Product Details

• Actors: Lauren Bacall, Kathy Bates, Wendy Bowers, Thomas Brunelle, James Caan
• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Original recording reissued, NTSC
• Language: English
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
• VHS Release Date: August 1, 2000
• Run Time: 107 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (186 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 0792846338
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,360 in Video (See Bestsellers in Video)

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  #3 in	Video > Horror > Horror Masters > Stephen King
  #55 in	Video > Mystery & Suspense > Suspense

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Based on the chilling bestseller by Stephen King, Misery was brought to the screen by director Rob Reiner as one of the most effective thrillers of the 1990s. From a brilliant adaptation by screenwriter William Goldman, Reiner turned King's cautionary tale of fame and idolatry into a mainstream masterpiece of escalating suspense, translating King's own experience with obsessive fans into a frightening tale of entrapment and psychotic behavior. Kathy Bates deservedly won an Academy Award for her performance as Annie Wilkes, an unbalanced devotee of romance novels written by Paul Sheldon (James Caan), whose books provide Annie with a much-needed escape from her pathetic life and her secret, violent past. After Annie rescues the injured Sheldon from a car accident, she seizes the opportunity to nurse her favorite writer back to health, but her tender loving care soon turns to terrorism as she demands that Sheldon write his latest novel according to her wish-fulfillment fantasies. From this point forward, Misery percolates to a boil as equal parts mystery, thriller, and cleverly dark comedy, with the helpless author pitched in deadly warfare against his number one fan. While Bates carefully modulates her role from doting kindness to sympathetic loneliness and finally to horrifying ferocity, Caan is equally superb as the celebrated author who must literally write for his life. It's essentially a two-actor film, but Richard Farnsworth and Lauren Bacall are excellent in supporting roles as they investigate the writer's mysterious disappearance. Frightening, funny, and totally irresistible, Misery was such a hit that some of Bates's dialogue entered the popular lexicon (particularly her nagging reference to Caan as "Mister Man"), and its nail-biting thrills remain timelessly intense. --Jeff Shannon

Product Description

A "heart-stopping psychological thriller" (Joel Siegel) this Academy Award(r)-winning* film is "one of the best horror movies" (Time) ever. Adapted from a Stephen King story by Oscar(r)-winning** screenwriter William Goldman (All the President's Men) and directed by Rob Reiner (A Few Good Men), this chiller starring Kathy Bates (Titanic) and James Caan (The Godfather), is "a Hitchcockian kind of cat-and-mouse" (The New York Times) gameplayed between two cunning mindsone as sharp as a tack and the other as blunt as a sledgehammer. Novelist Paul Sheldon (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 iswaking up in the home of Annie Wilkes (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! *1990: Actress (Bates) **1969: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid; 1976: All the President's Men

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's more than great--it's perfect, February 17, 2003

By	Daniel Jolley "darkgenius" (Shelby, North Carolina USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Misery (DVD)

Misery is an exceedingly good adaptation of the original novel by Stephen King. The novel features one of King's most tightly-wound, increasingly suspenseful tales, and this movie faithfully brings the novel to life on the big screen. Paul Sheldon, America's best selling writer, creator of Misery Chastain and chronicler of her romantic and human struggles and successes, has just finished writing a "serious" novel he hopes will give him the stature he desires. On his trip home with the manuscript, a fierce blizzard causes him to lose control of his car. Annie Wilkes, his number one fan, finds his car at the bottom of a hill, pulls Sheldon out of it, and takes him home to nurse back to health. As Sheldon begins to adjust to his new surroundings, he is increasingly bothered by his caregiver's erratic mood swings. He soon finds himself a virtual prisoner in her house, essentially unable to move with his two mangled legs. When Annie reads his brand new book, she is exceedingly unhappy with it. When she gets the newly published Misery Chastain novel and finds out that her beloved Misty is dead, she begins unleashing her fury on Sheldon and insisting he resurrect Misty in a new novel written especially for her. All this time, the small mountain town's husband-and-wife police force search for any sign of the missing author (albeit halfheartedly). Eventually, Sheldon realizes escape is something only he can achieve for himself.

James Caan is quite good as Paul Sheldon, but Kathy Bates simply is Annie Wilkes. Her performance as this complicated, mentally disturbed super-fan broods over this entire movie, making it the riveting thriller it is. Lauren Bacall, in what is an overlooked but rather amazing casting coup, lends her talents to the movie in the role of Sheldon's literary agent, while Richard Farnsworth and perennial King favorite Frances Sternhagen round out a truly excellent cast. King actually held out on this project until such time as it could be placed in the more than capable hands of director Rob Reiner. King had a special affection for this particular story, and he was not going to allow a second-rate adaptation of it to come to the big screen.

The suspense of this story is basically psychological in nature, but there are two scenes of far more physical suffering. The hobbling scene is memorable to say the least, and another incident toward the end introduces a little blood to the film, but overall this is a movie that all lovers of suspense and human drama can appreciate. There are a lot of bad movies based on terrific Stephen King stories and novels, but this movie captures the powerful magic of the original novel as effectively as any King movie ever has.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "It's more than great. It's perfect.", September 25, 2007

By	R. Pepper "DaysFan79" (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Misery (Collector's Edition) (DVD)

Finally a special edition of Misery! This has been previously released on Region 2 DVD but this is the first official Region 1 release. Kathy Bates won a much deserved Best Actress Oscar for her performance. This is one of Stephen King's best and while there are a few humorous moments most notably through Kathy's dialogue, the horror and suspense never fizzle in any way. This is one of the best horror/suspense pictures out there and should be in any fans collection for multiple viewings. Here are the special features:

DVD Features:

Region 1

Keep Case

Widescreen - 1.85

Audio:

Dolby Digital Surround - Spanish

Dolby Digital 5.1 - English, French

Subtitles - English, Spanish - Optional

Additional Release Material:

Audio Commentaries - 1. Rob Reiner - Director

2. William Goldman - Screenwriter

Featurettes - 1. "Misery Loves Company"

2. "Marc Shaiman's Musical Misery Tour"

3. "Diagnosing Annie Wilkes"

4. "Advice for the Stalked"

5. "Profile of a Stalker"

6. "Celebrity Stalkers"

7. "Anti-Stalking Laws"

Trailers - 1. Original Theatrical Trailer

2. Original Theatrical Teaser

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If The Shining and Jack Nicholson are the King of King films then Misery and Kathy Bates are the Queen. Dvd features below, October 20, 2007

By	Mike Liddell (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Misery (Collector's Edition) (DVD)

In my opinion The Shining is the greatest of all Stephen King adaptations and then Misery. There are actually a lot of similarities between Misery and The Shining. There both about writers, in secluded locations, who are deserted at some point due to a snow storm. They both have characters that aren't all there mentally and we are witness to their descent into madness and loss of reality. Both Bates and Nicholson have a way with tools, whether it be an axe or a sledge hammer, and with these tools they have cut and hobbled their way into our memories and into film history.

Kathy Bates is the star of this film and deserves her Oscar win as the at times lovable Annie Wilkes, the obsessed fan of author Paul Sheldon played by James Caan. Annie goes from saving Paul to keeping him hostage for her own agenda. The "shining" beacon of this film is without a doubt Kathy Bates who for me is one of the most memorable and witty villains of modern horror film up there with Anthony Hopkins as Hannibal Lecter. With that said Caan is there like a dance partner for Bates every step of the way, he is like John Stockton to her Karl Malone always ready to assist her in enhancing the dark comedy throughout with his reactions by facial expression or perfect delivery of his lines. Caan's non verbal reactions to Annie's tirades are priceless and only enhance her dialouge. Pay attention to Caan's facial expressions during the scene when Annie explains about "chapter plays" and don't call them cliffhangers.

So getting back to the king and queen of horror, I had an idea, what if Bate's character Annie Wilkes had rescued/kidnapped Jack Nicholson's character Jack Torrance and what would that dialouge be like. I think it would go something like this:

JACK: "Annie, let me explain something to you. Whenever you come in here and interrupt me, you're breaking my concentration. You're distracting me. And it will then take me time to get back to where I was. You understand?"
ANNIE: "Understand? UNDERSTAND? I will tell you "what I understand!" I go out of my way for you! I do everything to try and make you happy. I feed you, I clean you, I dress you, and what thanks do I get? "Oh, you bought the wrong paper, Annie, I can't write on this paper, Annie!" Well, I'll get your stupid paper but you just better start showing me a little appreciation around here, Mr. MAN!"
JACK: "Now, we're going to make a new rule. When you come in here and you hear me typing
[types]
or whether you DON'T hear me typing, or whatever the F you hear me doing; when I'm in here, it means that I am working, THAT means don't come in. Now, do you think you can handle that?"
ANNIE: "I thought you were good Jack... but you're not good. You're just another lying ol' dirty birdy."

Just a thought, forgive me for prattling away and making everything all oogy, here's the dvd features.

COLLECTOR'S EDITION DVD FEATURES:
(A reviewer listed them above but in case they got lost in the review shuffle here they are again)
First if your like me and like a nice pristine transfer and good sound the dvd is a definite and worthwhile upgrade. The picture quality far surpassed the older version on dvd and I own both. Also on the sound there was no Dolby Digital 5.1 on the old version and on the Collector's edition there is.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Audio Commnt by Rob Reiner and screenwriter William Goldman
Misery loves company featurette, Marc Shaiman's musical Misery tour featurette
Diagnosing Annie Wilkes featurette, Advice for stalked feature, profile of a stalker feature, celebrity stalker feature and anti stalking laws feature.

This is a must for any horror fan to add to their collection. It is already a classic and is the type of horror that gives you that warm, glad to be inside, tucked into bed feeling if you can avoid getting hobbled.
A great watch for Halloween. Enjoy!