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Misery |
...can you?...
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Misery |
When Misery hit the market in 1987, no one knew what to expect. King had made it public that he was done writing about children and monsters (having covered all the coverable ground in It.) What was next?
The answer came in a slim volume that singlehandedly destroyed any notion that King was just a writer of things that go bump in the night. With Misery, King made it clear that monsters can come from anywhere, including the human mind.
The novel opens on a writer named Paul Sheldon, a male romance writer who has had a string of widely successful novels centering around the bombshell heroine Misery Chastain. Recently, he decided to "kill off" his most popular creation in order to write a "serious" novel, Fast Cars, and put his bodice-ripper reputation behind him forever.
What he didn't coun't on was getting into a Dom Perignon- induced car accident. And he further didn't count on being rescued by a large woman named Annie Wilkes, who calls herself "his #1 fan."
Thus begins Paul's tale of capture and terror. Annie, you see, is an ex-nurse with a sociopathic and delusional mind, and a child's view of what's right and what's wrong. This combination alone is volitile, but just wait until she gets angry...
When she discovers Paul's new novel is full of swear words, she throws bowls. When she discovers Misery has been killed, she forces Paul to begin a new novel, bringing Misery's ressurection (and she won't allow a cheat, Mr. Man.) And when she finds out Paul has tried to escape, prepare yourself for perhaps the most terrifying scene of any of King's books.
The novel's play on the word "misery" is clever and fun, as is the intrusion of manuscript pages of Paul's newest Misery novel, Misery's Return, allowing us to see what he and Annie see as he types. But maybe the most important aspect of the novel is the use of the story of Scheherazade, the woman in the Arabian Nights stories who continued to stay her death sentance by telling the excecutioners stories. At first, Paul believes he is playing Scheherazade to Annie, telling her the tale to keep himself alive. Only gradually does he realize he is playing Scheherazade to himself, saving himself and his literary being in the process.
This is one of the best King novels to date, and also one worthy of being someone's first King novel. Extremely highly reccomended.
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The above critique doesn't come close to examining the book's many layers and nuances. Left out, I see, is the fact that Paul gets hooked on Novril, a codiene-based drug Annie doles out freely. Or the fact that Annie's psychoses don't begin and end with Paul, either (or Annie's wonderful vocabulary.) When I first read this book, I got the surface story: the tale of a nurse and her pet writer. It thrilled me, it chilled me, and I liked it. Upon re-reads, however, I have come to the conclusion that this might be King's best examination of human nature, and I count this as my second favorite Stephen King novel (between It and The Shining.)
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Rob Reiner's adaptation of Misery came out in 1990 to widely positive reviews. It still stands as one of the best King adaptions, starring James Caan and Kathy Bates as the central characters, and Richard Farnsworth as Buster, the sherriff, in a highly expanded role from the book.
But how is the movie? Just great. Reiner eschews the deeper plot elements of the novel to create a tense and suspenseful film, capitolizing on the claustrophobic atmosphere of Paul's room, his debilitating pain, and the frentic, amazing mood swings that won Kathy Bates an Oscar.
See it.
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Lindsay Crouse does a remarkable job in the performance of Misery on tape. Her voice is soft (a little monotonous, but not annoyingly so), and it's really a pleasure to listen to her read. The only problems involve Paul's manuscript excerpts. Those listening to isery for the first time will be quite confused by the shift in storytelling, and when the Royal starts to throw letters, it's quite a jumble indeed. Those who have read the book and want to go back will highly enjoy this production.
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