The Shining

100 Movies in 100 Days
Movie 5 Day 5
The Shining

Another day, another Stanley Kubrick classic. I am in desperate need of a romantic comedy or a movie that is not 2 hours and 20 minutes long. I might need to watch The Mindy Project or When Harry Met Sally after The Shining. All Kubrick and no romance makes Amber GO CRAZY!

The Shining is based off of the Stephen King novel of the same name. The film stars Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance, Shelley Duvall as Wendy Torrance, Danny Lloyd as Danny Torrance and Scatman Crothers as Halloran. Jack is a struggling writer who takes a 5 month position, as the winter caretaker, in a remote hotel in the mountains of Colorado called The Overlook Hotel. Jack, along with his son and wife, live in complete seclusion in this incredibly haunted hotel.

HOLY CRAP this movie is terrifying.  Jack Nicholson plays an unhinged psychopath perfectly. I believed Jack was slowly descending into madness. The first time I saw The Shining I remember being way too young, I think I was 12. I remember not being able to sleep and having nightmares. I remember covering my eyes when Jack walks into room 237. The Shining has the power to haunt viewers years after watching it. I suppose that is part of the Kubrick magic.

It is nice to go back to a movie and observe things you may have missed the first time. I was always annoyed at Shelley Duvall's character but now I sympathize with her. Who knows the type of emotional abuse she endured at the hands of Jack before the movie starts. We hear about his bourbon fueled outbursts, it made me wonder how much verbal abuse she endured from him. We see she is a compassionate, loving and understanding mother. She is evening accepting of Danny's "imaginary" friend and asks to talk to him. She doesn't make her child feel different, she accepts who he is. What I find fascinating is her emotional breakdown. I read on IMDB that Kubrick intentionally alienated and belittled Duvall to push her emotional performance. Her performance looks emotionally exhausting, I mean that in the best possible way. How would I react if I'm locked in a haunted hotel with my crazy husband and mentally unstable child? I would probably be a hysterical mess too! Instead, Wendy fights through tears and exhaustion to save her son. She hits her crazy husband with a baseball bat and locks him in the pantry. Simply put, Shelley Duvall was a badass.

The Shining is very long and you feel every minute of it. I'm not sure if it's because we only have 3 characters to relate to and most of them are going crazy. The pacing of the film does start to drag until the last 20 minutes. The climax of the movie has you on the edge of your seat. You hold in a scream as Jack chops away at the bathroom door. You bite your nails as Danny tries to hide in the maze, knowing the Jack is close behind him. The Climax of the movie is what makes up for the slow pacing in the middle. I mean, how often do you see blood pour out of an elevator like a tidal wave?

Once again, Stanley Kubrick knew how to work a camera. Kubrick did a beautiful job portraying loneliness and seclusion by filling the screen with wide shots. The characters take up such a small amount of space in this larger than life hotel. All the wide shots add to the dramatic effect of the close up shots. The close up shots seem uncomfortably intimate, you are in a place or space you shouldn't be. It adds to the terror, you are seeing something you are not supposed to.

Most people don't notice this one but the sound mixing in this movie is breathtaking. Sound mixing is all the little sounds that add to the emotion of a film. I'm not referring to the music, which is eerie and unnerving, I'm referring to the little sounds. The clicking sound of Jack's typewriter seems amplified in contrast to the quiet seclusion of the hotel. The dramatic transition of Danny's big wheel as it goes from carpet to hard wood is almost painful to the ears. I became used to the silence and was jarred at any and all loud sounds. It added to the horror of the film. You become used to the silence. Another reason the ending is so effective, the jarring noise intensifies our emotional connection to the film. 

It was the 80's.....
My biggest issue with the movie is YOU CAN NOT SAY THE N-WORD!! It is not ok, I don't care what year the movie was made. Was Kubrick trying to create dramatic effect or did he not find it as offensive as it is? It is said at least 4 times in a 2 minute conversation. Jack and ghost butler are referring to Halloran as the N-word. It bothered me more than anything else in the movie. I can handle a husband trying to ax-murder his family. I can deal with creepy ghost twins but I can not handle shock-value racism. I didn't like it and it felt unnecessary.

I have so many questions about this movie. Maybe I should read the book, it could explain things better. Can someone please explain the ending to me? Is Jack a reincarnated ghost? Did all this happen because the hotel was built on a Native American burial ground? How come the hotel isn't haunted during the summer? So many unanswered questions!

Does The Shining deserve the title of classic horror film? Yes, it is scary and beautiful. Stanley Kubrick made a film that stays with the audience long after the credits roll. The Shining is also a cult classic. Now I really want to watch Ready Player One. In Ready Player One, Spielberg does an uncanny homage to The Shining by recreating the movie as a video game level. I was on the edge of my seat but my 14 year old nephew didn't understand why I was freaking out. He kept asking, "What's in room 237?" Don't worry about it you sweet summer child, stay innocent.

The Shining is a movie that will never be far from my nightmares. How many times have you been in a hotel hallway and thought you saw the terrifying twins? You know you have thought about it and if you haven't, you will now! You're welcome.