Not Scary...But All Kinds Of Creepy..."Gerald's Game"

Gerald's Game (2017)

TV-MA

Starring Carla Gugino, Bruce Greenwood, Carel Struycken, Chiara Aurelia, Henry Thomas

Written and Directed by Mike Flanagan

The Story:

Gerald (Greenwood) and Jessie (Gugino) head to their isolated lake house for a long overdue romantic getaway. Gerald is hoping to spice things up, and brings along some handcuffs to have a little fantasy role play with his wife. Naturally, it's that moment when your wife is completely shackled to the bed that you keel over from a heart attack and die. How exactly is Jessie going to get out of this situation?

In the annals of cinematic history, Stephen King novels are either translated well into a cinematic counterpart, or they suck.

There is rarely any middle ground.

It seems that 2017 has been the rebirth of King's works as first The Dark Tower and then IT were released in theaters.

I've seen neither, but once again, it appears we  have one of each of King's adaptations according to critics and box office receipts.

Meanwhile, Netflix puts out their own original, and really doesn't trumpet that it's a King adaptation at all.

Perhaps that's to avoid any preconceived notions by those that may find they aren't fans of Stephen King's work?

Either way, here it is, and much like my favorite King adaptations, The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, this one really works.

And there really isn't any horror to the film.

Which isn't to say it isn't creepy.

Whether's it's Gerald's fantasies, or Jessie's mind splintering as she remembers what happened to her when she was just a kid (Aurelia), this movie keeps a hold on you similar to the hold the situation has on poor Jessie.

Kudos to Gugino for what is likely the performance of her career. She does so much more in this film than just be a helpless wife cuffed to a bed. Greenwood also gets a much meatier role than that of dead husband, so that is very welcome here.

Very well done, with some disturbing moments, and a scene in a bed that brings back the squeamish nature of that scene in Misery all over again.

Final Grade: B+