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Review #294 of 365
Film: The Shining (2006) [R] 119 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $11.50
Where Viewed: United Artists Continental 6, Denver, CO
Special United Artists Flashback Showing sponsored in Denver by The Fan AM 950
When 1st Seen: 1 November 2006
Time: 9:00 p.m.
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick (Full Metal Jacket)
Screenplay by: Stanley Kubrick (2001: A Space Odyssey) and Diane Johnson based on the novel The Shining by Stephen King (Pet Sematary)
Featured Cast (Where You Might Remember Him/Her From):
Jack Nicholson (The Departed) • Shelley Duvall (Manna from Heaven) • Danny Lloyd (debut) • Scatman Crothers (The Journey of Natty Gann)
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DVD | main theme | Ghost Hunters Series 2 The Shining Hotel |
Today's review is a little different. First, it's a tribute to Regal United Artists Theatres for hosting the Flashback Series of films. No matter how big, big screen televisions become, no matter how closely home theatre systems can replicate a film's soundtrack, there is NO BETTER place to see a movie than at a movie theatre. So, bravo to Regal and to the local Denver sponsor The Fan AM 950 for giving new generations of people the opportunity to see classic films on the big screen once again. I've known about these—they are held every Wednesday, but I've never gone before. It was great for me because I got to see a movie I've not seen in a really long time instead of having to see a repeat of a film I've seen since there were no advanced screenings to see this week, and I've seen just about every other film playing. It was great also because there were prizes including tickets to see the Nuggets play the Bulls and t-shirts and other give-aways. Most importantly, the giant screen theatre was packed with people all there to share their mutual appreciation for one of America's most unique filmmakers, Stanley Kubrick.
"The film does not hold up as well to the test of time as some other classics do, but Nicholson's performance will be with us forever."
The Kubrick film to be screened was his adaptation of Stephen King's The Shining starring Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall as Jack and Wendy Torrance. I remember when the film came out back in 1980—yes, that does make me feel old—there was certain controversy about a number of aspects of the film. Some people thought it was too violent and too bloody. Well, that's one of the first things one notices seeing it now. How tame it is compared to what we now see from Saw III to Texas Chainsaw to the Grudge. There's hardly anything that gruesome or gory. Scatman Crothers's character (Dick Hallorann) takes and ax to the chest, and that's about it for murder and mayhem. There are some flashback scenes of the murder that took place a couple of decades before Jack was hired to be the winter caretaker that were bloody, yet still, by and large, there's more carnage in the five minutes of The Hills Have Eyes. It's doubtful this film would get an R-rating these days. The second thing to notice is how much more sophisticated the videographic technology is today. The Shining looks old and washed out. It reminded me of the look that most of the black and white movies of the 1940s have, only this was in color, or rather like an old black and white movie that had been colorized. We forget how spoiled we are today with the millions of dollars spent on a 40-minute television drama like Battlestar Galactica—which looks, sounds, and feels infinitely better than The Shining. And this forces one to take a step back in history, for if you don't, you'll find yourself laughing most of the way through one of the great psychological horror films of all time. The irony of this is, of course, because it was with The Shining that Kubrick experimented for the first time with the use of the steadicam which allows for the long single take shots.
Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance in the now infamous photo.
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Jack Nicholson's now infamous portrayal of Jack Torrance truly has withstood the test of time. His wicked eyebrows and toothy evil grin still provide a menacing villain as he traverses the delicate line between his sanity and insanity trapped and isolated in the giant Colorado mountain hotel called The Overlook. Little Danny Lloyd who plays Danny and his little friend Tony the talking finger seemed even more incredible too in his role than I ever remembered. "Redrum, redrum, redrum" is all I had recalled of his performance. Cast from thousands, the little kid holds his own opposite Nicholson and creating the dramatic tension between the ghosts that haunt the hotel and the horror fermenting in his father's mind. Lloyd even makes the scenes of Danny big-wheeling it down the halls and around the corners of the hotel into eerie sketches of a child racing to escape an unseen force of danger. His ability to 'shine' as the hotel's chef, Dick Hallorann (Scatman Crothers) informs him lets him know that his father is going to do something terrible and there is something evil still in the hotel. The beauty, though is in not knowing exactly how much of Jack's madness is due to 'cabin fever' and how much is due to that evil within. The weak link of the cast, and the one who just seems grossly outmatched is Shelly Duvall. Her mousey performance of Wendy seems even more atrocious today than it did back in 1980. It's as if she never really quite understands her character. There has to be something shone as to why she would have ever married a guy that looks pretty much all the time like a homicidal psychopath let along reproduce with him. She's never able to offer any sense of chemistry. I remember thinking that it would have probably not been a terrible thing if she had not escaped the hotel. Surely Danny could have figured out how to drive the escape Snowcat himself.
Mr. Kubrick's adaptation of The Shining was met with distaste by Stephen King who is reported to have had many issues with the film. Most people agree that the 1990s miniseries is a more faithful adaptation—and it should have been given that King oversaw every step of it. For Coloradoans, the biggest problem would be, of course, that next to nothing was actually shot in Colorado. It doesn't look like Colorado, and it doesn't feel like Colorado. Mr. King also apparently thought that the casting of Nicholson in what would become one of his signature roles, was a mistake because his association with previous characters going mad. Mr. King has a point, especially since the film begins with Nicholson sporting crazy contorted eyebrows and grins nearly from the beginning.
All in all, though, it was fun to take a trip down memory lane and get to see The Shining again on the big screen. The film does not hold up as well to the test of time as some others, but Nicholson's performance will be with us, and the rest of the world, forever.
Mr. Kubrick's adaptation of The Shining was met with distaste by Stephen King who is reported to have had many issues with the film. Most people agree that the 1990s miniseries is a more faithful adaptation—and it should have been given that King oversaw every step of it. For Coloradoans, the biggest problem would be, of course, that next to nothing was actually shot in Colorado. It doesn't look like Colorado, and it doesn't feel like Colorado. Mr. King also apparently thought that the casting of Nicholson in what would become one of his signature roles, was a mistake because his association with previous characters going mad. Mr. King has a point, especially since the film begins with Nicholson sporting crazy contorted eyebrows and grins nearly from the beginning.
All in all, though, it was fun to take a trip down memory lane and get to see The Shining again on the big screen. The film does not hold up as well to the test of time as some others, but Nicholson's performance will be with us, and the rest of the world, forever.
British Advance Poster for The Shining
Click Still Photo to Purchase
Other Projects Featuring The Shining (2006)
Cast Members
Jack Nicholson
• Shelley Duvall• Danny LloydScatman Crothers
Director
Stanley Kubrick
Screen Play Co-Writer
Diane Johnson
Novelist
Stephen King
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