She deserved the award, just for saying these silly ass lines with a straight face the entire time

She's always award worthy. Have you seen Fried Green Tomatoes?

It was totally deserved. She did great work.

I would say her performance in Dolores Claiborne is far better.

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Kathy Bates is one of my favorite actresses. I do agree that she deserved the Oscar for this role, I actually think she deserved one more for Delores Claiborne. IMHO, Kathy Bates is one of those actresses that has an enormous range, and I wish she was in more shows/films.

Looking at the nominees, only Annie Wilkes and Julia for Pretty Woman stand the test of time 25 years later and the other three from that year have been long forgotten

PRETTY WOMAN is shallow and predictable Hollywood, so that goes without saying why it is popular and panders to deluded and simpleminded women. As for MISERY, I would say it has more of a cult following. I really don't think Bates's performance is as readily remembered or revered, as say someone like Glenn Close in FATAL ATTRACTION-87', who gave the superior performance over Bates, as a mentally unhinged woman. I would opt for Angelica Huston in THE GRIFTERS over Bates, as I find her performance more believable and real. Minority opinion, but I also prefer to watch that film over MISERY, which has too many flaws for my liking.
Exorcist: Christ's power compels you. Cast out, unclean spirit.
Destinata:

'I'm surprised she won for Misery though, not that it wasn't deserving'
The best performance is not contingent on standing the test of time, but the best acting for that year. It was one of the weakest years I can recall.
The character was not cartoonish, since people like her really exist, and there were other actresses that could have done an equal, if not better, job. If it was cartoonish, that was due to her dubious acting choices,and Reiner's mediocre direction.
Even a psycho has a middle range. Bates was "showing" us a performance, not "being" the performance. A lack of intimacy with her co-star; not intimacy as in love, but connecting with her acting partner. I didn't feel like I was eavesdropping on real people

Yes. I'm surprised she won for Misery though, not that it wasn't deserving, but the academy has a tendency to favour boring unmemorable dramas that no one remembers a few years later over more intense roles. I'm surprised they didn't opt for Woodward in that case, especially as, looking over, she won all of the critics awards, but then won no major awards either and Kathy won 2/3. I think Misery is one of those films that wouldn't work well with a lesser actress, especially given how cartoonish the character is, and it is entirely about acting, so if she got it wrong it could have ended her film career. But thankfully she got it right and is a classic villain for the ages and I do feel is a 'one of a kind' type of win. Looking at the nominees, only Annie Wilkes and Julia for Pretty Woman stand the test of time 25 years later and the other three from that year have been long forgotten, so the academy made the right choice in the end. I do feel her Oscar could have come from a number of roles and still been deserved, but I'm glad they went down this route for a change.

She certainly deserved it. A terrifying portrayal.
Last seen films:
Prisoners: 10/10
Mud: 10/10
The Majestic: 8/10

Yes I think she deserved it. I read the book earlier in the year, and I really can't picture any one else in the role. Kathy was perfect at going from bubbly and fun #1 fan to obsessed fan. Definitely one of my favorite performances of a psycho ever.
Why, they told me to take a streetcar named Desire

She's great as a psycho in this and Dolores
A-M-E-R-I-C-A! Home of the free, sick and depraved. A-M-E-R-I-C-A! Why the fv*k are you looking @ me

Oh yes, she deserved it. She made me believe she was psychotic and when Paul started beating the sh!t out of her at the end, I was cheering him on the entire time.
If you love someone, set them free. If they come back, nobody else wanted them either.

I think she deserved it completely. She was great!
Leave life alone. Let it be.

It's hard for an actor not to plan in advance the script plans in advance.
Not that type of "planned". Of course the actor knows their lines, but the excellence is the ability of sounding like you're saying the lines for the first time, as if you don't know ("forgot") what your next lines are. This was mentioned on the Streep board also. There was some legendary actor who phased it well, though I can't remember who. For example, Lucille Ball was a master at it.

It's hard for an actor not to plan in advance the script plans in advance.

It can't help that contrivance, as that is part of the process of all aspects of the film making. The devil is in the details though and the manner in which it is delivered.

It's hard for an actor not to plan in advance the script plans in advance.

'Deserved. Charming one second, chilling the next.'
Yes, but how is that so extraordinary? She planned that in advance; doesn't take much effort to calculate "I should be charming here, so I'll play it mean instead", and "I normally would be mean here, so I'll be sweet here"
It's ok, nobody gets it. It's not what the actor does, but how they do it.

Deserved. Charming one second, chilling the next.

She's great in this. She was able to play an over the top character without becoming really cheesy and hammy.

She absolutely deserved her Oscar. Her win is one of my favourite Best Actress wins, along with Frances McDormand for Fargo and Charlize Theron for Monster.
Agreed.
I am a little perplexed why anyone would think Kathy was undeserving of her win.

The last time I was really enraptured by a Best Actress win, was for SUSAN SARANDON for DEAD MAN WALKING in 95'. There was some pretty stiff competition that year as well.
Also loved that JODIE FOSTER won for THE ACCUSED-88' and for SILENCE OF THE LAMBS-91' and EMMA THOMPSON for HOWARD'S END-92'.

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You guys are harsh critics. I just never saw these flaws that you all saw in her performance.

Wasn't my intention to upset you, but you did start the topic and I responded with my comments. Please don't let this diminish your viewing enjoyment of watching Bates act in this film though as this is just my personal opinion. I have other issues with this film adaptation of Stephen King's novel, so I can be quite critical of the film as a whole.