bacall, Richard Farnsworth, and Frances Sternhagen in the lead roles, Rob Reiner's 1990 American psychological thriller Misery became a hit with audiences. The 1987 novel of the same name by Stephen King served as its inspiration. A book-obsessed reader kidnaps a writer and demands that he alter a book series' conclusion, which leads to the main conflict.

On November 30, 1990, the movie Misery was released in the US. Bates' performance received acclaim from reviewers and earned her the Best Actress Oscar at the 63rd Academy Awards, making it the only adaptation of a Stephen King book to do so. Misery is one of Stephen King's top ten favorite movie adaptations, according to King.

The movie's story is as follows: well-known author Paul Sheldon created a successful series of Victorian romance books using Misery Chastain as the lead character. In order to launch his post-Misery career and focus on writing more depressing stories, he develops a new novel manuscript. While traveling from his home in New York City to Silver Creek, Colorado, Paul becomes stuck in a blizzard and experiences an accident that renders him unconscious. He is discovered and delivered to Annie Wilkes, a nurse who lives in a remote area.

When Paul regains consciousness, he discovers that he is bedridden and that his shoulder and legs have been broken. His "number one admirer" Annie makes a lot of claims about him and his books. She agrees to take care of him until the phone lines are repaired and the neighborhood roads are reopened after the blizzard. Paul kindly allows her to read his most recent work. She is upset by the vulgar language in his new piece, which disturbs him, but she promptly offers an apology. She bursts into a rage when she reads the current Misery book and learns that Misery dies at the conclusion, telling Paul that no one knows where he is and that she never told anybody or his agent that she had rescued him, thus holding him captive in her remote home.

Paul is compelled by Annie to destroy the sole copy of his latest manuscript. She orders him to start writing a new book titled Misery's Return, in which he brings the character back to life, as soon as he is well enough to get out of bed. While Annie is gone one day, Paul starts hoarding his medicines. After dinner, he tries to kill Annie by adding crushed painkillers to her wine, but he fails when she unintentionally knocks over her glass. Later, he discovers a scrapbook filled with news articles concerning Annie's history. He finds out that Annie was put on trial for the infant deaths at the hospital where she worked, but the case was dismissed for lack of proof. At her trial, Annie had cited passages from his Misery novels. Paul has been sneaking out of his room, which Annie quickly discovers. To stop him from fleeing again, Annie uses a sledgehammer to shatter his ankles.

Buster, the local sheriff, is looking into Paul's disappearance. Clues prompt him to visit Annie, but she shoots him dead when she discovers Paul drugged in the basement. She then tries to kill Paul by murder-suicide, but Paul, hiding a can of lighter fluid in his pocket, persuades her to spare him life long enough to finish the book and "give Misery back to the world."

When the text is finished, Annie grants Paul's request for a cigarette and some champagne. She is horrified to see Paul put the manuscript on fire while claiming, "I learnt it from you." After Annie unsuccessfully attempts to salvage the manuscript, Paul attacks Annie with the typewriter. They then get into a violent brawl, during which Paul is wounded in the shoulder by Annie's handgun. He tripped her, causing her to hit her head on the typewriter, and crawls out of the room. But, Annie gets up and assaults her once more. After beating Annie in the face with a metal doorstop, Paul ultimately kills her.

Paul encounters Marcia, his agent, in a New York City restaurant 18 months later while using a cane. The two talks about his first book since Misery, and Marcia informs him of the favorable initial reviews. Paul responds by explaining that he developed the book as a self-help tool to help him cope with the horrors of his confinement. Paul declines Marcia's request for him to write a non-fiction book on his captivity. Then, as a waitress approaches him, Paul imagines her to be Annie and says that he still misses her occasionally. When the waitress declares that she is Paul's biggest fan, Paul shyly responds, "That's very lovely of you."

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