Misery (1990) movie poster

Misery (1990)

"Paul Sheldon used to write for a living. Now, he’s writing to stay alive."
ThumbScore
👍 86%Google users liked it ⓘ
Critics Score
🎬 83%
DramaThriller

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Where to Watch

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Director
Runtime
1h 47m
Rated
R
Country
United States of America
Language
English
TMDB Rating
7.7/10 (5,135 votes)
Rotten Tomatoes
91%
Metacritic
75

Cast

Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes · 72% avg
James Caan as Paul Sheldon · 74% avg
Richard Farnsworth as Buster · 72% avg
Lauren Bacall as Marcia Sindell · 78% avg
Frances Sternhagen as Virginia · 72% avg
Graham Jarvis as Libby · 78% avg
Jerry Potter as Pete
Thomas Brunelle as Anchorman

Is Misery good?

Yes. 86% of real audiences liked it, by Google's archived audience score. Critics agree, scoring it 83%.

Where it ranks on ThumbScore

Rank in its genre
#514 / 3335 · Drama
Rank in its year
#17 / 65 · 1990
Rank among its director's films
#4 / 10 · Rob Reiner

By audience score, among films with 500 or more votes.

Overview

After an accident, acclaimed novelist Paul Sheldon is rescued by a nurse who claims to be his biggest fan. Her obsession takes a dark turn when she holds him captive in her remote Colorado home and forces him to write back to life the popular literary character he killed off. Wikipedia ↗

About the Film

Misery is a 1990 American psychological horror thriller directed by Rob Reiner, based on Stephen King's 1987 novel. James Caan stars as Paul Sheldon, a successful romance novelist who crashes his car in a blizzard near the remote Colorado home of Annie Wilkes, played by Kathy Bates, his self-proclaimed "number one fan" who rescues him and nurses his broken legs. When Annie discovers that Paul has killed off her beloved fictional character Misery Chastain in his latest book, her devotion curdles into psychotic rage, and Paul finds himself a prisoner of an increasingly unhinged captor who demands he write a new book bringing Misery back to life.

Kathy Bates won the Academy Award for Best Actress for one of the most terrifying performances in horror history — Annie Wilkes was simultaneously maternal and monstrous, her mood swinging from tender caregiving to explosive violence with no warning. The hobbling scene, in which Annie breaks Paul's ankles with a sledgehammer, is one of the most cringe-inducing moments in cinema. Misery earned $61 million worldwide on a $20 million budget.

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What Reddit Thinks

r/movies
⬆ 24,681💬 1,050 comments
Kathy Bates (Misery, Titanic, American Horror Story) to receive the 2,589th star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame
Top comment: "Seems kind of vain to have so many."
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