2. Misery (1990)
Misery was written by the psychological
horror master, Stephen King and directed
by Rob Reiner
It stars James Caan as a famous novelist
who is “rescued” by Kathy Bates when
his car crashes, a psychotic and
obsessive fan who keeps him captive in
her home.
The movie has many psychological
horror elements as it follows the
continually worsening mental state of
Paul’s (the famous writer) “number one
fan”
Next is the first 2 minutes of the film…
3. The Titles
The companies that displayed first are
Metro Goldwin Mayer (distributor)
Columbia Pictures (distributor)
Castle Rock Entertainment (Production)
4. It is significant that the distribution companies
are featured before the production companies
because this shows that they are first priority.
this suggests that the production of this movie
was either less costly in proportions than the
distribution, or that the distribution companies
are considered more well known than the
production company therefore the film was riding
on the distribution companies reputation to do
well.
Putting the order that the logo’s are shown a
side, the on screen time of each is roughly the
same showing an equality of importance
amongst them.
5. On the next set of title, the background
is black, a colour connoting mystery or There is silence
darkness, something considered
dangerous. The text is shockingly red throughout all of the titles
against the dark background, a colour apart from the sounds
again connoting danger, maybe associated with the
symbolising blood therefore violence. opening company logo’s
The font of the text is bold and
structured. The company name is
central, a more grand font and in
capitals compared with the “in
association with” and the “presents”
showing it is the centre of attention.
“Nelson Entertainment” is another
production company involved, however
was not featured in the opening logo’s
suggesting it is not as famous as the
others or played a smaller role in
production.
Next comes the director showing that
he is of great importance to the film
and its first impressions to appear
second. His name is bold, in capitals
and centre on the screen
6. Opening scenes
The first images shown are objects placed with meticulous precision suggesting the
character involved is a perfectionist. Behind each object is the blurred image of a man at
a type writer. Only his hands can be seen adding a shade of mystery.
The only sound to be heard is the tapping of the type writer keys.
The first image is a cigarette laid out with a match placed next to it. this suggests that the
action of smoking is planned out and prepared for, a certain trait of the character learned
here.
The second is of a champagne glass, perfectly polished, standing alone suggesting this
is a character that operates alone, someone independent or perhaps lonely.
The next is of a champagne bottle placed in an ice bucket. This again develops more of
our understanding of this characters traits, he is a perfectionist. Champagne also
suggests celebration. The fact he is celebrating again reinforces the idea of an
independent/lonely character. A lonely or misunderstood main protagonist is a common
feature of a psychological horror movie.
These three objects appear again later in the film when Paul has been taken prisoner
and Annie (captor) make him write for him
7. The next shot is of a close shot of the type writer
paper as the words are printed onto it. we are able to
read the sentence being written that says “without it,
what else was there..?” This suggests that the content
of the writing is negative. The sentence above it says
“breathing might not seem like much,” this suggests a
very down beat content to the writing suggesting the
character is feeling similar or is of a similar nature.
The only noise still being heard is the tapping of type
writer
8. Character/setting introduction
The camera changes to a mid shot of the
writer showing the room and his appearance.
The room
The room is furnished nicely with
what appears a rural view of out of
the window. The lamp is grand and
there is a smart looking painting on
the wall. There is a lot of pine and
there is a tree stump themed paper
weight on the desk suggesting a
setting near a forest or that sort of
area. This room connotes
homeliness. The desk is fairly
messy with screwed up balls of
paper and loose stationary about.
This suggests the writer is hard at
work however clashes with the
perfectly laid objects in the previous
scene.
9. Character
The man is middle aged or maybe a little older.
He is dressed smartly but comfortably and
practically suggesting he is at home or
somewhere he feels comfortable in.
The man looks tired and has wrinkles when
furrowing his brow to read.
His hand writing is messy but mature. The fact
he chooses to write “THE END” instead of type
it suggests personal closure, that he is ending
a task he has taken much time on.
Piano music begins when Paul’s face comes
into shot. The music is disfigured, the notes
have large pauses between them. It is elegant
but with an edgy minor key. This suggests the
mood of the character is negative or unhappy,
or maybe that this is leading up to something to
be nervous about.
10. By including the close up of the title page, the director is beginning to
build the storyline, giving the audience the name of the main
character.
The title is “untitled.” This suggests that the writer is unsure, maybe
having writers block when considering the name. “Untitled” makes the
reader wonder as to what the writing was about.
The music builds at this point to more unnerving strings. This shows
an increase in action
Audio on next
slide
11. Fast paced shots
Following this there is a number of fast changing close shots of Paul
doing certain things. This speeds the scene up condensing a number
of things into a quick montage of shots. By showing each action
individually it emphasises the fact that he is alone. It also emphasises
the fact he had planned this celebration before hand showing certain
aspects to his character that could mirror the calculating character of
Annie.
12. Indulgent character
What we can learn about this
character from this is that he is
very indulgent of himself. He
opens a whole bottle of
champagne for him to enjoy on
his own. When he is smoking he
seems to enjoy his cigarette
very much also. Having no one
to celebrate finishing his book
with besides himself may reveal
that this is a closed off, lonely
character, something common
in psychological horror movies.
The camera is on a close up of
Paul’s face, also indulging in the
character showing that this one
man is the centre of the film.
