The Shining

Rating:
Summary: REDRUM, REDRUM
Review: This is the only movie that scares the literal wits out of me the same way it did when I was a child. For any fan of Stephen King, this movie is a must-see. Ignore all of the shoddy makes of his books like IT and CHRISTINE, rent this one. If this movie doesn't scare you, I don't know what will.

Rating:
Summary: The Shining
Review: Heeerrrssss johny the most terrifying words that an insane man could say and remains as an trade mark of the movie forever and that is a spoky movie.Its about a writer(jack nicholsen),a mother(shely duvall) and a young boy who go to the hotel the Overlook and stay as winter caretakers for the manager as the months go by they get snow bound there the writer goes nuts and a chillin ending that will leave chivers down your spine.

Rating:
Summary: a gut wrenching non stop piece of kubrick genius
Review: This movie could well be Kubrick's best as it is a movie that manipulates the audience so well that it scares the wits out of the people watching. The camera work is the star as well as the lighting and the eerie music which are all combined into a film that once started never lets up. A film that ranks with "a Clockwork Orange," "Dr. Strangelove," and "the Haunting." END

Rating:
Summary: A great horror movie..
Review: This film slowley but shorley creepes you out, I don't think any one but Jack Nicholson could have played this role that well, and Krubrick has the best feal in the world, and the score is one of the best ever put in a movie. The movie is really scary.
It all starts off kinda slow thenwe see Dany talking to himself, and then there's a few images that are veary frightning, the holtel gives you a veary creepy isalated fealing, like if something were to happen there'de be no way out. Jack slowly starts going crazyer and crazer, and the hole time creepy images are appearing in the hotel, and the last half hour of the movie is trueley scary, a must see.

Rating:
Summary: scary
Review: I loved this movie and thought it was a great horror movie. Just absolutely perfect.

Rating:
Summary: Different Than The Book But Still Good!
Review: I agree with the recent review where the guy who wrote the review said that you are always expected to love one version of The Shining and hate the other, like some fans of this Kubrick version expect everyone to love his version and hate the remake and fans of the remake expect you to love that and hate Kubrick's version and then there is the fans of the Stephen King book who love the book and hate both movies and expect everyone to hate those movies. I very proudly love the book and both movies! The book was excellant and this Stanley Kubrick version was very different from the book and there are a lot of things changed and a lot of reviews griped about that but even though I loved the book I still liked this movie despite the changes and I enjoy this movie in it's own right, come on, Jack Nicholson is truly wonderful in this movie, how can anyone not like this movie or his performance? His acting is way over the top but in a fun way that is very entertaining and that is why I bought this DVD. BTW: I also have the remake on DVD!

Rating:
Summary: Classic post-modern horror,but where is Saul Bass cover art?
Review: This is a classic horror movie full of atmosphere, dread, icy chills, haunting visons, madness, etc but...WHY did WB deem it necessary to change the original acclaime and very cool SAUL BASS cover art (you know, the YELLOW shot with signature logo and spectre face) for the current "Here's Johnny!" close-up of Jack - I think putting the original cover art (the same image/motif which appeared on the 1980 one-sheet) would be a much more classy way to present this movie on DVD. Oh well. At least we have the old trailer - classic stuff. Less is more.

Rating:
Summary: scary
Review: First of all, I'm a huge fan of both the novel and the 2 film adaptations. Everyone out there seems to think that you need to hate at least one of these, but I don't. Certainly, this version doesn't follow the novel closely at all, but this isn't an inherent flaw in the film. It is what it is, and how closely it follows the source material is really neither here nor there.

That aside, I just watched this movie for the first time in a couple of years, and I was surprised by how well it has held up. Actually, I definitely like it better now than I ever did before. Lotsa people, particularly King himself, have criticized this film as being a well-crafted, great looking film with no soul.(A common criticism of Kubrick's films in general, as a matter of fact.) I think they have something of a point, actually- I don't like any of these characters much, and they are really quite flat and underdeveloped. But, the striking visual and atmospheric qualities more than make up for a relative like of human interest.

Lots has been made of the changes of the changes that Kubrick made to the general story line of the novel, particularly how the supernatural elements of the story have been downplayed somewhat, and how Jack Torrance is much more imbalanced and hostile from the outset. I've read a fair bit of analysis/criticism of the film, and come across many laughable interpretations as to why the changes have been made.(Such as the suggestion that the hotel isn't haunted at all, a theory which holds no water whatsoever) Personally, I don't think there really is much of a thematic reason for the changes: Kubrick just needed to condense the story in order for it to fit into a 2 1/2 hour time frame, while adding in a fair number of his own episodes. More significantly, Kubrick's approach to the material is completely opposite. Despite the supernatural nature of the story, King's tale emphasized character, using innumerable internal monologues as the characters considered their various plights. Some people seem to act as if the decrease in supernatural activity meant that the psychological depth of the film is greater than in the novel, but this absolutely isn't true. The film version is externally concerned, as we never get to see much into a character other than Jack,(and we still can't really understand why Jack acts as he does) Wendy is reduced to a mere doormat, who rarely says anything more than bland pleasantries and platitudes, while Danny rarely says or does much of anything at all. I actually think this is necessary for the sorta of mood Kubrick seemed to be trying to achieve. The film is icy, and inhuman- having warm, full human characters would reduce that feeling. The film doesn't really seem concerned with how or why things happen, but simply on how they are shot. This is definitely a valid approach, and the film manages to have genuine amount of discomfort at pretty much all times, even when not a whole lot is actually going on.

As with virtually all of my favorite horror movies, `The Shining' has stunning music and visuals. The music is largely avant-garde classical stuff, from Ligeti and Bartok and others. It's not the sorta thing I'd likely enjoy listening to it by its self, and it used to rather annoy me, but it's quite startlingly effective during the film. I particularly like the song used during the opening scenes. "Dies Irae' I think it is. Visually, this isn't quite like anything else I've ever seen. It was made shortly after the creation of the steadicam, and Kubrick apparently fell in love with this new apparatus, illustrated by the near perpetual use of tracking shots.(If anyone ever moves from one part of the hotel to another, you can rest assured that you will get to see them walking there.) I'm not really sure why the steadicam was used to extensively, but it really works, establishing a visual motif to the film, and giving us a sense of the size and isolation of the Overlook, as well as illustrating the monotony of life their via numerous similar camera angles/movements. That, and I just think that smooth, steadicam shots are, well, cool.

`The Shining' has quite a few powerful images, even if some of them don't really seem to be here of there. The famed blood-flood coming out of the elevator in slow-motion is extremely cool, and actually kinda creepy, I think. The twin girls are quite creepy as well, particularly when Danny sees them in the game room, and they somehow manage to seem to be floating, only semi-corporeal. His final encounter with them is quite stunning as well, particularly the tight tracking shot of him rolling through the surreal, dollhouse corridors of the hotel.(Though there `scary ghost voices' don't quite work) The final chase is quite excellent and nightmarish as well.(The hedge maze is very cool in general, as a matter of fact) The absolute best shot would have to be just after Jack here Danny scream in the kitchen, and rises up from below the frame, nastily grinning. Sadly, the encounter in 237 is totally botched. It's just.... stupid, for the most part. Kinda gross, no doubt, but pretty silly and it hurts the atmosphere of the film as a whole. But, the rest of the film is good enough that it doesn't matter.

The acting is more than competent, though nobody other than Jack Nicholson really does all that much. Nicholson's performance is generally loved or loathed, but I come down somewhere in the middle. He's pretty damn over the top much of the time, but well, he IS supposed to be crazy, ya know, and some of his other scenes are a bit more nuanced than many of the critics would have you believe. He's definitely entertaining, and quite menacing at times, particularly in the very last act, after the main encounter in their apartment.

Well, that's it. Definitely one of my 10 favorite horror films. I'd recommend you read the novel first, partially because I like it a lot, partially because the movie likely won't make a whole helluva lot of sense to someone who hasn't read it.

Rating:
Summary: One of the Greatest Films Ever
Review: The Shining is one of the greatest movies of all time, it's Jack Nicholson's best performance, ever. How on Earth does this movie get only 4 stars? I think some people are getting a little ahead of themselves with the criticism.

Rating:
Summary: A magic movie
Review: Visually and aurally this movie reminds us of the magic that exist "Out There". It's a funhouse ride that leads you along with vistas of gradeur and reminders of life's unexplainables. A unique treat that illustrates life's moments of beautiful strangness, "The Shining" haunts you and grips you deep, delivering as rich an experience as one could want from a movie.