2 minute deconstruction of Misery

• 1. Misery (1990)

2. Misery (1990) Misery was written by the psychologicalhorror master, Stephen King and directedby Rob Reiner It stars James Caan as a famous novelistwho is rescued by Kathy Bates whenhis car crashes, a psychotic andobsessive fan who keeps him captive inher home. The movie has many psychologicalhorror elements as it follows thecontinually worsening mental state ofPauls (the famous writer) number onefan Next is the first 2 minutes of the film 3. The TitlesThe companies that displayed first are Metro Goldwin Mayer (distributor) Columbia Pictures (distributor) Castle Rock Entertainment (Production) 4. It is significant that the distribution companiesare featured before the production companiesbecause this shows that they are first priority.this suggests that the production of this moviewas either less costly in proportions than thedistribution, or that the distribution companiesare considered more well known than theproduction company therefore the film was ridingon the distribution companies reputation to dowell. Putting the order that the logos are shown aside, the on screen time of each is roughly thesame showing an equality of importanceamongst them. 5. On the next set of title, the backgroundis black, a colour connoting mystery orThere is silencedarkness, something considereddangerous. The text is shockingly redthroughout all of the titlesagainst the dark background, a colourapart from the soundsagain connoting danger, maybeassociated with thesymbolising blood therefore violence.opening company logosThe font of the text is bold andstructured. The company name iscentral, a more grand font and incapitals compared with the inassociation with and the presentsshowing it is the centre of attention. Nelson Entertainment is anotherproduction company involved, howeverwas not featured in the opening logossuggesting it is not as famous as theothers or played a smaller role inproduction. Next comes the director showing thathe is of great importance to the filmand its first impressions to appearsecond. His name is bold, in capitalsand centre on the screen 6. Opening scenes The first images shown are objects placed with meticulous precision suggesting thecharacter involved is a perfectionist. Behind each object is the blurred image of a man ata 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 theaction of smoking is planned out and prepared for, a certain trait of the character learnedhere. The second is of a champagne glass, perfectly polished, standing alone suggesting thisis 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 ofour understanding of this characters traits, he is a perfectionist. Champagne alsosuggests celebration. The fact he is celebrating again reinforces the idea of anindependent/lonely character. A lonely or misunderstood main protagonist is a commonfeature of a psychological horror movie. These three objects appear again later in the film when Paul has been taken prisonerand Annie (captor) make him write for him 7. The next shot is of a close shot of the type writerpaper as the words are printed onto it. we are able toread the sentence being written that says without it,what else was there..? This suggests that the contentof the writing is negative. The sentence above it saysbreathing might not seem like much, this suggests avery down beat content to the writing suggesting thecharacter is feeling similar or is of a similar nature. The only noise still being heard is the tapping of typewriter 8. Character/setting introduction The camera changes to a mid shot of the writer showing the room and his appearance.The roomThe room is furnished nicely withwhat appears a rural view of out ofthe window. The lamp is grand andthere is a smart looking painting onthe wall. There is a lot of pine andthere is a tree stump themed paperweight on the desk suggesting asetting near a forest or that sort ofarea. This room connoteshomeliness. The desk is fairlymessy with screwed up balls ofpaper and loose stationary about.This suggests the writer is hard atwork however clashes with theperfectly laid objects in the previousscene. 9. Character The man is middle aged or maybe a little older.He is dressed smartly but comfortably andpractically suggesting he is at home orsomewhere he feels comfortable in. The man looks tired and has wrinkles whenfurrowing his brow to read. His hand writing is messy but mature. The facthe chooses to write THE END instead of typeit suggests personal closure, that he is endinga task he has taken much time on. Piano music begins when Pauls face comesinto shot. The music is disfigured, the noteshave large pauses between them. It is elegantbut with an edgy minor key. This suggests themood of the character is negative or unhappy,or maybe that this is leading up to something tobe nervous about. 10. By including the close up of the title page, the director is beginning tobuild the storyline, giving the audience the name of the maincharacter. The title is untitled. This suggests that the writer is unsure, maybehaving writers block when considering the name. Untitled makes thereader wonder as to what the writing was about. The music builds at this point to more unnerving strings. This showsan increase in action Audio on next slide 11. Fast paced shotsFollowing this there is a number of fast changing close shots of Pauldoing certain things. This speeds the scene up condensing a numberof things into a quick montage of shots. By showing each actionindividually it emphasises the fact that he is alone. It also emphasisesthe fact he had planned this celebration before hand showing certainaspects to his character that could mirror the calculating character ofAnnie. 12. Indulgent characterWhat we can learn about thischaracter from this is that he isvery indulgent of himself. Heopens a whole bottle ofchampagne for him to enjoy onhis own. When he is smoking heseems to enjoy his cigarettevery much also. Having no oneto celebrate finishing his bookwith besides himself may revealthat this is a closed off, lonelycharacter, something commonin psychological horror movies.The camera is on a close up ofPauls face, also indulging in thecharacter showing that this oneman is the centre of the film.