Director Stanley Kubrick
Genre Drama | Horror
Cast Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers
Rating R
Release Date June 13th, 1980
“A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where a sinister presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from both past and future.”
In the 2nd installment of the Throwback Movie Reviews series, we stay in the horror genre and take things back four decades…
Fast approaching it's 40-year anniversary, which seems absolutely insane, The Shining is the sort of film that never leaves you and is usually what film fanatics refer to when discussing horror films that set the benchmark. A New York City native, the late director Stanley Kubrick is a legend in the film industry - he is basically the Bill Belichick of filmmaking. But the interesting thing about Kubrick, who sadly passed away in 1999 at the age of 70, is the fact that he only took on projects that he truly believed in, hence his rather short filmography as a director, which ended at 16 with the film Eyes Wide Shut. Now granted I firmly believe he would have continued directing films if not for his early departure from this world, but what he left us with will live on forever. Kubrick capped off his career with 3 incredible films, the aforementioned The Shining in 1980, Full Metal Jacket in 1987, and lastly the provocative thriller Eyes Wide Shut which released in 1999, the final year of his life.
I mean think about this for a second, someone says to you hey what's the best horror film you can think of? Okay, The Shining, right? Now what is the best and most intense depiction of war you can think of, hmm how about Full Metal Jacket, I mean seriously?! Kubrick directed and wrote the screenplay for both (The Shining is of course based on a Stephen King Novel), and both films have performances that are unmatched and honestly rarely seen in film today. Whether it be Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, or Danny Lloyd in The Shining, or Vincent D'Onofrio's soul crushing performance in Full Metal Jacket, it's just top-notch. I mean D'Onofrio is a prime example, now he primarily plays a ton of goofy supporting roles in movies and television, but if you look at a few of the screenshots from his Pvt. Pyle character in Full Metal Jacket you won't recognize him. Also, let's not forget the late R. Lee Ermey in his role as role as the relentlessly intense Gny. Sgt. Hartman, which certainly rivaled his performance in Saving Silverman (that's a joke obviously, although he was hilarious in that goofy comedy). Kubrick was a man of many talents who was seemingly a perfectionist when it came to his work, and he made everyone else around him better, hence my Bill Belichick reference (you're welcome).
I touched on it a bit earlier during my rant about Stanley Kubrick's amazing accomplishments, but the performances in The Shining are just amazing. Whether intentional or not, the cast somehow looks right through you with soul-crushing eyes. Nicholson is known for his intense and unnerving delivery, and he leaves it all out on the field so to speak in this film, contributing to some of the most iconic scenes in film history. Shelley Duvall was the perfect actress to play the role alongside Nicholson, creating an uneasy dynamic throughout the film. Young Danny Lloyd was great as well, and some would argue that his interactions with Nicholson are what had the most impact. I mean you could just feel the unease he felt around his father, and it increased organically right up to the climax. Any way you look at it, The Shining has great performances from top to bottom.
One thing Kubrick believed in which seems to be forgotten about in the new age of film, is the importance of a quality score. Now I'm not referring to a soundtrack, but the sounds that accompany an intense scene, or maybe even a scene with little to no dialogue that feels intense because of the sounds in the background. To better understand what a film score is, the definition is as follows:
A film score is the music composed specifically for the movie to serve and enhance the story. It is usually instrumental only so as not to compete with dialog. It is also called underscore (a term I, as a composer, find ever so slightly belittling) or even incidental music (that one makes me bristle a bit).
To me the above is a perfect definition for what I view the film score as, which at the end of the day is something composed or mixed for a specific film. Film scores are still utilized today of course, but I just feel like they are underutilized when it comes to modern filmmaking. One of the greats that comes to mind would be the late composer Jóhann Jóhannsson, who most recently contributed to Sicario and the sci-fi thriller Arrival, to name a few. Jóhannsson sadly passed away last year at the age of 48, and his talents will be missed. Back on track, the score for The Shining has been referred to as "Hauntological", which seems to mean unsettling and perfectly placed within each moment of the film. Although Kubrick brought in composers Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind, very little of their work made it into the final cut of the film. Instead it is widely noted that Kubrick returned to his sci-fi classic 2001: A Space Odyssey, borrowing from the score for that film to help create the spine-tingling sounds of The Shining – described by some as the "Sonic landscape at the Overlook Hotel." Either way, the fact remains that from the opening scene of a picturesque winding road, the score sets the tone for the film.
If you have yet to see The Shining, you either live under a rock, or are too much of a wuss to watch a horror film. Regardless of the reason, trust me when I say you're missing out. And if you're like me and wanted to dive back in before seeing the upcoming sequel, Doctor Sleep, which follows an adult Danny Torrence, revisiting this masterpiece is a must. You can also purchase the Blu-ray like I did. Plus the film has so many small easter eggs that you need to pay close attention to the point where you could watch it 10 times and interpret it differently each and every time, theories and hidden meanings that are discussed thoroughly in the documentary Room 237, which is available On-Demand and also through Amazon. So many that you very likely picked up on some while watching the film over and over or perhaps when you thought something just didn't look right. You were likely correct either way, because there is in fact so many things that don't look right that if you didn't notice them, once seeing Room 237 you'll think yourself an oblivious fool. Kubrick had such a twisted and genius mind. There are so many layers of meanings and so many "what a pervert" moments. Room 237 will literally change you, how you view The Shining, and for the better. I won't throw in any spoilers though I really want to, just see it yourself.
Bottom line, with one of the greatest directors to ever live and a stellar cast this film is the epitome of replay-ability and still holds up to any film that has released in the last 40 years, and that is quite an accomplishment. A timeless horror classic in every sense of the word, Stanley Kubrick's The Shining will live on as a work of art that every filmmaker will aspire to, and every true film fanatic will undoubtedly add to their collection. Highly recommended.
