The Shining, From Sane to INsane

[THE VAMPIRE]

I have wated so much to watch this movie and now when i did,I DONT FIND IT SCARY,why

[doctor satan]

I have wated so much to watch this movie and now when i did,I DONT FIND IT SCARY,why

I'm not trying to be insulting but how old are you? I saw this film when i was about 12-13 & i had already seen DOTD, Zombi 2 & Cannibal Holocaust. at the time i was unimpressed by the measly bodycount, lack of gore etc. I then saw the film again 3-4 years later & realised what i had missed & appreciated the film a hell of a lot more. One of my favourite films & only just piped by Clockwork Orange as Kubricks best IMO.

[the_real_linda]

I'm not trying to be insulting but how old are you? I saw this film when i was about 12-13 & i had already seen DOTD, Zombi 2 & Cannibal Holocaust. at the time i was unimpressed by the measly bodycount, lack of gore etc. I then saw the film again 3-4 years later & realised what i had missed & appreciated the film a hell of a lot more. One of my favourite films & only just piped by Clockwork Orange as Kubricks best IMO.

i love the shining, its not about bodycount so i agree with doctor satan... and leave off rob zombie i really REALLY like the man .... the shining is a classic movie.

[Doc Faustus]

I didn't like Kubrick's Shining either. I felt he mangled the message and Jack was underdeveloped as a character. There are some scenes that are great (like the twins for example) but the Overlook was too sterile, Danny too small a part of the plot and Jack's descent into madness too quick. I share Stephen King's sentiments. If Kubrick wanted to adapt the book, he should have stuck closer to its themes instead of focusing on an artist going mad.

[Angra]

I didn't like Kubrick's Shining either. I felt he mangled the message and Jack was underdeveloped as a character. There are some scenes that are great (like the twins for example) but the Overlook was too sterile, Danny too small a part of the plot and Jack's descent into madness too quick. I share Stephen King's sentiments. If Kubrick wanted to adapt the book, he should have stuck closer to its themes instead of focusing on an artist going mad.


I'm gonna have you banned for saying that..



;)

[alkytrio666]

I didn't like Kubrick's Shining either. I felt he mangled the message and Jack was underdeveloped as a character. There are some scenes that are great (like the twins for example) but the Overlook was too sterile, Danny too small a part of the plot and Jack's descent into madness too quick. I share Stephen King's sentiments. If Kubrick wanted to adapt the book, he should have stuck closer to its themes instead of focusing on an artist going mad.
Very true. King's book was much more of an insanity rush, and it got places with much more triumph and much less flash.

[The Vault of Horror]

Kubrick made The Shining as a Kubrick movie. Most of his movies deal with the methodical dehumanization of their characters, as well as the steady collapse of a neat and supposedly perfect setup. Those were the themes he was interested in exploring, in his own style. I personally consider Kubrick to be a much more impressive artist than King, so I'm fine with him adapting it as he saw fit. For me, Kubrick's Shining is one of the most disturbing movies ever made.

[Disease]

I have wated so much to watch this movie and now when i did,I DONT FIND IT SCARY,why


Maybe because you have no sense of escapism....

[Angelakillsluts]

Kubrick made The Shining as a Kubrick movie. Most of his movies deal with the methodical dehumanization of their characters, as well as the steady collapse of a neat and supposedly perfect setup. Those were the themes he was interested in exploring, in his own style. I personally consider Kubrick to be a much more impressive artist than King, so I'm fine with him adapting it as he saw fit. For me, Kubrick's Shining is one of the most disturbing movies ever made.

I agree with you on this.

[colubrid660]

It's certainly a creepy movie. Watch it during the winter when no one is home sometime, and pay attention to the atmosphere and the environment.

Nowadays, people make the mistake of thinking a movie has to be like 'Saw" or "Hostel" to be scary, that the torturing and gore has to start in the first 30 minutes or it's "boring". Ah such is life.....

[Nickdoran412]

OMBAYJAYJAY, so, how do you think about how Jack Torrence in The Shining went from sane to INsane?

[Fearonsarms]

He was already insane in the movie before he got to The Overlook hence the lengthy writings on the typewriter that he must have started as soon as he got there-watch the new edition of the movie if it comes out on DVD with the restored deleted scenes

[jaimin26783]

That's the beauty of Jack Nicholson. He developed insane character not only in The Shining. He does this kind of role in many movies.

[MichaelMyers]

Clearly the spirits of the house made him one of "them."

[Bob Gray]

He was already insane in the movie before he got to The Overlook hence the lengthy writings on the typewriter that he must have started as soon as he got there-watch the new edition of the movie if it comes out on DVD with the restored deleted scenes

This is the one of the major issues that I have with the film. In King's book, the Overlook was the antagonist, it had a life of its own and it is what made Jack go crazy, it tried to possess Danny but couldn't so it went for Jack. In Kubrick's version, it seems as if Jack was crazy before he got to the Overlook and the seclusion is what put him over the top. The film takes away what the Overlook was, evil and crazy, it was a character all its own. Now don't get me wrong, I own a copy of the film, its great in its own right but I just have some big issues with it, I wish Kubrick would have realized the genius of making the Overlook the main antagonist.

[Fearonsarms]

This is the one of the major issues that I have with the film. In King's book, the Overlook was the antagonist, it had a life of its own and it is what made Jack go crazy, it tried to possess Danny but couldn't so it went for Jack. In Kubrick's version, it seems as if Jack was crazy before he got to the Overlook and the seclusion is what put him over the top. The film takes away what the Overlook was, evil and crazy, it was a character all its own. Now don't get me wrong, I own a copy of the film, its great in its own right but I just have some big issues with it, I wish Kubrick would have realized the genius of making the Overlook the main antagonist.

I completely understand your points and why you would be unhappy with the movie. But I love BOTH the movie and the book but for different reasons. I love Kubrick's vision of the film focusing on Jack's Insanity though still included the spirits of the Overlook and some breathtaking cinematography, performance from Jack Nicholson plus a sense of unease and dread that permeated through the entire film. I love how the book focuses instead on the Overlook, its history, the spirits and some of King's most creative writing. I just see them both as seperate entities.

[The_Knife]

Kubrick's Shining is just that: Kubrick's Shining. It's a very separate entity to the King novel. As a piece of celluloid, the imagery, for me, is totally memorable. The whole thing has a hypnotic, dreamlike (or nightmarish) quality. I also remember that 2-part tv adaptation of the novel, penned for the screen by King himself. Even though that was significantly more faithful to the source material, I much prefer the Kubrick Shining as something that exists for the screen in the same way that, if you were to convert Kubrick's Shining directly into a novel, it'd be an utter mess.

[Fearonsarms]

Kubrick's Shining is just that: Kubrick's Shining. It's a very separate entity to the King novel. As a piece of celluloid, the imagery, for me, is totally memorable. The whole thing has a hypnotic, dreamlike (or nightmarish) quality. I also remember that 2-part tv adaptation of the novel, penned for the screen by King himself. Even though that was significantly more faithful to the source material, I much prefer the Kubrick Shining as something that exists for the screen in the same way that, if you were to convert Kubrick's Shining directly into a novel, it'd be an utter mess.

Couldn't have put it better myself 100% agreed :)

[Bob Gray]

Kubrick's Shining is just that: Kubrick's Shining. It's a very separate entity to the King novel. As a piece of celluloid, the imagery, for me, is totally memorable. The whole thing has a hypnotic, dreamlike (or nightmarish) quality. I also remember that 2-part tv adaptation of the novel, penned for the screen by King himself. Even though that was significantly more faithful to the source material, I much prefer the Kubrick Shining as something that exists for the screen in the same way that, if you were to convert Kubrick's Shining directly into a novel, it'd be an utter mess.

I agree, that made-for-tv-movie wasn't nearly as good as Kubrick's version. It wasn't so much the story though, it was the terrible acting.

[Angra]

I agree, that made-for-tv-movie wasn't nearly as good as Kubrick's version. It wasn't so much the story though, it was the terrible acting.

Terrible acting? By whom?

Thought the actors did really well in the remake. Not their fault Stephen King doesn't know how to make movies.

[Bob Gray]

Terrible acting? By whom?

Thought the actors did really well in the remake. Not their fault Stephen King doesn't know how to make movies.

Courtland Meade, Rebecca De Mornay, Melvin Van Peebles, in fact let's just say the whole cast with the exception of Steven Weber, he was the only one that was tolerable. I'm sure Mr. King wrote a fine screenplay that was screwed up by bad acting.

[Angra]

I'm sure Mr. King wrote a fine screenplay that was screwed up by bad acting.


I believe it's the other way around.

The mini series was "ruined" (honestly didn't think it was a bad watch. Just a bad horror movie) by people who only knew how to make scary scenes in book form. What we got instead was a lot of dialogue spread throughout 4+ hours, which is typical King.

[Bob Gray]

I believe it's the other way around.

The mini series was "ruined" (honestly didn't think it was a bad watch. Just a bad horror movie) by people who only knew how to make scary scenes in book form. What we got instead was a lot of dialogue spread throughout 4+ hours, which is typical King.

Nope, not the other way around, bad acting is all there is to it.

[NormanBates]

Jack Torrence was possessed by the Overlook. Kubrick added a strange psychological element to the characters. There was a hierarchy of crazy in the family. He made Jack Torrence insane. He also made the boy crazy. Danny talked to his pinky. The mom was one of those creepy pessimistic parents; "oh isn't it cute our son talking to imaginary friends." Jack Nicholson plays a brilliant crazy. He was great in One flew over the cuckoo's nest, too. I can't imagine The Shining without Jack Nicholson. He's an amazing actor.

[ＧＬＩＴＣＨ エラー]

***WORK IN PROGRESS***

Any true fan of horror that's worth their weight has undoubtedly seen Stanley Kubrick's stunning masterpiece The Shining, or have at least read the original novel by Stephen King. But how many of these fans have really taken a good, hard look at this film? It is apparent that the director, Kubrick, has packed, and I mean packed the entire movie with codes, secrets, symbolism, allegory and allusions, and many other things related to film psychology such as spatial awareness and set design, use of certain colors, etc. This thread's main purpose is to dive into the visual masterpiece that is Stanley Kubrick's The Shining, and the many many theories surrounding it.

For starters, let us understand the amount of analysis this film has undergone by listing the major theories and themes surrounding it and embedded within it.


1. Stanley's involvement in The Apollo Moon Landing Hoax
This is arguably the largest, most known, and most supported theory in regards to the film. At first skeptical, after some serious investigation the message becomes blatantly obvious at a plethora of points throughout the course of the movie. It is said that Kubrick, being "the most meticulous of film directors known to man", was not only a part of the Apollo 11 moon landing hoax, but he directed the whole thing to success under his genius.

2. The Holocaust
Another major and well-known theory, Kubrick appears to reference the Holocaust and Hitler's Nazi regimen several times in this film. We'll get to that later.

3. The genocide of Native Americans
A similar and less popular yet still supported theory is Kubrick addressing the genocide of the Native American peoples in America's early history. Both this theory and the Holocaust theory both tie in exceptionally well with the next.

4. History repeating itself
A common theme for many works of art and literature, it seems the past cannot escape itself. History is fated to repeat itself. This theory may be the least well supported, but retains solid evidence from the movie to back it up, so we will explore this as well.
5. Sexual abuse

6. Numbers Theories
The final of the Sinister Six, as I like to call them, is the plethora of not-so-innocuous numbers that appear all throughout the film, many that are appear to be very significant not only to the film and its plot as a whole, but to the other main theories as well. This theory has perhaps the second largest amount of evidence, as numbers are truly ubiquitous in this film, but is also perhaps the most far-fetched of the group, as numbers can also be seen as just numbers. Perhaps the viewers are reading too far into things?

[Gentle shade]

The Shining is about decent into madness. It ends with a certain someone frozen like a popsicle. Maybe it's about a journey into hell or purgatory. As soon as I get some time I'm write a "thought-provoking" review someday.

This masterpiece is like an old friend. Scary horror movies are more like your crazy uncle! Both are entertaining to spend an evening with though.

[pickin_grinnin]

I love Kubrick's version. I really can't stand King's writing style in general, so I was glad that they went a different direction with it. I didn't care for the miniseries, probably because the dialogue sounded too much like King's writing style.

[Damn Heathen]

I can't say the plot of The Shining sequel has me enthralled.

[LittleItalian91]

I have wated so much to watch this movie and now when i did,I DONT FIND IT SCARY,why
This Film isn't suitable to scare. It is beautiful because it is particular and the characters are incredible. Jack Nicholson is one of the best actor in the world and he is suitable for this character. It is a colossal of the horror movies.

[tfantasy]

It's certainly a creepy movie. Watch it during the winter when no one is home sometime, and pay attention to the atmosphere and the environment.

Nowadays, people make the mistake of thinking a movie has to be like 'Saw" or "Hostel" to be scary, that the torturing and gore has to start in the first 30 minutes or it's "boring". Ah such is life.....

I could not agree with you more! I don't feel that killing and gore is what makes a movie scary, I think it's the whole "creepy" effect that makes a movie actually make your skin crawl or give you the chills.

Examples:
The Exorcist
The Shining
The Ring
The Grudge
etc, etc, etc.

I think that when you're able to become a part of the movie and you can connect with the character(s), then you will most likely feel the scare factor that the movie is meant to produce.

[Damn Heathen]

I think that when you're able to become a part of the movie and you can connect with the character(s), then you will most likely feel the scare factor that the movie is meant to produce.
I hear this sentiment often, and I'm inclined to believe it applies to the majority, as the majority are extroverts. It doesn't apply to me, though. I even think the performances by the two leads did the film a tonal disservice (that's not to say I dislike them), so what made the movie effectively scary for me were such things as the director's use of space and his temporal manipulation (slo-mo, slow acting, lingering shots, etc.).