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I have always loved Stephen King's novels because they all are either scary or emotional. Misery is in my opinion the most psychological King novel. This is a real hard film to watch at times because the audience do know what sort of person Annie is but don't fully know why she is doing what she is doing to Paul. It was a complete thrill-ride that I did think was a total masterpiece. It was the thrilling suspense that made me like this film so much. I thought that the characters were very powerful and were very well combined together because they both had bitter hate for each other but in a secretive manner. This is one of those films that despite of how tense or how scary Annie is, you gotta love it because of how it made the viewers of the film feel. It has a rare quality that not many psychological thrillers have. For example, Annie doesn't hurt Paul that much at all really. That is what I truly love about the Annie Wilkes character: she's mean, she's twisted, she's mysterious, she's manipulating and she likes to scare. I have no idea how she become the way she did but she must have had something in the past that just made her snap. There were a few scenes in this film that I had to walk about for a little breather because it was so tense. I sort of knew what was going to happen but it didn't spoil it for me because I truly loved the characters.
Kathy Bates gives the single most terrifying female performance that I have ever seen. I have mostly seen Kathy portray those sorts of characters that are really delightful, nice and very powerful particularly in a supporting role. She is the perfect choice for Annie Wilkes because Kathy has that appearance that shows that Annie is a widow, is a farmer, is a lonely woman who has a hidden dark psychotic shadow inside her. She says she is his number one fan but I don't even think that she likes him at all really. She is just obsessed with his work but not him. She is very disturbed in that case aswell. She frequently maims herself during her bouts with depression. She sort of has a world of her own by comparing the novels and the characters with real-life. No actress has blown me away playing a villain as much as Kathy Bates did in Misery. Louise Fletcher is a close rival to that too in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. I really liked the great James Caan in this film aswell as Paul Sheldon. He is a man who accidentally crashes his car in a forest and is saved by Annie. He broke both of his legs and his right arm. Upon learning that Annie is a bit mental and has quite bad intentions for him, he takes measures that the audience can't wait to see because she is such a psycho. I find Paul more of a supporting character than a leading character because this film is about Annie and what sort of person she is involving Paul.
The direction was really good. It was quite similar to how Kubrick directed The Shining with slow views and then very far out and also close up angles too. I can guarentee that the film is just as good as the book. I haven't read the book yet but will try and do so when I get the chance. The script was fantastic. It was a fantastic adaptation of a great book from a great novelist like Stephen King.
This is definitely Kathy Bates best performance. I really liked James Caan aswell in this film. He is a legendary actor especially for The Godfather. I do love Stephen King's work but I do like other novels like The Shawshank Redemption, The Shining and especially The Green Mile. Misery is a masterpiece of psychological thrillers and is one of the best of that genre. I would recommend to everyone!! Masterpiece!
10/10
