The Shining Movie Review

“Here’s Johnny!” - Jack Torrance

The Shining is the classic Stanley Kubrick adaptation of Stephen King’s famous horror novel.  The film came out in 1980, and stars Jack Nicholson as Jack Torrance, a husband and father who is applying for an offseason job as a caretaker for a place that is now cemented as one of the most iconic buildings in film history: the Overlook Hotel.  He is informed by the manager of the Overlook that years ago, a man named Grady took the same job that Torrance is interviewing for now, and that over the duration of his stay at the hotel, he went insane, massacred his entire family, and killed himself immediately after the fact.  Torrance seems fascinated by this story and decides to take the job, bringing his wife Wendy, and young son Danny along with him.  Before long, the inevitable happens to Torrance.  Cabin fever starts to set in, and he slowly grows more and more insane throughout the course of the film.  Meanwhile, we learn more about Jack’s son Danny, a boy with an extraordinary gift.  During the film, we see the things that he is able to do with his supernatural abilities, and this also allows us to learn more about the macabre history of the Overlook.

The Shining is my favorite horror movie of all time, and I thought it would be fun to talk about, especially since the long awaited sequel Doctor Sleep comes out this week.  I first saw this film during my freshman year of high school, and I remember being absolutely awestruck by the depth and craftsmanship of the film, but also amazed by the fact that the film still holds up as well as it does.  This movie doesn’t feel like an old film.  It still stays relevant, it still is able to stand on its own, and above all, it’s still just as creepy now as it was to audiences back when it first came out.  This film passes the test of time with flying colors.  

The first thing I want to talk about in this review is the acting.  This is probably Jack Nicholson’s most iconic role, and I will also say that next to his role as Randle Patrick McMurphy in the 1975 film One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, this is my favorite Nicholson performance.  He goes above and beyond as Jack Torrance.  Not only is the role a demanding one from an emotional standpoint, but also from a physical standpoint.  He totally meets the challenge, and consequently cemented himself as one of the all time great American actors.  

Shelley Duvall is also wonderful as Wendy Torrance, Jack’s sensitive wife.  She is very fragile emotionally, and goes through many horrible events during her stay at the Overlook, but despite her delicate nature, she is also a very strong character.  She is fantastic in this film, and deserves just as much praise as Nicholson.  

Danny Lloyd is unbelievable here as well.  He plays Danny Torrance, Jack and Wendy’s young son.  He gives one of the best child performances ever put to film.  I find it very interesting that during the making of The Shining, Lloyd didn’t know the film was a horror movie.  He was told that the film was a drama about a family who lived in a hotel, and it wasn’t until many years later when he actually saw the film that he realized it was a horror film.

The Shining is full of terrifying and iconic visuals, and great dialogue.  But one thing that will always stand out to me when I watch this film is the music.  The score is beautiful and creepy, and it sort of set the tone for horror movie scores later down the road.  The dissonant, high-pitched strings combined with a low piano create an effect that is really unsettling, while also being oddly calming.  

My all time favorite thing about The Shining is its meticulous attention to detail.  Every single time I watch this film, I learn something new about it.  From clever foreshadowing to hidden meanings, this film is enough to keep you thinking for years and years.    

In my opinion, this is a perfect horror film.  Kubrick gets literally everything right in this movie, and I could talk about it for hours on end.  If you haven’t seen The Shining by this point, what have you been doing for all of these years?  I implore you to give this movie a watch, even if you aren’t into horror movies.  It is truly one of the absolute best, and I would argue that it is the greatest horror film ever made.

Rating: R

Grade: A+