Tuesday 17 January 2012

The Shining Review


  Fig 1 - poster 


The Shining is a 1980 psychological horror film produced and directed by Stanley Kubrick, co-written with novelist Diane Johnson, and starring Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, and Danny Lloyd. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King.

A writer, Jack Torrance, takes a job as an off-season caretaker at an isolated hotel. His young son possesses psychic abilities and is able to see things from the past and future, such as the ghosts who inhabit the hotel. Soon after settling in, the family is trapped in the hotel by a snowstorm, and Jack gradually becomes influenced by a supernatural presence; he descends into madness and attempts to murder his wife and son.


Directed by – Stanley Kurbrick
Written By – Stephen King, Kurbrick and Diane Johnson
Genre – Drama, Horror, Mystery and Suspense
Duration 146 mins 

The shining starts off instantly drawing you in with heart pounding music with high perspective views on a car being driven by Jack Torrance on his way to an interview at the setting of the film the Overlook hotel.

“The impact is extraordinary and even repeat viewers of the movie will enjoy the added terror that the 5.1 now brings.” (Haflidason 2005)

The film has a strong sense of spirituality throughout the film, starting straight away with Danny talking to himself with his finger but the audience soon realise it isn’t a imaginary friend but a good spirit talking to him telling him the future. There is also negative spirits in the film dealing with Jack and helping him become insane, telling him to do things. The iconic moment when Jack axes through the door to get to his wife and says “Here’s Jonny”, when his name is Jack makes one think that a spirit has over taken him and his called Jonny. 

 Fig 2 - "The Shining"

The audience is told about the “The Shining” when the cook takes Danny to get some ice cream and tells him about his power which lightens the audience that it’s not an imaginary friend but a spirit. 

 Fig 3 - Jack. 

To see jack character change from a nice guy into a physic nut case, is an interesting perspective because first off, he seems nice so you start to like him then slowly start to dislike towards him, especially the scene where his wife Wendy stops him from written work and he loses it with and becomes quite nasty is when the audience completely dislikes him and after that scene is when he goes downhill which makes the audience completely on the wife’s side and is scared for her and their son Danny. 

“Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson), a recovering alcoholic child-abuser, faces his demons again when he agrees to become caretaker of an isolated hotel.” (Ebert 2006)

As Roger Ebert explain Jacks past it seems he doesn’t go made, maybe he’s going back to him old self, which begs the question does Wendy know of his past and if she did why would you take their son with the child-abuser to an hotel which will be isolated for the winters.

Suspense in the shining grips the audience immensely, main scenes such as when Wendy is getting her son out the window from the bathroom to escape from jack and can’t get out or when Wendy and Danny are in the maze walking about the fear of getting lost but once they get to the centre one is reassured there will be ok, this scene is really interesting thou because without the scene it would be a scene but with the music playing it sets the mood of fear.

“Kubrick isn't out for screams, but he manages to make his movie thoroughly unnerving by keeping the horror so close to home.(Maslin 2000)

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(Personally once Jack becomes insane and for a moment it seems he’s talking to the audience and asks the waiter for a drink and says Lloyd, was one of the weirdest  moments I have had.)

 Fig 4 - Drink Please...Lloyd

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