What was going through Kubrick's mind? (The Shining (DVD))

Member Name: jennystevenson

Product:	The Shining (DVD)
Date:	04/02/01 (20 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Well cast, tense atmosphere, unlike any other horror movie.

Disadvantages: Can be a little confusing.

Jack Nicholson has got the perfect face to play an evil character and so is well cast in one of the most successful horror films of all time. In true Kubrick fashion, this film is atmospheric and far from normal.

The author of the book this film was taken from (Stephen King) has had many of his books made into movies, some good, most of them bad. This has to be the best made adaption of all of them, mostly down to the directing and good casting.

The basic plot of the film is two parents and their child, Danny, move in to a hotel over the winter season when it shuts down. They go there to keep the place ticking over and as you've probably guessed, things do not work out as planned. The isolation of these three characters kept in a grand hotel starts to get interesting. I don't want to give anything away if you haven't seen it, but it involves riding a tricycle down long corridors with hideous carpets, two scary twin sisters, a freaky woman in a bath, a walk in freezer and a telepathic child.......curious yet?

I don't so much find this scary in the kind of makes you jump out of your seat way, it's more the constant tension throughout the film. There is such a creepy atmosphere and the concentration on just three main characters just builds tension and anticipation of not knowing what's going to happen next.

My one criticism is about the ending. The first time I watched this, it left me confused and I didn't fully understand it as it wasn't really explained. Maybe it's not meant to be explained, who knows?

A true classic and in a class of its own, this film is a must for horror fans, especially if you want to see something different from your average chiller.

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