The Shining

As many of my readers may know, my movie-watching resume is full of blemishes that I am trying [slowly] to rectify. 

The Shining and Stanley Kubrick's films in general have always been a pretty big black mark as most of them are regarded as classics. My previous foray into his world was a pleasant, but confusing one.

However, with Halloween approaching and my full self-realization that I've slacked on Retro Reviews this year (and the fact that The Shining is readily available on Netflix), I decided to take the plunge into the Colorado-set horror film. 

The Shining is often regarded as a cinematic classic and one of the scariest films of all time, even topping a recent Best 100 Horror films list I read recently. A funny aspect about this is that Stephen King, who wrote the novel the film is based on, hates this film possibly more than any other adaptations of his works. That's shocking because there have been some pretty bad adaptations of his *cough The Dark Tower cough cough*, but it stems from the significant departure that the film takes from the core story, which apparently was a personal one for King.

You're welcome for your random neat fact of the day! Though I'm sure many cinephiles already knew that.

Unashamedly, The Shining gets some bonus points for being set in the state of Colorado and it's cool to finally see what all the fuss was about with regards to the Stanley Hotel; the actual hotel in Estes Park, CO featured as the interior to many of the film's settings. I've never been in it before, but seen it many times from the outside. It definitely has an eerie look to it, perched somewhat on a hill, but although the exterior of the hotel was different in the film, it's a fun bit of Colorado history nonetheless (not to mention a handful of other now-aged tidbits throughout). 

Miraculously, Kubrick's films tend to age really well, at least in my limited exposure to them. That's a testament to what makes a classic film and it's easy to see why The Shining is regarded so highly not only in the horror genre, but in filmmaking in general as it approaches its 40 year anniversary. A big reason for this is Kubrick's style and cinematography which is nearly perfect here. In fact, it's so good that it feels a bit ahead of its time considering that it was made in 1980. Images will sear into your mind, not necessarily because they're scary, but because they're so well done. A specific one for me was the tracking camera shots behind the little boy as he rode his small bike throughout the hotel in order to entertain himself. It's a small feature, but felt like it added great motion and suspense to the shot. There are countless examples of fantastic cinematography throughout the entirety of the film and it's easy to see why Netflix had it in its "Visually Striking" category. 

Actual scene or outtake? You never know with Nicholson

Also iconic - and ahead of its time - is the relentless original score of The Shining. It reminded me a lot of Dunkirk in all honesty because it felt like a clock, moving ever forward with a pulsing drive. It's also always present which builds a lot of the tone and environment the film displays. Composed of mostly string instruments and drums, it feels grand too, effectively adding a LOT to the film in more ways than one. Whether or not it's one I'd listen to in my free time doesn't matter because it's getting the job done by making its movie better, which as we all know, the best original scores end up doing. 

A gorgeous, but unsettling scene

The story of The Shining is one that stays on your mind, perhaps why so many people remain haunted by it even today. Its been several days since I've watched it (at this point of writing the review) and it continues to build and build in my mind. Jack Torrance (Nicholson) and his family agree to watch the Overwatch Hotel during its winter months in which its closed to tourists. During the winter the hotel is deserted because it becomes snowed in and, thinking about some of my more eerie moments in the mountains, that is creepy enough. There really isn't much that's more daunting than the "all alone" feeling of being in the middle of the mountains; or ocean for that matter. Jack slowly, and without warning, devolves into madness throughout the film. He becomes increasingly unstable through a series of funny or creepy or deeply unsettling moments. The film starts to go down this path without much warning which can feel odd at times, but in hindsight, it adds to the element of insanity that is pervasive throughout. Nicholson turns in a phenomenal performance - honestly one of the best I've ever seen - as someone who has wild mood swings from scene to the next. He seems delightfully unhinged by the end but it takes a meticulous path to get there, especially from the opening scenes where he seems like a somewhat quiet man. 

Unfortunately, his costars don't fare as well. Danny Lloyd plays the child actor and he's actually decent but all the film's close-ups don't do him any favors. These quick pans of his reactions are so funny nowadays that it nearly ruins the tone of whatever scene its in where I imagined that back in the day they worked a little better. So suffice it to say he's more a victim of specific scenes not aging well. Shelley Duvall is downright terrible in the first half of the film with stiff acting where I felt like she was reading off a prompter off-screen half the time. It's even more obvious side-by-side with an effortless Nicholson. Luckily, she improves significantly when the horror kicks in and is talented running around and screaming and acting like her life is on the line. But her first half is easily the worst part of a fantastic film.

My only other very small issue with the film is the amount of ambiguity that exists in some very random scenes. I did some research post-viewing and I'm comfortable with about 90% of what was left open or mysterious. In fact, I can totally see how/why huge cinephiles pour over this film for additional hints and details. But there are some scenes, one in particular, that made me go, "Wait, WTF was that?" to where my post-film research did nothing to assuage that. I'm certainly fine with a bit of ambiguity, particularly in and ending if it's done well (Inception being a phenomenal example), but ambiguity for ambiguity's sake is always weird to me and I feel like there are a handful of elements of that in The Shining. To be fair, there's A LOT of that in many of Stephen King's books, often to the detriment of the book in my opinion, but that's a conversation for another time. 

Sunday scaries are real!

It was a distinct pleasure of mine to watch The Shining and write this Retro Review. Even having recently watched it, it's seared into my mind effortlessly enough that I can see how it ages into a classic film. Watching someone as talented as Kubrick is impressive for many reasons, one of the largest being that the film ages so gracefully. From both a technical and a storytelling standpoint, it's a masterclass in being memorable and distinctly unique and while I didn't find it to be the "scariest" film I've ever seen, it's definitely one of the best horror films ever.

CONS

• Shelley Duvall is awful until the true scares kick in. Legitimately feels like she's reading off cue cards
• A very small handful of minutes where the ambiguity feels unnecessary and still, after all these years, unexplained
• Basically the only aspect that doesn't age well is the constant close ups of Danny's reactions. I found them unintentionally hilarious

PROS

• Kubrick's direction is incredible. His version of Shining, while maybe not what Stephen King wanted, is a total trip
• Bonus points for Colorado setting!!
• The descent into madness is a wild ride and almost happens without you noticing. Starts in a scary setting and gets progressively more and more creepy
• Some of the best cinematography ever captured
• Scenes that sear into your mind because they're so well organized/edited/shot. Or just because they're creepy and disturbing
• An original score that adds a lot of tension to the film. A perfect pairing
• A sense of ambiguity and mystery that exists even once you finish the film. Not a film that you see and forget, that's for sure
• Nicholson turns in a performance that [partially] came to define his career. One of the best I've seen

Retro Rath's Review Score | 9.5/10