- Starring
- Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall
- Director
- Stanley Kubrick
- Rating
- R
- Genre
- Horror, Thriller
- Release date
- May 23, 1980
- Where to watch
- Tubi
Overall Score
Rating Overview
Rating Summary
The Shining is a classic psychological horror film directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance. The film is based on the 1977 novel of the same name by Stephen King and follows Jack, a struggling writer and recovering alcoholic, who takes a job as the winter caretaker at the Overlook Hotel in the Rocky Mountains.
The Shining
The film opens with Jack and his family, wife Wendy (played by Shelley Duvall), and son Danny (played by Danny Lloyd) arriving at the hotel, which is closed for the winter. As the days pass, Jack becomes increasingly unstable, driven mad by the hotel’s isolation and the malevolent presence that haunts it. Wendy and Danny, meanwhile, begin to experience terrifying visions and supernatural occurrences.
Kubrick’s direction is masterful, creating a sense of dread and tension that is palpable throughout the film. The cinematography by John Alcott is stunning, capturing the grandeur of the hotel and the vastness of the snowy landscape. The score, by composer Wendy Carlos, adds to the already eerie atmosphere.
Jack Nicholson gives a tour-de-force performance as Jack Torrance, a man slowly losing his mind in the isolation of the Overlook Hotel. He perfectly captures the descent into madness of the character, making the audience feel sympathy and horror at the same time. Shelley Duvall as Wendy gives a strong performance, too, as a woman trying to hold her family together in the face of unimaginable terror.
The Shining is not only a horror film but also a deep exploration of the nature of evil and the fragility of the human mind. The film leaves the audience with many questions and interpretations, which makes it a memorable and thought-provoking experience.
Overall, The Shining is a must-see for fans of psychological horror. It’s a classic film that stands the test of time and continues to be a favorite among critics and audiences alike. The film’s ability to create a sense of dread and its exploration of the nature of evil and the fragility of the human mind makes it a film that is not only a horror but also a deep and thought-provoking one.
James Carrick
James Carrick is a passionate film enthusiast with a degree in theater and philosophy. James approaches dramatic criticism from a philosophic foundation grounded in aesthetics and ethics, offering insight and analysis that reveals layers of cinematic narrative with a touch of irreverence and a dash of snark.
8 comments
EF
March 13, 2023 at 9:33 am
I disagree wholeheartedly that this is not a “woke” film. It constantly mocks the idea of a patriarch: whenever Jack Torrence (and Delbert Grady) try to act in the traditional roles of a father (provider, protector, mentally stable), it’s a farce, and they wind up causing more harm than good.
[email protected]
March 13, 2023 at 10:50 am
I guess that I would disagree that it’s mocking the patriarchy. While it certainly doesn’t paint Jack or Delbert in anything approaching a positive light, I never got the sense that the filmmakers were standing on a soap box and indicting the concept of male leaders and maleness. That being said, that is sort of Kubrick’s schtick. So, there’s probably a case to be made for it.
James
February 3, 2024 at 1:49 am
Are you trolling? What a ridiculous take. The Shining doesn’t mock the idea of a patriarch: Jack Torrence is an individual, not a stand in for “all men,” and as an individual he has weaknesses, chiefly alcoholism and an abusive temper, which the evil spirits in the hotel are able to exploit to their own ends. We never learn exactly what lead to Delbert Grady’s breakdown, but presumably it was something similar. The moral of this story is: Don’t take a job as a winter caretaker at the Overlook Hotel, NOT “patriarchs are bad.”
ActuallyItsWoke
May 30, 2023 at 3:56 pm
Jack is 100% supposed to be a symbol of every way the patriarch fails and becomes an evil figure. Whether or not that is a “woke” take, it’s worth recognizing its in the film. It’s outright stated that he was an abusive alcoholic to his wife and child before they even go to the Overlook. Rewatch the first scene from the perspective of “Jack is already an asshole” and notice how he talks to his kid and wife. It’s also why he looks so crazy the whole time. I don’t think Kubrick in trying to indict men as an entire gender but he’s absolutely drying to dig deep on masculine issues and how they hurt the family.
Did you know that Jack is at one point seen reading a Playgirl magazine with a headline about incest? Have you picked up on implication he’s molested Danny? Robert Ager has done an excellent analysis of this
Chris
June 12, 2023 at 11:00 pm
All films back then were non woke, lol. He’s basically just picking the good ones out.
Chris
June 12, 2023 at 11:03 pm
This really is a great movie. But 100% across the board? Is any movie perfect?
James Carrick
June 13, 2023 at 12:27 am
I suppose that there’s an argument to be made that the pacing can be a little plodding, but I think that it works for this particular film. I’ll admit that I rushed a bit on the oldies selection before I launched the site a few months ago. I could/should probably revisit them.
Ktuff_morning
March 23, 2024 at 9:08 am
Woke.
This movie is Stanley Kubrick’s confession about faking the footage of the moon landing for the US government. He equates the faking of footage with the atrocities of the Holocaust and the slaughter of American Indians. Faking the footage wasn’t that bad for pete’ sake.
In fact, faking the footage was actually a good thing in order to ensure the US wouldn’t be humiliated if the moon landing went wrong, which would have had enormous negative repercussions for perceptions of US power, influence and competence hindering the ultimate mission of promoting and defending democracy worldwide.
Furthermore, perceived success with the Apollo 11 mission would inspire humanity to reach for the stars even when it’s beyond our capability. The people must first believe. That’s what 2001: A Space Odyssey was all about; the power of film to change the perceptions of the world and to inspire humanity even as it was itself a cover for the faking of footage of the moon landing.
Clearly sometime between 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining Kubrick had a change of heart about the virtuousness of faking footage, possibly with the antiestablishment sentiment of the early 70s. The Shining was very much a form of virtue signaling (albeit on a subliminal level) in suggesting that lying to the world is on par with major atrocities in history even while ignoring the enormous benefits of the lie.
TLDR: the woke message is “lying is evil even when the future of humanity depends on it”.