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Review: Misery (Collector’s Edition) (Blu-Ray)

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Regarded as one of the best of the Stephen King film adaptations, 1990’s Misery, based on King’s 1987 novel, revolutionized how King’s work was perceived in Hollywood.  A box office and critical success, Misery brought the first, and so far only, Academy Award to the King cinematic universe, when Kathy Bates won the best actress Oscar for her memorable portrayal of Annie Wilkes.  The prestige that Misery attracted transferred itself to the King-inspired films The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption, two Oscar-nominated films that further enhanced the credibility of King’s work in Hollywood and in the minds of audiences.

Misery highlights one of King’s essential gifts as a writer, which is his uncanny ability to connect suspense and tension to seemingly ordinary settings and situations.  In the film, Paul Sheldon, played by James Caan, is a best-selling novelist who, as the film opens, finds himself incapacitated when his car spins off a road in the midst of a blinding blizzard.  Paul is rescued by Bates’s Annie Wilkes, a seemingly pleasant woman who nurses Paul back to health in her secluded home.  Trapped in bed, his legs badly broken, Paul discovers that Annie is his “number one fan,” someone who is completely infatuated with Paul’s writing, to the point where she’s unable to distinguish fiction from reality.  As his attempts to make contact with the outside world are rebuffed, Paul eventually discovers that Annie is a demented, unhinged woman who intends to keep Paul as her prisoner.

More than a quarter of a century after its theatrical release, Shout! Factory has immortalized the film’s legacy with their new Blu-Ray release, Misery: Collector’s Edition, which documents every element of the making of the film, from page to theatrical release.  Along with a 4K restoration of the film, which was culled from the film’s original elements, the Blu-Ray contains new interviews with director Rob Reiner and special makeup effects artist Greg Nicotero.

Anchoring the Blu-Ray are the commentaries provided by Reiner and screenwriter William Goldman, both of whom go into painstaking detail regarding the challenges they faced in bringing King’s novel to the screen.  For Reiner, who had previously directed Stand by Me, based on the King novella The Body, Misery was a transforming moment in the director’s career, allowing him to fully make the transition from comedy to broader material.  In addition to the commentaries, several documentaries explore the elements and themes contained within in the film, which are mostly-related to stalking as it relates to Annie Wilkes’s twisted psyche.

Although Misery has long been a staple of cable television, Shout! Factory’s release serves as the last word on this now classic film and is a recommended addition to any genre fan’s library.

The Misery: Collector’s Edition Blu-Ray is available on November 28, 2017. 

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‘Violent Night’ Director’s Next Project is a Shark Movie

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Sony Pictures is getting in the water with director Tommy Wirkola for his next project; a shark movie. Although no plot details have been revealed, Variety confirms that the movie will start filming in Australia this summer.

Also confirmed is that actress Phoebe Dynevor is circling the project and is in talks to star. She is probably best known for her role as Daphne in the popular Netflix soap Bridgerton.

Dead Snow (2009)

Duo Adam McKay and Kevin Messick (Don’t Look Up, Succession) will produce the new film.

Wirkola is from Norway and utilizes a lot of action in his horror films. One of his first films, Dead Snow (2009), about zombie Nazis, is a cult favorite, and his 2013 action-heavy Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters is an entertaining distraction.

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)

But 2022’s Christmas blood fest Violent Night starring David Harbour made wider audiences familiar with Wirkola. Coupled with favorable reviews and a great CinemaScore, the film became a Yuletide hit.

Insneider first reported this new shark project.

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Why You May NOT Want To Go In Blind Before Watching ‘The Coffee Table’

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You might want to prepare yourself for some things if you plan to watch The Coffee Table now rentable on Prime. We aren’t going to go into any spoilers, but research is your best friend if you are sensitive to intense subject matter.

If you don’t believe us, maybe horror writer Stephen King might convince you. In a tweet he published on May 10, the author says, “There’s a Spanish movie called THE COFFEE TABLE on Amazon Prime and Apple+. My guess is you have never, not once in your whole life, seen a movie as black as this one. It’s horrible and also horribly funny. Think the Coen Brothers’ darkest dream.”

It is hard to talk about the film without giving anything away. Let’s just say there are certain things in horror movies that are generally off the, ahem, table and this film crosses that line in a big way.

The Coffee Table

The very ambiguous synopsis says:

“Jesus (David Pareja) and Maria (Estefanía de los Santos) are a couple going through a difficult time in their relationship. Nevertheless, they have just become parents. To shape their new life, they decide to buy a new coffee table. A decision that will change their existence.”

But there is more to it than that, and the fact that this might be the darkest of all comedies is also a little unsettling. Although it is heavy on the dramatic side too, the core issue is very taboo and might leave certain people sick and disturbed.

What’s worse is that it is an excellent movie. The acting is phenomenal and the suspense, masterclass. Compounding that it’s a Spanish film with subtitles so you have to look at your screen; it’s just evil.

The good news is The Coffee Table isn’t really that gory. Yes, there is blood, but it’s used more as just a reference than a gratuitous opportunity. Still, the mere thought of what this family has to go through is unnerving and I can guess many people will turn it off within the first half-hour.

Director Caye Casas has made a great film that might go down in history as one of the most disturbing ever made. You have been warned.

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Trailer For Shudder’s Latest ‘The Demon Disorder’ Showcases SFX

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It’s always interesting when award-winning special effects artists become directors of horror films. That is the case with The Demon Disorder coming from Steven Boyle who has done work on The Matrix movies, The Hobbit trilogy, and King Kong (2005).

The Demon Disorder is the latest Shudder acquisition as it continues adding high-quality and interesting content to its catalog. The film is the directorial debut of Boyle and he says he is happy that it will become a part of the horror streamer’s library coming fall 2024.

“We are thrilled that The Demon Disorder has reached its final resting place with our friends at Shudder,” said Boyle.  “It’s a community and fanbase that we hold in the highest esteem and we couldn’t be happier to be on this journey with them!”

Shudder echoes Boyle’s thoughts about the film, emphasizing his skill.

“After years of a creating a range of elaborate visual experiences through his work as a special effects designer on iconic films, we’re thrilled to give Steven Boyle a platform for his feature length directorial debut with The Demon Disorder,” said Samuel Zimmerman, Head of Programming for Shudder.  “Full of impressive body horror that fans have come to expect from this master of effects, Boyle’s film is an engrossing story about breaking generational curses that viewers will find both unsettling and amusing.”

The movie is being described as an “Australian family drama” that centers on, “Graham, a man haunted by his past since the death of his father and the estrangement from his two brothers. Jake, the middle brother, contacts Graham claiming that something is horribly wrong: their youngest brother Phillip is possessed by their deceased father. Graham reluctantly agrees to go and see for himself. With the three brothers back together, they soon realize they are unprepared for the forces against them and learn that the sins of their past will not stay hidden. But how do you defeat a presence that knows you inside and out? An anger so powerful it refuses to stay dead?”

The movie stars, John Noble (The Lord of the Rings), Charles CottierChristian Willis, and Dirk Hunter.

Take a look at the trailer below and let us know what you think. The Demon Disorder will begin streaming on Shudder this fall.

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