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The Rewatchables · July 5, 2022

Misery

host Bill Simmons host Brian Koppelman producer Craig Horlbeck

What aged best: “Mr. Man,” supporting-character texture, period publishing details, and the softened hobbling choice
Casting what-if: Many actors declined Annie Wilkes and Paul Sheldon
Weakest link: The inadequate search for Paul Sheldon

All 32 categories

Who won the movie Kathy Bates
Just one Oscar Kathy Bates
Dion Waiters Award Frances Sternhagen
Overacting Award No award

The Stephen A. Smith Hottest Take Award · 1:07:11

Kathy Bates gives the best Best Actress performance from 1990 through the episode’s present

Bill Simmons: Kathy Bates is argued to have the best Best Actress performance across the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and early 2020s

Bill Simmons: Frances McDormand in Fargo, Halle Berry in Monster’s Ball, and Emma Stone in La La Land are offered as winning comparators

The Coach Finstock Award for Best Life Lesson · 1:28:11

Check the weather, avoid a Mustang in a blizzard, own a local home, and maintain check-in routines

Brian Koppelman: “Do not have fans” is offered as the easy but impractical lesson

The film

Misery (1990)

Directed by Rob Reiner · Horror

107 minutes

IMDb Find on JustWatch Find on Rotten Tomatoes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

James Caan Paul Sheldon

Kathy Bates Annie Wilkes

Frances Sternhagen Deputy Virginia

Richard Farnsworth Sheriff Buster

Lauren Bacall Marcia Sindell

Graham Jarvis Libby

Jerry Potter Pete

Everything from the episode

In the order the hosts got to it. Open a row for the discussion.

29:38

Casting What-Ifs

Many actors declined Annie Wilkes and Paul Sheldon; several alternative Paul Sheldons are debated

In the discussion (7)

Approx. transcript time · 00:29:38Read transcript

Anjelica Huston and Bette Midler are identified as actors offered Annie Wilkes — Bill Simmons
Richard Dreyfuss is proposed as a believable writer but possibly insufficiently physical — Brian Koppelman
Robin Williams is proposed for his sympathy, physicality, and caged energy — Brian Koppelman
Robert Duvall and Michael Douglas are proposed as strong alternatives — Bill Simmons
Donald Sutherland is proposed as another alternative — Bill Simmons
William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Michael Douglas, Harrison Ford, Dustin Hoffman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Richard Dreyfuss, Gene Hackman, and Robert Redford are listed as having declined Paul Sheldon — Bill Simmons
Richard Dreyfuss and Bette Midler are said to have later expressed regret — Bill Simmons

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1:10:24

Recasting Couch

Faye Dunaway or Jane Fonda for Lauren Bacall

In the discussion (4)

Approx. transcript time · 01:10:24Read transcript

Lauren Bacall’s performance is criticized as too television-like — Brian Koppelman
The production’s intended cosmopolitan contrast with Annie is offered as context — Brian Koppelman
Faye Dunaway is proposed as a replacement — Bill Simmons
Jane Fonda is proposed and preferred — Bill Simmons

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1:11:02

Half-Assed Internet Research

Production anecdotes cover Caan, the actors’ rehearsal conflict, adaptations, effects, and King’s addiction metaphor

In the discussion (9)

Approx. transcript time · 01:11:02Read transcript

James Caan reportedly had unusable footage after arriving hungover and reimbursed the studio — Bill Simmons
Some dialogue is suspected of having been looped, though the reason is uncertain — Bill Simmons
Stephen King is reported to have called Annie Wilkes his favorite character — Bill Simmons
Caan preferred discovery during filming while Bates preferred rehearsal; Reiner found a middle ground — Bill Simmons
A 2015 Broadway adaptation starred Bruce Willis and Laurie Metcalf and used a Goldman script — Bill Simmons
Castle Rock season two also adapted Annie Wilkes material — Bill Simmons
A DVD feature described Annie as a broad catalog of mental illness — Bill Simmons
The hobbling prosthetics used gelatin legs, wires, and openings in the bed for Caan’s real legs — Bill Simmons
King later explained Annie and the hobbling as metaphors for his drug dependence and inability to escape it — Bill Simmons

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1:16:15

Picking Nits

The pursuit, scrapbook, housing, legal history, knife plan, and bodily-care logistics draw objections

In the discussion (11)

Approx. transcript time · 01:16:15Read transcript

Annie says she followed Paul, but the wide opening shots show no vehicle behind him — Bill Simmons
A snowmobile hidden in the woods is offered as one way Annie could have followed Paul unseen — Bill Simmons
Keeping an incriminating scrapbook openly in the living room is challenged; hiding it is proposed — Bill Simmons
A defense notes that real serial killers sometimes retain trophies — Brian Koppelman
Paul is so successful that he should own a Colorado home instead of repeatedly using a lodge — Bill Simmons
Annie’s apparent release after multiple infant deaths seems implausibly lenient — Bill Simmons
Paul should stay awake with the knife rather than doze off — Bill Simmons
Paul’s injuries and exhaustion are offered as a defense for falling asleep — Bill Simmons
The movie largely avoids the practical toilet and bedpan needs of a bedridden captive — Bill Simmons
The practical burden of staging and shooting bedpan material, only to cut it in editing, is offered as a defense for omitting it — Brian Koppelman
A small toilet in the room is proposed as a simple fix — Bill Simmons

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1:22:30

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Annie’s nursing history; which Knicks season Paul missed

In the discussion (2)

Approx. transcript time · 01:22:30Read transcript

Earlier questions about Annie’s nursing history are acknowledged as already covered — Bill Simmons
Paul may have missed the Knicks season containing their Boston Garden comeback — Bill Simmons

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1:23:34

Best Double Feature

The King of Comedy

In the discussion (4)

Approx. transcript time · 01:23:34Read transcript

Stand by Me is proposed for a Rob Reiner or Stephen King pairing — Bill Simmons
The Dead Zone is proposed — Bill Simmons
Something Wild is proposed for Ray Liotta’s reversed pursuer role — Brian Koppelman
The King of Comedy is selected as the best pairing — Bill Simmons

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