Time to be miserable.

So we start off by meeting Paul Sheldon (a fantastic James Caan). Paul is famous for writing the Jessica Chastain… er… Misery Chastain series; but, Misery is making Paul miserable (it is corny joke time here at Snarky Movie Robot) and he is trying to avoid typecasting. Paul is trying to get from Silver Creek, Colorado to New York City; but, Paul winds up in a car crash. Nurse Annie Wilkes (a fantastic Kathy Bates) brings Paul to her residence and she introduces herself to him as his number one fan.

Paul’s accident breaks his legs and dislocates his shoulder. Paul and Annie are snowed-in. This would not be a problem if this were a Doris Day-Rock Hudson movie; but, this is a Stephen King movie. Annie finds out that Paul offed Misery and we find out that Paul is Annie’s captive.

Annie has Paul get rid of his new, non-Misery work. Annie wants Paul to write a novel that will literally and figuratively resurrect the Misery franchise. Paul uses an opportunity when Annie is out to escape his room and go exploring. Paul tries to drug/off Annie using his painkillers; but, the best laid plans of captive writers. Paul discovered that Annie killed some infants that she was caring for as a nurse, and…

That escalated quickly.

However, the powers that be were not able to convict her. Annie also used some quotes from the Misery novels during her trial. Annie finds out about Paul’s exploring and we get the famous/infamous sledgehammer scene.

Sheriff Buster (a great Richard Farnsworth)…

Sidebar/Salad Bar: Buster and his wife (Virginia (Frances Sternhagen) have several scenes together and these two are adorbs.

…is looking into Paul’s disappearance and he winds up paying Annie a visit. Buster discovers Paul; but, Annie offs Buster. We then find out that Annie is planning to kill herself and Paul; but, Paul convinces her to let him finish the Misery novel first and he discreetly grabs some lighter fluid.

Paul gets revenge on Annie by burning the new Misery novel. We then get a Paul versus Annie fight. Annie shoots Paul and Paul offs Annie using a metal Misery the pig (Misery the pig is Annie’s pet pig)-shaped doorstop, and…

That is a sentence that I thought that I would never write on this blog.

Time passes. Paul is now walking with a cane and he meets up with his agent (Lauren Bacall) in New York City. We find out that Paul wrote a non-Misery novel. Paul’s agent brings up an Annie Wilkes novel and Paul is all “I may be in a Stephen King movie; but, even that is too much for this.” Paul then thinks that a waitress is Annie and the waitress tells the traumatized Paul that she is his number one fan.

Misery is a great movie. Kathy Bates is great and she plays the many angles of Annie that are required. James Caan is also great and he’s good at playing Paul the survivor/Paul who needs to pretend to be in love with Annie/a Paul who is sympathetic to Annie during her sympathetic moments.

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