The Shining

Review

The Shining is an amazing horror film directed by Stanley Kubrick. The film is rated R and was released in 1980. It was adapted from the novel by Stephen King. Diane Johnson and Stanley Kubrick also wrote the screenplay. It stars Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall. Jack Nicholson plays Jack Torrance, a writer who decides to be the winter caretaker of an empty hotel with his wife and son. He takes this time to write and it’s never revealed what he has written until the end. Being isolated makes for an interesting turn of events for the family. The son is physic and has visions of the past and future. He keeps saying “redrum” throughout the film and no one knows what he is talking about. When it is finally revealed what he means, it’s shocking. The things that go on at the hotel are very creepy at times. There’s a creepy shriveled woman in a bath tub. Also, the iconic scene with the twin girls is another one of those creepy moments.

It is a film that I watch whenever it’s on and I notice something new every time. One of my favorite scenes is when Jack says, “Here’s Johnny” it turns out it was an improvised line that Jack Nicholson got from the Johnny Carson late night show. In this article there is a video that shows Jack getting hyped up before the scene.

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/film/watch-jack-nicholson-psyching-up-for-the-shining-s-axe-scene-1.2746337

This film is a must see for any horror or mystery fan. I was hesitant to watch for awhile because I don’t really like scary movies. I was definitely missing out because I really like the films that have been adapted from Stephen King’s books. Jack Nicholson was amazing as the Joker and he was great at playing Jack Torrance. Check it out if you haven’t seen it.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081505/