Movie junkie Jessie Robbins picks a fright flick for a Saturday night.
Spring may not be too far away, but with snow still on the ground, my mind is still on snowy, cold, damp and obviously dark films. This week I have decided to fix your horror hungry eyeballs on an Academy Award winning, Stephen King adapted horror/thriller. More atmosphere and suspense, less blood and guts. Yes children, this week we are enjoying some MISERY.
Directed by Rob Reiner (STAND BY ME), MISERY stars James Caan (THE GODFATHER) as romance novelist Paul Sheldon who, after a car accident in the snow covered middle of nowhere, awakes to find himself being tended to by his biggest fan Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates, TITANIC, DOLORES CLAIBORNE). Bates actually won the Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her portrayal of Wilkes, AS SHE SHOULD HAVE, by playing the character as hilarious, scary as hell and deranged at the same time. Annies mix of quiet intensity and loud, maniacal outbursts keep the viewer engaged, entertained and in fear for Sheldons life. In the novel, King wrote Annie as a symbol for his alcohol and drug abuse, the highs and lows, and the toll it took on both his body and mind.
The film even got the praise of King himself, a very difficult man to please when it comes to adapting his work. King loved Kathy Bates performance so that when writing Dolores Claiborne he envisioned Bates as the main character (and when adapted for the screen, she PLAYED the main character).
Now, while I say there is little blood and gore in this film, what DOES happen is almost as gut wrenching as anything else Ive ever seen (see the GIF at the top of the page) proceed with caution…and an empty stomach!
So lock your doors tight, turn up the volume (to get the full appreciation for the haunting score by Marc Shaiman) and enjoy this experiment in fandom gone wrong!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbP4YLsdBBE
