Misery

#1

Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 8:57am

Can I just say how much I LOVE Kathy Bates' portrayal of Annie Wilks in this movie? The way she can go from "bubbly, sweet" Annie to "Psychotic" Annie in a heartbeat is spectacular. I think without her performance, this movie would not be nearly as good as it is.

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"They're eating her and then they're going to eat me. OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!" -Troll 2

Updated On: 5/21/07 at 08:57 AM

#2

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 9:00am

Totally agree. This is one of the few movies that makes me stop when I'm channel surfing. Also, it was terrific that the Academy recognized such a performance. Not the typical role or actress (at that time) that usually gets notice from Oscar.

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"It does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are 20 gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket, nor breaks my leg." -- Thomas Jefferson

#3

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 9:04am

MISERY is one of only a handful of Stephen King stories that translated well to screen. It is one of my favorite movies because it is not "scary" but the suspense just keeps building and building. Like, when Annie tells Paul to burn his book and he keeps making excuses why he shouldn't burn it . . . then Annie starts squirting the flammable liquid on Sheldon's bed going, "Help me, help you!" Ah . . . Great!!!

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"They're eating her and then they're going to eat me. OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!" -Troll 2

#4

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 9:16am

Love her in this movie, but her penultimate performance is another Stephen King character, the fine melodrama DELORES CLAIBORNE.

"...one of us is goin' to tha boneyaad."

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"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.” ~ Muhammad Ali

#5

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 9:29am

You dirty bird!

#6

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 9:40am

I love how the film has kind of aged into a classic. The director did an amazing job keeping this film from being dated.

#7

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 9:55am

Also love Delores Claiborne. Not easy to steal scenes from Ms. Bates, but Judy Parfitt does just that as Vera. The scene where she advised Delores through her own marital experiences is amazing.

As for Stephen King books into movies, Shawshank Redemption is another that came across well.

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"It does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are 20 gods or no god. It neither picks my pocket, nor breaks my leg." -- Thomas Jefferson

#8

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:00am

The best of the Stephen King movie adaptions are:

MISERY
DELORIS CLAIBORNE
SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
THE GREEN MILE


And to a lesser degree, REAR WINDOW.

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"They're eating her and then they're going to eat me. OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!" -Troll 2

#9

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:04am

Kathy Bates was indeed fantastic in this film, but it's too bad that I can't watch it. "Misery" is one of a handful of movies that has given me a full on panic attack...so I guess I'll just appreciate it from afar.

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#10

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:05am

And the one that launched his career: The first movie of CARRIE.


Um...REAR WINDOW?

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"Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.” ~ Muhammad Ali

#11

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:07am

I'd add Stand By Me and Carrie to your list Spidey.

And what about Dead Zone and The Shining.

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#12

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:10am

The Dead Zone! How I loved Christopher Walken.

#13

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:10am

Do you mean Secret Window?

I loved the TV versions of The Stand and It. I did not care for Kubrik's film treatment of The Shining. It bore little resemblence to the book that scared the cap out of me.

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#14

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:27am

Yes, I mean SECRET WINDOW, sorry. Hahaha! My bad.

I how could have I forgotten STAND BY ME (on my top 10 favorite movie list), THE DEAD ZONE, and CARRIE? All three, amazing movies.

The reason I didn't include THE SHINING, is because it veered too far away from the book (Stephen King hates the movie version of THE SHINING). It's a good movie, but the book is 10x better.

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"They're eating her and then they're going to eat me. OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!" -Troll 2

Updated On: 5/21/07 at 10:27 AM

#15

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:30am

This thread makes me wanna fluff my dirty pillows!

#16

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:32am

^^HA!

I would also like to add that the t.v. series based on THE DEAD ZONE is amazing and one of my favorite shows.

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"They're eating her and then they're going to eat me. OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!" -Troll 2

#17

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 10:47am

"Stop hurting yourself, Momma!"

I agree about The Shining...the snow was not as effective as the topiary in the book!

If we're going with TV, I'd add Salem's Lot.

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"Carson has combined his passion for helping children with his love for one of Cincinnati's favorite past times - cornhole - to create a unique and exciting event perfect for a corporate outing, entertaining clients or family fun."

"In Oz, the verb is douchifizzation." PRS

#18

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 12:27pm

I really enjoyed his X-Files episode.

#19

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 1:07pm

Kathy Bates as Dolores Claiborne was, by far, the finest performance by an actress, that year. Yet, she wasn't even nominated for an Oscar, proving just how unrelated to quality performances those awards are.

#20

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 1:14pm

No one mentioned the classic Maximum Overdrive?

Kidding, but the movie of Pet Semetary was quite effective. It's one that sits squarely in the horror genre, but on those terms it's very well done.

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....but the world goes 'round

Updated On: 5/21/07 at 01:14 PM

#21

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 1:17pm

I shall be forever grateful to Ms. Wilkes for giving us "oogy" to add to our lexicon.

And of course, we are all in awe of her masterful hobbling techniques.

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#22

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 1:23pm

I enjoyed the movie, but I think the book is so much better. Of course, I think this is usually the case in these situations.

I actually really love The Shining, but only if I look at the book and the film as two separate entities. Otherwise I get very disappointed in my man Stan.

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You promised me poems. ~Tricky

#23

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 3:50pm

Kathy Bates is amazing in this movie, but honestly... I catch the last 15 minutes of this movie on AMC I swear everytime it's on

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#24

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 4:24pm

It isn't my favorite Kathy Bates performance. She was devastating in 'NIGHT MOTHER, and in pretty much everything else I've seen her do. But her Annie Wilkes really left me cold, she wasn't as intimidating as the character in the novel.

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"If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about the answers." Thomas Pynchon, GRAVITY'S RAINBOW "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away." Philip K. Dick My blog: http://www.roscoewrites.blogspot.com/

#25

re: Misery

Posted: 5/21/07 at 6:31pm

One of my favorite performances in one of my favorite movies. A well-deserved Oscar win.