Hello ladies, gentlemen, and creatures lurking in the shadows! This month, October, is a favorite among horror fans, such as myself. My goal for the next 31 days is to share with you the scariest and best of the genre. The films will range from old school classics to modern day gorefests (they won't be in any particular order). So scout these movies out, grab a bag of popcorn (or a blood bag) and enjoy!
Misery (1990) Dir. Rob Reiner
Based off of the Stephen King novel of the same name, Misery stars James Caan as a writer who finds himself in a car wreck in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of a snowstorm, and in a dilly of a pickle. Luckily (...well, kind of luckily...) Annie Wilkes, played by Kathy Bates, is there to save him. She also happens to be his absolute number one fan. She places him in bed so he can rest and for his broken legs to heal -- but when she reads his latest novel, she flips a major shit when he "kills off" the main character, named Misery. Slowly but surely we find out that Kathy Bates is a sadistic psycho-bitch and the film becomes claustrophobically and almost frustratingly terrifying as we watch her imprison Caan and force him to rewrite his own story.
Caan and Bates are two wonderful actors, but Bates really shines here in one of not only her best performances, but one of the best horror villain performances ever (she accepted the 1990 Oscar for Actress in a Lead Role thanks to this). When King wrote this story of an obsessed fan, it's probably likely that he had ran into a few "Annie's" in his time, which makes it eerily personal. Bates is psychotic, but in a way that seemed as though someone like her probably does exist somewhere (I'd bet money on it). Because the majority of the film takes place in this bedroom where Caan is trapped, it's almost like a play and it's really the actors and the script that build the suspense.
There is an infamous scene involving James Caan and a black of wood that is definitely the highlight of the movie, but Misery is a great picture to not only see another King story brought to life and handled well (by the likes of Spinal Tap and Stand By Me director Rob Reiner), but to have a very different kind of villain brought to the screen with an amazing complexity. Misery is a great flick to watch when you're snowed inside during the winter and you want to watch something to pass the time while sipping on hot chocolate; fame comes with a price, and in a way, this is probably Steven King's truest nightmare!
*Ok, this teaser trailer kind of sucks, I know...but the only other official theatrical trailer I could find ruined many of the best scenes in the film! Sorry; if you haven't seen the film but are hell-bent on ruining it for yourself via Youtube videos, feel free to surf the web...
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