The document discusses and compares the characters of Annie Wilkes from the novel and film Misery and Grandma from the author's film opening "The Grimm" as well as the characters of Olivia and Dan from the same film opening. Both Annie and Grandma use their kind appearances to deceive others and want to hurt the people they are helping. Olivia and Dan's costumes and behaviors provide clues to the audience while also playing with stereotypes about teenagers. Their interactions with Grandma further the mystery and tension in the opening scene.

1. Annie Wilkes – From the Novel and Film Misery (1990) ‘Cunning, brutal and dangerously disturbed!’ Grandma is dressed like a grandma – who is thought to be loving. She is wearing a holy symbol (cross) and contradicts to the killing. Annie is thought to be suffering a bipolar disorder – making her represent the disabled. I don’t think that the Grandma character portrays this however. ‘Misleading, brutal and a trickster!’ Events could have happened before! ‘Grandma’ – From my film opening ‘The Grimm’. Difference - Annie is young; whereas Grandma is old and fits the stereotype of an elderly woman. Similarities – The audience know throughout the film that something isn’t quite right with the characters. Similarities – Use their kind and gentle appearance to deceive others! Both seem to be helping others (Annie helping the man after a crash and Grandma helping the lost siblings); but actually want to hurt them.

2. ‘Olivia’ From my film opening ‘The Grimm’. Her costume consisting of a jumper and jeans tells the audience that she is very casual and it doesn’t quite match with the situation that they are in – enabling the mystery element to be introduced. The audience do not know exactly what happens to her after the opening scene... ‘Moody, annoyed, in-charge.’ Similarities – The audience can tell that she is a stereotypical young person because the media have created the idea that the younger generation are becoming more rebellious and negative towards people. This is shown in Olivia’s character by the way she speaks to her brother. Intertextuality is shown by using her red coloured top – because it links to another Brothers Grimm tale (Red Riding Hood). Differences – On the contrary to the stereotype, Olivia seems to be the wiser and more cautious of the two siblings because throughout, she keeps asking whether it is a good idea to go into someone's house. This foreshadowing technique is shown in the ‘Hansel and Gretel’ scene in the TV Show Supernatural. A lot of audience members supported Olivia’s character and said that the actress portrayed the stereotype really well and made the situation ‘convincing’.

3. ‘Dan’ From my film opening ‘The Grimm’. He does however take charge and asks Olivia to stay outside so that she doesn’t get into trouble. The rucksack shows a swap and contrast to the stereotypical idea that the male should be the dominant gender and that he should be looking after the possessions – not the other way round. My audience’s feedback to me was very positive in terms of Dan’s character and Nathan’s acting because they said that he represented the teenagers of today’s society well and that Dan expressed his feelings/attitude towards the situation ‘effectively’. ‘Protective, moody, nervous.’ The audience can relate to Dan if they are an older sibling because they know the responsibility that needs to be met and so can show sympathy towards him because he is trying to protect his sister. This makes the grandma a stronger villain because she is using this factor against them and supports the social group of people that manipulate the situation by psychological impact. Similarities – The stereotype of a teenager is shown because he is very moody and frustrated towards his sister and shows the hormonal aspect to a teenage boy. He is also wearing jeans and a hooded-jumper; which have negatively given an impression of the young to society because of a minority involved in crime. Differences – Contradicting to this, Dan seems to be very polite when asking for directions from the grandma because teenagers are suppose to be rude towards the elderly (which he is not in this scene).