US mass market DVD cover

Misery is a 1990 United States horror/thriller film from Columbia Pictures and Castle Rock Entertainment, based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King. Directed by Rob Reiner, the film received critical acclaim for Kathy Bates' Academy Award-winning portrayal of psychotic ex-nurse Annie Wilkes. It was ranked #12 on Bravo's 100 Scariest Movie Moments. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Robert Rob Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, childrens advocate and political activist. ... Robert Rob Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, childrens advocate and political activist. ... William Goldman (born August 12, 1931) is an American novelist, playwright and two-time Academy Award-winning screenwriter. ... James Langston Edmund Caan (born March 26, 1940) is an American Academy Award, Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated American film, stage and television actor. ... Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an Academy Award-winning American theatrical, film, and television actress, and a stage and television director. ... Richard Farnsworth Richard Farnsworth (September 1, 1920 – October 6, 2000) was an American actor. ... Frances Sternhagen (born January 13, 1930) is an American actress. ... Marc Shaiman (born October 22, 1959) is a composer, lyricist, arranger and performer for films, television and theatre. ... The Columbia Pictures logo from 1993 to the present Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. ... The current Castle Rock Entertainment logo. ... For alternate meanings of MGM, see MGM (disambiguation). ... is the 334th day of the year (335th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ... The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ... Image File history File links Misery_Film. ... Image File history File links Misery_Film. ... The year 1990 in film involved some significant events. ... “Horror Movie” redirects here. ... The thriller is a broad genre of literature, film, and television. ... This article is about motion pictures. ... The Columbia Pictures logo from 1993 to the present Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. ... The current Castle Rock Entertainment logo. ... Misery is a horror novel by Stephen King, published in 1987. ... For other persons named Stephen King, see Stephen King (disambiguation). ... Robert Rob Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, childrens advocate and political activist. ... Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an Academy Award-winning American theatrical, film, and television actress, and a stage and television director. ... Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ... Annie Wilkes is the antagonist of the 1987 novel Misery, by Stephen King. ... This article is about the U.S. cable network. ... The 100 Scariest Movie Moments was a TV mini series first shown in late October of 2004 on Bravo TV. It was a countdown for the 100 most shocking moments in the history of movies, with interviews from horror experts or other celebrities who experienced the films on the list. ...

Tagline

• Paul Sheldon used to write for a living. Now, he's writing to stay alive.

Synopsis

Novelist Paul Sheldon, who is driving home from Colorado, crashes his car during a freak blizzard and is rescued by ex-nurse Annie Wilkes, who claims to be his “Number One Fan”. She takes care of him in her remote house near the mountains but does not tell anyone where he is. After some time, it becomes clear that she does not intend to let Paul go.

Plot

Nurse Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates) saves the life of novelist Paul Sheldon (James Caan) after a car accident brought on by a severe blizzard. Wilkes, an obsessive fan of Sheldon's "Misery" romance series, takes him home and serves as his caretaker. Annie turns out to be severely mentally disturbed (very possibly suffering from erotomania), and she prevents him from leaving or contacting the rest of the world. Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an Academy Award-winning American theatrical, film, and television actress, and a stage and television director. ... James Langston Edmund Caan (born March 26, 1940) is an American Academy Award, Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated American film, stage and television actor. ... For the song by Dream Theater, see A Mind Beside Itself. ...

Once Annie finds out he kills Misery Chastain, the series' namesake, in his latest published book, she flies into a rage and nearly kills him. She also coldly tells him that she never called the doctors, Paul's agent or his daughter, as she'd previously said she'd done. After leaving for a few days, she forces him to burn the manuscript he had carried with him and write a new "Misery" story, Misery's Return, in which Misery is somehow brought back to life.

Paul eventually escapes from his room. He finds a photograph album with newspaper clippings of Annie's history; she had been acquitted on charges of infanticide while serving as head maternity nurse in a hospital. She has also killed several other hospital patients over the years, and also killed her father and college roommate. Annie discovers Paul's forays into the rest of the house and, to prevent further ones, cripples (or "hobbles") him in the infamous "sledgehammer scene" by breaking his ankles with a sledgehammer. In sociology and biology, infanticide is the practice of intentionally causing the death of an infant of a given species, by members of the same species - often by the mother. ...

A local sheriff, Buster (Richard Farnsworth), who is investigating Sheldon's disappearance comes to suspect Annie. After a visit, a noise from inside the house leads him to find Paul in the basement, where Annie hid him when she saw Buster coming. However, Buster is immediately killed by Annie with a shotgun. Richard Farnsworth Richard Farnsworth (September 1, 1920 – October 6, 2000) was an American actor. ...

Upon completion of the "Misery" book, Annie is ecstatic and wants to celebrate by a murder-suicide with Paul. However, Paul acquires a chance and lights his finished novel afire. He takes advantage of her anguish by attempting to knock her unconscious with the typewriter he used. This fails, and the two engage in an intense brawl that ends in Annie's death. Paul is assumed to be rescued.

The movie then continues eighteen months after Paul was rescued; he is shown in New York City having a meal with his agent, Marcia Sindell (Lauren Bacall). They discuss his new novel, which is separate from the "Misery" series. Paul rejects a suggestion to write about his experiences with Annie because he is constantly haunted by them--he mistakes a waitress, another one of his fans, for Annie in a haunting, daydream-like vision.

Cast

• Paul Sheldon - James Caan
• Annie Wilkes - Kathy Bates
• Buster - Richard Farnsworth
• Virginia - Frances Sternhagen
• Marcia Sindell - Lauren Bacall
• Libby - Graham Jarvis
• Pete - Jerry Potter
• Misery the Pig - Herself
• Anchorman - Thomas Brunelle
• Anchorwoman -June Christopher
• Reporter (1) - Julie Payne
• Reporter (2) - Archie Hahn III
• Reporter (3) - Greg Snegoff
• Waitress - Wendy Bowers
• Helicopter Pilot - Rob Reiner
• State Trooper Sherman Douglas - J. T. Walsh

James Langston Edmund Caan (born March 26, 1940) is an American Academy Award, Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated American film, stage and television actor. ... Annie Wilkes is the antagonist of the 1987 novel Misery, by Stephen King. ... Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an Academy Award-winning American theatrical, film, and television actress, and a stage and television director. ... Richard Farnsworth Richard Farnsworth (September 1, 1920 – October 6, 2000) was an American actor. ... Frances Sternhagen (born January 13, 1930) is an American actress. ... Betty Joan Perske (born on September 16, 1924), better known as Lauren Bacall, is a Golden Globe– and Tony Award–winning, as well as Academy Award–nominated, American film and stage actress. ... Graham Jarvis, (1930 - 2003) was a Canadian character actor in US films and TV from the 1960s. ... Julie Payne (born September 11, 1946 in Terre Haute, Indiana) is an American character and voice actor. ... Gregory Snegoff (born June 22, 1955 in Santa Monica, CA) is a voice actor. ... Robert Rob Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, childrens advocate and political activist. ... James Thomas Patrick Walsh (September 28, 1943 – February 27, 1998) was an American actor known for his roles as quietly sinister white-collar sleazeballs (quote from Leonard Maltin) in numerous feature films and everybodys favorite scumbag from Playboy Magazine. ...

Cast notes

• Rob Reiner and J. T. Walsh are uncredited.

Robert Rob Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, childrens advocate and political activist. ... James Thomas Patrick Walsh (September 28, 1943 – February 27, 1998) was an American actor known for his roles as quietly sinister white-collar sleazeballs (quote from Leonard Maltin) in numerous feature films and everybodys favorite scumbag from Playboy Magazine. ...

Crew

• Directed by: Rob Reiner
• Produced by: Andrew Scheinman and Rob Reiner
• Written by: William Goldman and Stephen King (novel)
• Co-Producers: Jeffrey Stott and Steve Nicolaides
• Associate Producer: Steven R. Molen
• Cinematography by: Barry Sonnenfeld
• Original music composed by: Marc Shaiman
• Production design by: Norman Garwood

Robert Rob Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, childrens advocate and political activist. ... Robert Rob Reiner (born March 6, 1945) is an American actor, director, producer, writer, childrens advocate and political activist. ... William Goldman (born August 12, 1931) is an American novelist, playwright and two-time Academy Award-winning screenwriter. ... For other persons named Stephen King, see Stephen King (disambiguation). ... Barry Sonnenfeld American film maker Barry Sonnenfeld (born New York City, April 1, 1953) worked as cinematographer for the Coen Brothers, then later he directed and produced big budget films such as Men in Black. ... Marc Shaiman (born October 22, 1959) is a composer, lyricist, arranger and performer for films, television and theatre. ...

Awards

• Oscar (1990): Best Actress in a leading role - Kathy Bates
• Golden Globe (1990): Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture (Drama) - Kathy Bates
• CFCA Award (1990): Best Actress - Kathy Bates

Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ... The Golden Globe Awards are American awards for motion pictures and television programs, given out each year during a formal dinner. ... The Chicago Film Critics Association is an American film critic association. ... The Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Actress is an annual award given by the Chicago Film Critics Association. ...

Music

The film's score was composed by Marc Shaiman. It was released on CD in January 1991, on the Bay Cities record label, to critical acclaim.^{[citation needed]}

Soundtrack track listing

1. Number One Fan
2. She Can't Be Dead
3. Open House
4. Go To Your Room
5. Buster's Last Stand
6. Misery's Return

Production

• In William Goldman's book Which Lie Did I Tell?, he states that Stephen King was pleased with the final film. However, in King's On Writing, King states that Sheldon might or might not be an allegory for himself, but he certainly wasn't James Caan.
• Kathy Bates reportedly was disappointed that a scene was cut in which she kills a young police officer by rolling over him repeatedly with a lawnmower. Director Rob Reiner was afraid that the audience would laugh at it.
• Features a cameo by J.T Walsh as a State of Colorado Police Chief.
• In the novel, Annie cuts off Paul's foot to prevent him from escaping. Screenwriter William Goldman has stated that the reason he decided to adapt the book to film was because of this gruesome scene and the effect it would have on the audience. However, Rob Reiner and Andrew Scheinman's script revision changed the method of torture to Paul getting his ankles broken with a sledgehammer. Goldman was opposed to the change until viewing the film.
• The car Paul Sheldon drives in and wrecks in the movie is a Ford Mustang. But in the novel it is a Chevrolet Camaro.
• In the novel the title of Paul's book that Annie forces him to burn is titled "Fast Cars". But in the film version it is untitled.
• The main character Paul Sheldon's novels are published by Viking, the same publishing company that published Stephen King's books at that time.
• According to William Goldman's book Four Screenplays, the main character role, Paul Sheldon, was offered to Jack Nicholson, William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Richard Dreyfuss, Gene Hackman, Robert Redford, and Warren Beatty, all of whom declined.
• The part of Annie Wilkes was offered to Anjelica Huston and Bette Midler, both of whom declined. Huston reportedly wanted the role, but was forced to turn it down because of her commitments to the film The Grifters. Kathy Bates, who was unknown at the time, accepted the role and won an Academy Award for best actress.
• One of Stephen King's first typewriters had a malfunctioning "N" key, just like the one used by James Caan in the movie.
• A video of Reiner's movie When Harry Met Sally... (1989) is visible in the general store.
• When Annie demands that Paul burn his manuscript, she lights the paper and we see a close-up of the words on the paper, an article about Cameron Crowe and how he is an amazing scriptwriter. It talks about his movies, but mostly offers praise for Say Anything (1989).
• Director Rob Reiner can be glimpsed as the helicopter pilot during the search for Paul’s car

Which Lie Did I Tell?: More Adventures in the Screen Trade is a work of non-fiction first published in 2000 by novelist and screenwriter William Goldman. ... On Writing. ... For other Ford Mustang models and concepts, see Ford Mustang Variants. ... The Chevrolet Camaro is a pony car made in North America by the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors. ... Viking Press was founded on March 1, 1925, in New York City, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim. ... John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937), known as Jack Nicholson, is a three time Academy Award-winning American actor internationally renowned for his often dark-themed portrayals of neurotic characters. ... William Hurt (born March 20, 1950) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Kevin Delaney Kline (born October 24, 1947) is an Academy Award- and Tony Award-winning American stage and film actor. ... For other people bearing this name, see Michael Douglas (disambiguation) Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944) is an American actor and producer, primarily in movies and television. ... For the silent film actor, see Harrison Ford (silent film actor). ... Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is a two-time Academy Award-winning, BAFTA-winning, and five-time Golden Globe-winning American method actor. ... Robert Mario De Niro, Jr. ... Alfredo James Pacino (born April 25, 1940) is an Academy, Golden Globe, Tony, BAFTA, Emmy, and SAG award winning American actor who is best known for playing the roles of Tony Montana in the 1983 film Scarface and Michael Corleone in The Godfather Trilogy . ... Richard Stephen Dreyfuss (born October 29, 1947) is an Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Eugene Allen Gene Hackman[1] (born January 30, 1930) is a two-time Academy Award-winning American actor. ... Robert Redford (born August 18, 1936)[1] is an Academy Award-winning American motion picture director, actor, producer, businessman, model, environmentalist and philanthropist. ... Henry Warren Beatty (born March 30, 1937), better known as Warren Beatty, is an Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning American actor, producer, screenwriter, and director. ... Anjelica Huston (born July 8, 1951) is an Academy Award- and Golden Globe Award-winning American actress and former fashion model. ... Bette Midler (born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress and comedienne, also known to her fans as The Divine Miss M. She is named after the actress Bette Davis although Davis pronounced her first name in two syllables, and Midler uses one. ... The Grifters is a 1990 neo-noir film directed by Stephen Frears. ... When Harry Met Sally. ... Say Anything. ...

References in Popular Culture

• In a sketch called "Misery II" on a February 1991 edition of Saturday Night Live, Roseanne Barr portrayed Annie. The sketch begins with Dana Carvey leaving a Colorado comedy club after giving a farewell performance as The Church Lady. Carvey and Jon Lovitz crash in a blizzard and Annie rescues Carvey (and leaving Lovitz behind) so that she can have his Church Lady character all to herself. The sketch also features Lorne Michaels in place of Lauren Bacall's character.
• In the Drawn Together episode "Unrestrainable Trainable", Clara restrains Wooldoor in a similar manner. She also hobbles his ankles in the same way Annie does.
• In an episode of The King of Queens, Arthur is heard calling his daughter, Carrie, "the fat broad from Misery." This is in reference to the Annie Wilkes character portrayed by Kathy Bates.
• In the FUNimation dub of the anime Shin Chan, the character Maso believes Shin's neighbor is a murderer. He passes out and wakes up in her bed. The neighbor walks in and she says "Do you remember that scene in Misery where the lady breaks the guy's legs with a sledgehammer? Not sure why I remembered that just now."
• The British comedy duo Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders made a parody of the movie on their show, French and Saunders.
• An episode of The Critic has Jay becoming romantically involved with a woman who fanatically idolizes him, and then restrains him to a bed with reels of film in order to "always know what's good and what's bad."
• In the seventh season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Buffy threatens to do to Andrew what Kathy Bates did in Misery. Andrew makes a comparison of the book and the film before he realizes what she is talking about.
• Rapper and Political Activist Immortal Technique in his song "Dominant Species," references the movie with the line: "My enemies are obsessed with me like the bitch in Misery."
• In the Simpsons episode "Dude, Where's My Ranch?", an injured David Byrne lands in Moe's car and asks to be taken to a hospital.

Moe: "Have you seen the movie Misery?"

Mr. Byrne: "Actually, no."

Moe: "Then this'll all be new to you..."

• The Abdoujaparov song "Hit Her With The Pig" depicts a demented fan trapping the singer in his home and forcing him to write an album of "songs of love for my sweet Misery". The lyrics reference her breaking his legs and him killing her in the end.
• The movie was parodied in a skit entitled "Misery II: with Rick James" from the 3rd season of the early 1990's sketch comedy show, In Living Color, in which Keenan Ivory Wayans portrays "superfreak" Rick James as the psychotic Annie Wilkes-esque character.
• In the episode of Friends, "The One After the Super Bowl, Part 1" in season 2, when Chandler tells Rachel and Monica about Joey's date with his crazed stalker, he says, "You remember Kathy Bates in Misery?... Well, she looks the exact opposite of that."
• The episode of Robot Chicken, "Robot Chicken's Half-Assed Christmas Special" in season 3, features the Peanuts characters Linus and Sally in a parody of Misery, where Sally ties Linus to a bed and makes him write her a love letter, mimicking scenes from the film. In the end, Linus distracts her with a decoy letter and strangles her with his blanket; she survives this, however, though he later smashes her head with a lamp.
• Anthrax's 1987 album "Among The Living" has a song called "A Skeleton in the Closet" with the lyrics, "Tell me a story--will ya, will ya, A real good story, I wont leave till ya, Spill your guts old man, Leave out any secrets, hiding in the..."
• There is a commercial for DirecTV based on the "sledgehammer scene." As Annie is lifting her sledgehammer, she says, "I was going to unplug my DirecTV so he couldn't watch all their fancy sports in hi-def, but that'd be cruel. DirecTV has way more sports in HD than cable. Watching anything but DirecTV? Now that would be painful."
• A Mexican rock band "Division Minuscula" has a song called "Tinta y Papel" (Ink & Paper) based in the series of events of the movie "Misery" in their second album "Defecto Perfecto"
• In the first R.O.D manga, a crazed fan writes letters to Paul S., and sends them to Nenene Sumiregawa. Yomiko Readman explains the novel to her. The fan kidnaps Nenene and tries to make her write a new book.
  • In an upcoming Family Guy episode, Three Kings (which will retell three Stephen King novels), Misery will be retold with two of the show's main characters, Brian and Stewie Griffin, as the lead characters. It can be assumed that Brian and Stewie will play roles similar to Paul and Annie, respectively, due to a running gag on the show that involves Stewie taunting Brian about how he can never finish a single novel he has been writing.

SNL redirects here. ... This article is about the actress. ... Dana Thomas Carvey (born April 2, 1955, in Missoula, Montana) is an American actor and comedian best known for his work on Saturday Night Live and the spin-off movie Waynes World. ... Dana Carvey as The Church Lady The Church Lady was a recurring character in a series of sketches on the American television show Saturday Night Live, circa 1986-1992. ... Jonathan Lovitz (born July 21, 1957 in Tarzana, California) is an American actor and comedian perhaps best known as a cast member of Saturday Night Live and for his show The Critic. ... Lorne Michaels (born November 17, 1944) is a Canadian Emmy-winning television producer, writer and comedian best known for creating and producing Saturday Night Live and producing the various film and TV projects that spun off from it. ... Drawn Together is an American animated television series that uses a sitcom format with a TV reality show setting. ... Unrestrainable Trainable is the twenty-sixth episode of the animated series Drawn Together. ... The King of Queens is an Emmy nominated, American comedy series that ran for nine seasons, from 1998 until 2007. ... FUNimation Entertainment (previously known as FUNimation Productions) is an American company formed by Gen Fukunaga in the early 1990s to produce, merchandise and distribute anime and other entertainment properties in the United States and international markets. ... Crayon Shin-chan (クレヨンしんちゃん Kureyon Shin-chan) is a manga and anime series written by Yoshito Usui. ... Dawn Roma French[1] (born 11 October 1957) is an Welsh actress and comedian. ... Jennifer Jane Saunders (born July 6, 1958[1] in Sleaford, Lincolnshire) is a BAFTA- and Emmy Award-winning English comedian, writer and actress. ... French & Saunders is a British sketch comedy television show starring and written by comedy team Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders, and is also the name by which they are known on the rare occasions when they appear elsewhere as a double act. ... For the play by Sheridan, see The Critic (play). ... For other uses, see Buffy the Vampire Slayer (disambiguation). ... Felipe Coronel (born February 19, 1978), better known as Immortal Technique, is a hip hop MC and political activist. ... Dude, Wheres My Ranch? is the eighteenth episode of The Simpsons fourteenth season. ... David Byrne (born May 14, 1952 in Dumbarton, Scotland) is a Grammy Award, Academy Award and Golden Globe winning musician best known as a founding member and the principal songwriter of the New Wave band Talking Heads. ... Abdoujaparov are a punk band formed on October 19, 1998 by ex-Carter USM guitarist Les Carter (aka Fruitbat). ... Rick James (born James Ambrose Johnson, Jr) (February 1, 1948 – August 6, 2004) was one of the most popular artists on the Motown label during the late 1970s and early 1980s. ... In Living Color is a sketch comedy television series which ran on the FOX Network from April 15, 1990 to May 19, 1994. ... Keenen Ivory Wayans (born June 8, 1958 in New York City, New York, USA) is an American actor, comedian, director and writer. ... This article is about the television show. ... Robot Chicken is an Emmy award-winning American stop motion animated comedy television series created by Seth Green and Matthew Senreich, who are the executive producers. ... For other uses, see Peanut (disambiguation). ... Linus van Pelt is one of the characters in Charles M. Schulzs comic strip Peanuts. ... Sally Brown is the younger sister of Charlie Brown in the comic strip Peanuts by Charles Schulz. ... A standard DirecTV satellite dish with 1 LNB on a roof DirecTV (trademarked as DIRECTV) is a direct broadcast satellite (DBS) service based in El Segundo, California, USA, that was founded in 1994. ... High-definition television (HDTV) means broadcast of television signals with a higher resolution than traditional formats (NTSC, SECAM, PAL) allow. ... R.O.D: The TV (2003) is a 26-episode TV anime series about the adventures of three paper-using sisters, Michelle, Maggie and Anita, who became the bodyguards of Sumiregawa Nenene, a famous Japanese writer. ... Family Guy is an Emmy Award-winning American animated television series about a dysfunctional family in the fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island. ... “Three Kings” is a season six episode of the FOX animated television series Family Guy. ... Brian Griffin is a fictional character on the FOX animated television series Family Guy, and is voiced by show creator, Seth MacFarlane. ... Stewie redirects here. ...

External links

• Misery at the Internet Movie Database
• Misery at Rotten Tomatoes