| | | "Paul Sheldon Used to Write for a Living. Now, He's Writing to Stay Alive."
Features: DVD, Widescreen, Aspect Ratio 1.85:1, Sensormatic
Novelist Paul Sheldon (James Caan) doesn't remember the blinding blizzard that sent his car spinning off the road. Nor does he remember being nursed back from unconsciousness. All he remembers is waking up in the home of Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), a maniacal fan who is bent on keeping her favorite writer as her personal prisoner for the rest of his "cock-a-doodie" life!
"Bates deserves her Oscar as the psychopath fan; a deft blending of comedy and horror." Bob Bloom, Journal and Courier
"A convincing psychological thriller with a powerful performance by Kathy Bates." Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, Spirituality and Practice
"A Stephen King white-knuckler!" Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide
"A stunning, harsh drama that lingers in the memory because of its cruel strokes." Phil Villarreal, Arizona Daily Star
"Caan and Bates are nothing short of hypnotic." Scott Weinberg, Apollo Movie Guide
"Kathy Bates is beyond amazing in the part of the psychotic fan Annie Wilkes." Stefan Birgir Stefansson, SBS.IS
"Horrifying tale with deserved Oscar performance by Kathy Bates." Steve Crum, Video-Reviewmaster.com
Editor's Note
Romance author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) longs for parting with Misery. Sheldon's plucky heroine of seven novels has delivered Sheldon fame and fortune and recognition beyond the average writer's dreams, but she is also interminably linked to him. Determined to escape an eternal role as dimestore novelist, he kills her off in the eighth novel and heads to his New England cabin to work on his own Great American Novel. Upon completion, Sheldon excitedly sets out for his New York City publisher in the midst of a raging blizzard and within minutes veers into a desolate snowbank. From the brink of death, he is rescued from the snow by Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates), who just so happens to be Misery's self-professed biggest fan. At first, she nurses him back to health in her remote cabin, telling him the roads and phones are knocked out by the storm, fawning over his literary accomplishments. However, things change when she purchases his eighth Misery book and reaches the point of Misery's death. Annie's psychotic underbelly swiftly surfaces as the unfortunate author is held clandestinely captive in her home. Meanwhile, a wily small-town sheriff (Richard Farnsworth) circles in....Director Rob Reiner's adaptation of Stephen King's novel is an eerie tale of obsessiveness and isolation. The film features an excellent turn by Caan and an Oscar-winning performance by Bates.
Plot Summary
In this chilling adaptation of a Stephen King story, a romance novelist loses control of his car during a snowstorm and is rescued by a nurse who happens to be his "number one fan." Recovering in her home, he turns from patient to prisoner as his savior proves to be psychotically deranged.
| Features | Audio: English, French Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound | | Audio: Spanish Dolby Digital Stereo | | Dubbed: French, Spanish | | Interactive Menus | | Scene Selection | | Subtitles: English, Spanish |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: TCFHE/MGM |
| Release Date: 10/2/2007 |
| Running Time: 107 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1990 | | Catalog ID: 111654 | | UPC: 00027616089885 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English, French Dubbed, Spanish Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | Widescreen 1.85:1 |
| Cast & Crew | James Caan | | Kathy Bates | | Lauren Bacall | | Richard Farnsworth | | Barry Sonnenfeld - Cinematographer | | Marc Shaiman - Original Music By | | Mark W. Mansbridge - Art Director | | Norman Garwood - Production Designer | | Rob Reiner - Director | | Rob Reiner, et. al. - Producer | | Robert Leighton - Editor | | Stephen King - Based On Novel By | | William Goldman - Screenplay |
| Awards |
Winner (1991) | | | Golden Globe, Kathy Bates, Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama | | | Oscar, Kathy Bates, Best Actress in a Leading Role |
| Memorable Quotes| "You're a dirty little birdy."----Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) to Paul Sheldon (James Caan) | | "It's a masterpiece! What was the name of that ceiling painted by that dago?"----Annie "The Sistine Chapel?"----Paul |"Yes. You and Michaelangelo. Geniuses."----Annie | | "I'm your number one fan."----Annie to Paul |
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| | Professional Reviews | Sight and Sound
"...[Reiner] adopts Hitchcockian techniques which he uses to flawless effect..." 05/01/1991 p.55-6USA Today
"...MISERY is a robust audience-participation pic..." -- 3 out of 4 stars 11/30/1990 p.4D New York Times
"...A breakthrough of sorts....[Bates] gives a genuinely funny performance..." 11/30/1990 p.C1 Entertainment Weekly
"...[Bates] illuminates an imagined extreme of heartland dementia that's far scarier than any of the undead creations that pepper King's other works..." -- Rating: B 11/10/1995 pp.72-3 Los Angeles Times
"...[Caan] is often marvelous..." 11/30/1990 p.F1 Premiere
"Bates perfectly balances comedy and cruelty." 04/01/2004 p.58 Entertainment Weekly
"Bates and Caan simply dominate. MISERY builds economically to a climactic fight in which every scratch, ding, and wallop feels completely earned." -- Grade: B 10/05/2007 p.57 The Flick Filosopher 9 of 10
[Stephen King's] novel was adapted by William Goldman and directed on film by Rob Reiner, but you can't ever get rid of the King trademarks: the ordinary world turned terrifying, and seemingly ordinary people turned maniacal...Annie Wilkes is King's best psycho and one of the most banally malevolent visions of evil ever depicted onscreen -- as played by the extraordinary Kathy Bates (Primary Colors, Titanic), she is a terror of frighteningly everyday proportions. A lonely, abandoned woman living in the Colorado mountains, her greatest solace comes from the romance novels of author Paul Sheldon (James Caan: Mickey Blue Eyes, This Is My Father), all of which feature an heroine with the unlikely name of Misery...Part of the startling horror of Annie is that she is just about the last person in the world from whom you'd expect antisocial or violent behavior. - MaryAnn Johanson
Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
Caan, who has been hyper in some of his recent performances, is controlled and even passive here, the disbelieving captive of a madwoman. Bates, who has the film's key role, is uncanny in her ability to switch, in an instant, from sweet solicitude to savage scorn. Some of the things Stephen King invents for her to do to the writer are so shocking that they could be a trap for an actor - an invitation to overact. But she somehow remains convincing inside her character's madness...It is a good story, a natural, and it grabs us. But just as there is almost no way to screw it up, so there's hardly any way to bring it above a certain level of inspiration. Many competent directors could have done what Reiner does here, and perhaps many other actors could have done what Caan does, although the Kathy Bates performance is trickier and more special. The result is good craftsmanship, and a movie that works. It does not illuminate, challenge or inspire, but it works. - Roger Ebert
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