The Shining
(1980)
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Opening with spectacular aerial shots of a beautiful, mountainous landscape, Stanley Kubrick's horror classic THE SHINING, based on Stephen King's best-selling novel, sucks the viewer into his frightening tale with quiet, relaxing visuals - but the ominous soundtrack warns that all is not right at the gorgeous Overlook Hotel. Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson at his eyebrow-raising best), a Vermont schoolteacher, accepts a job as the winter caretaker of the glorious early-20th-century resort that operates only in warm weather because the snowy roads deny access in the colder months. Jack brings his wife, Wendy (Shelley Duvall), with him, as well as his young son, Danny (Danny Lloyd)--who brings with him a little boy named Tony who lives in his mouth. As the Torrances settle in for the long, lonely months ahead, strange, unexplainable things start occurring in the hotel--and in every scene Jack seems to be growing a little more evil and dangerous... |
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Stanley Kubrick's superb adaptation of Stephen King's horror novel stars Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall and young Danny Lloyd as the family who are invited to look after a remote mountain hotel when it's closed for the winter. It's not long before Nicholson becomes unhinged as a series of apparitions, hallucinations and time-warps begin to affect his sanity. Trust Kubrick to be different: this horror film chills rather than shocks, works by stealth and provides nothing but eerie discomfort. Filmed on an amazing set built at Elstree (the opening aerial scenes were shot by Kubrick's daughter at the Timberline Lodge in Oregon) and using a gliding Steadicam throughout, the technique is as overpowering as Nicholson's performance, which is both hammy and deeply disturbing.
Halliwell's Film Guide
Uninteresting ghost story sparked by meticulous detail and sets but finally vitiated by overlength and an absurdly over-the-top star performance.