Misery is both a flawless horror movie and an exciting adaptation of a Stephen King novel. No matter how many times horror fans rewatch the film, it's always a smart character study and an entertaining film with genuinely scary moments. The performances from Kathy Bates and James Caan are also something special.
While Mischa Barton is famous for playing Marissa Cooper on The O.C., she also starred in the 2009 horror movie Homecoming, and the movie has a lot in common with Misery. But the movie isn't very popular and doesn't offer horror or thriller fans a lot to get excited about.
There are some horror movies that have been forgotten, and Homecoming isn't a movie that many people talk about. There are some amazing 2000s horror films but Homecoming has a 0% rating on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer and 33% on the Audience Score. Shelby Mercer (Mischa Barton) is upset that her ex-boyfriend Mike Donaldson (Matt Long) is now in a relationship with Elizabeth Mitchum (Jessica Stroup). Shelby is envious and will stop at nothing to get Mike back, and after Shelby hits Elizabeth with her car, she kidnaps Elizabeth and starts looking after her.
The problem with the movie? There are no brand new characters and the film is definitely missing a fascinating storyline. Homecoming is too much like Misery but without the interesting parts. Misery is better than The Shining because there are some campy, fun, funny parts. The same thing can't be said of Homecoming which doesn't have scary or hilarious scenes, leaving audiences wondering why it's not more compelling.
Many fans think that Misery is the greatest Stephen King film and the story of an obsessed fan who kidnaps her favorite writer definitely stands the test of time. As far as horror movies go, it's one of the most popular, and if a movie is going to follow a similar story, it's going to need great characters and scary scenes. Homecoming just isn't good. Shelby is so miserable and angry that the movie feels depressing to watch. She's still living in her hometown, struggling professionally, and she can't imagine why Mike would have broken up with her so she acts like they have never gone their separate ways. The movie doesn't give audiences backstory so it's unclear why Shelby and Mike had such a great relationship, and why
Homecoming follows the same formula that many stories featuring jealous exes do. Shelby tries to make Elizabeth her friend at first, telling her that Mike's mom and dad are tough to get along with and that they won't like her, and Elizabeth is the textbook naive, innocent girlfriend who doesn't notice how strange and unnerving Shelby seems. In one scene, Elizabeth sees a creepy collection of photos in Shelby's room, realizing that Shelby has kept pictures of Shelby and Mike and that she is totally obsessed with him. While Shelby does have a clear motive (hatred and jealousy of Elizabeth and the desire to win Mike back), it's such a cliche idea for a film that it doesn't work.
Homecoming also fails because it's not a well-crafted teen horror movie or an interesting enough film about life in college or after high school. Shelby is desperately hanging onto her high school existence, wishing that she still had her perfect boyfriend and seemingly happier life, but the movie doesn't say anything much about post-high school life or the struggles that can come up.
Because the movie is so focused on making Shelby seem like a "crazy" person who is intent on ruining Elizabeth's life or even killing her so she can live happily ever with Mike, the movie really skims on character development. Mike and Elizabeth are a cute enough couple and they do fight back against Shelby at the end of the movie. But while there are some memorable final girls in horror movies, Elizabeth isn't like that all, as she spends the movie terrified of Elizabeth and upset that she has done this to her. It's hard to believe that Elizabeth can win or that she can really change the situation, which doesn't make the story a lot of fun to follow.
Homecoming tries too hard to make Shelby the villain without giving her enough personality traits. It turns out that she murdered her mother and poisoned her, which audiences learn because there is a paper called "Poisonous Plants" in her house. That reveal comes too easily and could definitely have been handled better. At this point, it's too late for the movie to become a terrifying and fascinating horror movie, and audiences wish that Homecoming had a lot more going on.