Misery (1990)
I actually kind of want to watch it again. That’s how good it was. I’d consider watching it a couple of days in a row. I thought it was a disturbingly good analysis of people who look really quaint on the outside but are so horrible on the inside that you’re really struck. That’s a real type of person, so I thought Kathy Bates did a really good depiction of that, and so did the writers and directors.
I loved her house. It was so quaint and pleasant with old lady wallpaper with ceramics and the guest bedroom with the beautiful scenery through the window. If you aren’t living with a psychopath, it would be lovely!
While it can be classified as a horror film, it might not keep me up at night . . . well, maybe a little.
Scary 1.5
Scary is the category that gives you nightmares. It didn’t keep me up at night. Maybe it waas a little bit like “What if I walk past a really sweet person but they’re actually a psychopath?” But it didn’t keep me up at night, which is what the scary category is for.
Creepy 4
God, Annie Wilkes was so good! Kathy Bates was so phenomenal at acting. It’s creepy because it just nudges you at first. I just imagine being in Paul’s shoes and how awkward it must have been for her to say “I love you, I looove you, you’re the BEST Paul!” At first it’s just a little creepy, just nudging in the back of your brain. Then when she starts screaming and spills the soup, it it’s like, wait, this is really creepy! What’s wrong with her? Does she have like anger issues or something? It’s still nudging at the back of your brain, the feeling of something being horribly wrong here. Then the feeling gets closer and closer. When she screams at him because she doesn’t like his book, that feeling of creepiness starts breaking in on you, because it’s like but she’s so sweet, how could she be so scary?
Suspenseful 4.5
VERY suspenseful. (5 is Carrie-level suspense, sorry, that’s hard to achieve.) It really keeps your heart racing having Paul cooped up in there with all these plans to get out. I felt so great about myself when I made the correct assumption about the penguin! When he’s picking the lock frantically when she’s coming home. When the sheriff is looking in the house for Paul and he just misses the door, a second too late...I thought it was really well executed keeping you on the edge of your seat the whole film. It was just so good.
Disturbing 4
The part with his feet, god, that was terrifying. I thought something would happen and she wouldn’t be able to bash his legs in, but she just went through with it! I thought, that can’t happen to this guy and let him be paralyzed, but...she just carried on with it! Also his pain when he keeps falling out of the bed with his swollen feet, that made me feel queasy. The actor who played Paul was amazing. I also thought Paul’s character was amazing. Pretending to love her so that she wouldn’t be mad. Writers are great characters in horror films because they think about these kinds of situations.
Good 4.5
It was good. I really liked it! A half point gets taken off for being disappointed about how it turns out for one of my favorite characters, that’s my rule! I have a hard time with tragedy, sorry! It goes through the whole movie how loving and teasing the marriage is between the sheriff and his wife. I thought the cinematography was really good. I loved the scenery, it was beautiful. I loved the close ups of the middle aged characters with no make up. It made it seem real. The angles were really good. Like when the sheriff is looking down from the top of the staircase.
The Liberace music, I didn’t know who he was, but then I looked up some videos, and I realized it was there to taunt Paul, because it’s something that little old ladies like a lot. I’m not dissing Liberace, I’m just saying his target audience is not Paul.
I loved the scene with the passing of time at his typewriter The camera angles that spun around him and how the changing flannels showed that time had passed.
I wrote these film reviews when I was 14. Hire me to draw. -Lillian Schrag
