With there being just so many on-screen Stephen King adaptations, some are bound to fall through the cracks. Not everything can reach the screaming success of The Shining, Carrie, or It. While all three of those are amazing and stand out in their own way, there is one especially unique Stephen King adaptation that rarely gets mentioned. It's perhaps his most realistic, disturbing, and brutal stories and more people should notice it.
The adaptation is Gerald's Game, and comes from the directorial efforts of recent master of horror Mike Flanagan. He's the director behind great horror films like Hush, another Stephen King adaptation in Doctor Sleep, Oculus, as well as the Netflix Haunting of Hill House and Haunting of Bly Manor series. Gerald's Game is also a Netflix Original, which might play a part in why it's not a booming success, but it also means it's very readily available to many people.
Gerald's Game follows a main character named Jessie and everything in the film has to do with her. She is on a getaway with her husband Gerald, to a secluded cabin in the woods in an attempt to save her marriage. While there, they try to spice up their love life by trying something different in the bedroom, and Jessie is handcuffed to the bed. Unfortunately, Gerald dies in the midst of the act leaving her secluded and unable to move. It's a story of survival, trauma, and resilience with an extremely powerful ending and message.
The film relies highly on Carla Cugino's performance as Jessie. She's the center of the film, and the star of the show. A lot of her scenes are completely solo, or with one other person, and there's also a lot of acting to herself and talking to herself which is no easy feat. She goes through so much in this film, the character really is on such a journey, and she portrays it beautifully. She makes it powerful and she makes the audience feel for her character, and she embodies so much of the message of the story. Objectively, her performance is impeccable and due to the nature of the film, it couldn't be good without an impeccable leading lady. Carla Cugino carries the movie.
This story and what happens to Jessie are truly the stuff of nightmares. What's scary is that there aren't really any supernatural elements to the movie, and it isn't so far-fetched that it couldn't happen. This is in so many ways, a horror story rooted in reality. And that makes the film so scary. There is some gore and brutality, but little to no jumpscares. The story itself, the imagery used, and the amazingly effective script are what bring on the scares. It's a scariness that will leave an impact and make the viewer really think. Not only is the current situation that Jessie is in terrifying, but as the film dives into her thoughts and memories and the audience is shown the trauma of her life, it just gets scarier. And it's a kind of scary that far too many people can relate to.
Gerald's Game has one of the most powerful messages of perhaps any Stephen King horror film. It's about overcoming trauma and tackling it head-on. It's about surviving all of the horrible things life can throw at a person. Without getting into spoilers because the film has to be seen to get the full effect, Gerald's Game portrays its powerful message in such a beautiful and impactful way. This is shown throughout, as Jessie is literally trapped and handcuffed and has to overcome that horrible hardship and just survive. She's also hallucinating and stuck in her head, having to confront her past and her life and all of the trauma that comes along with it.
While the story is about her physically being trapped in the bed, what she overcomes is so much more. Not everyone is a fan of the ending of Gerald's Game, but for some, it holds a lot of meaning. Not getting into full details to avoid spoilers, the ending is explosive. It's intense, scary, and has one of the goriest horror moments of recent years. This movie is not for the squeamish. It's also massively emotional, and the final scene is not only a metaphor for everything Jessie has been through but it'll mean something to any viewer of the film who relates to her.
Gerald's Game is an emotional rollercoaster and very effective. It's bound to leave everyone who watches it with a bit of an emotional scar, and will surely leave an impact. It's a conversation starter, and while it may be subtle and quiet in some ways it's absolutely wild in others. Many people came together to make this movie, and they did a beautiful job. No, it didn't reach the same heights that a lot of the bigger Stephen King horror films did but there's a place in the world for Gerald's Game where it is greatly appreciated. It means a lot to the people who have seen it and can identify with it, and it's an important watch in so many ways.