Good movie but grossly overrated

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Fanciful, disturbing, and wildly original, it announces the arrival of a fresh, bold voice in American cinema.

The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

The Shining is a masterful piece of cinema. And when you find out it was directed by Stanley Kubrick, you cannot be surprised. I do think this is a good way to get into Kubrick films and this should be the first one you watch. It really gives you a sense of his style. The first thing I'll write about is the look of the film. This film looks marvellous. The hotel's interior is iconic and it's exterior is not like the Bates' Motel from Psycho but does look like a genuine hotel, all part of the illusion. The cinematography is excellent and the directing is perfect. The acting is superb. Jack Nicholson gives a performance that conveys his gradual fall into insanity. Shelley Duvall presents a great image of a terrified wife, at the expense of Kubrick's notorious treatment of her. Scatman Crothers and Danny Lloyd, the "Shiners" of this film are also completely believable. The overall story is brilliant. And what I love about it is that every time I watch it, it gets better. It's not one of the tricky Kubrick films which aren't great first time around but are masterpieces ie 2001: A Space Odyssey. The first time you watch it you may feel some parts were okay. But second time around, knowing what happens makes it all the better. There's so many details and one of the best parts of the film is the questions it asks you and how you think of it after. It provokes a lot of thought and is famous for the theories surrounding it. Overall I'd say that this is debatably, Kubrick's best and although it may not scare like it did in 1980, it does have the occasional haunting moment (and definitely scares when thinking about it after), it entertains thoroughly. An easy decision for one of the few movies I consider flawless: 10/10.

"The Shining" is Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece horror adaption of Stephen King's novel by the same name. The story follows Jack Torrence played by Jack Nicholson with his wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and his gifted son Danny (Danny Lloyd). Jack Torrence has accepted the job to be the caretaker of the Overlook is alone and isolated with his family up in the snowy mountains of Colorado. As the harsh winter settles, Jack slowly grows insane and dangerous and his family becomes terrified of his growing instability and hostility. "The Shining" is notorious for departing far from King's original novel in characterization, tone, and narrative. While there is a departure from the novel, the essential story remains the same while both creative's approach vastly differs. Many have called "The Shining" has one of the greatest horror films ever made. For me, even when I watch it now it remains a chilling and terrifying film to this day. One of the great strengths the film has is a constant terror of the real/unreal visions and hallucinations the characters experience as the Overlook Hotel comes to life. The sequence of events lined out in the script combined with Kubrick's meticulous technical abilities make for not just a frightening story but a surreal experience that feels more like an imaginative nightmare. Kubrick's character of Jack Torrence feels less of a genuine character than King's character and more of an incarnation of evil as presented by the Overlook Hotel. Throughout the picture, the two separate entities seems to mesh and become on to the point where I believed everything that was being presented and yet, believed nothing. The film's attempt to confuse the audience and suggest multiple interpretations of the truth is perhaps the film's biggest departure from its source material. It also may be its strongest asset. "The Shining" is a subjective experience and one of the most essential horror films ever made. It's worth the status it has achieved by now by its meticulous direction, precise shooting and cutting, and subjective interpretive content and delivery. Everyone should get around to seeing this film at least once but should really be seen several times. Much like other Kubrick films, it's an experience that changes over time and with each viewing. What might turn off viewers is perhaps the ruthlessly unreliable narrative that it transforms into. Right up to the very end shot of the photograph of Jack Torrence, it could prove too distant from definitive interpretation that some passive viewers may not be interested in the re-watch.

The Shining is one of those films that never ages.You NEED to watch this.

The Shining (1980) ****Stanley Kubrick's horror masterpiece has writer Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) taking his wife (Shelley Duvall) and young son (Danny Lloyd) to a mountaintop hotel where they are going to take care of it for the winter. Before long Jack begins seeing things that may or may not be real.To me THE SHINING is a film that I really didn't care too much for the first time I saw it. In fact, it took several viewings before I'd even call the film good. It took several more for me to love the film and now I'm at the point where I call it one of the greatest movies ever made. I could honestly write thousands of paragraphs about the greatness of this film but I think theories on its meaning and various ideas are already all over the place.For my money what's so amazing about this movie is the sheer terror and atmosphere that Kubrick creates. The entire movie has a very claustrophobic feel to it and no matter how many times you watch it you can sink back into it as if it was your first time seeing it. You may know the story, the twists and what happens but no matter how many times you see it you always feel as if you're seeing something for the first time. That's a huge compliment and I think that's the reason Kubrick's films always work the more times you watch them. I think the film manages to be one of the scariest pictures ever made and especially the scenes with Danny riding around on his bike and running into the twin girls. The creepiness of what Jack finds in one of the rooms is just as good. The various ghostly images that are seen throughout the picture are incredibly effective. Even more impressive is that Kubrick has made a horror film that takes place during the day, in the light and doesn't try to use darkness to build up any horror.Nicholson is one of the greatest actors of all time and for years people debated his performance here. Many found it to be over-the-top and I used to be one of them but over time I've come to realize that the performance is just flawless. Does it make sense all of the time? No but neither does the story and the two work perfectly together because you mind can go into overdrive trying to find out why things are happening. Duvall, Lloyd, Joe Turkel, Barry Nelson and Scatman Crothers are all very good as well.THE SHINING isn't the easiest movie to watch and there's no question that you must pay attention to it throughout the long running time. With that said, to me it's one of the greatest films ever made and it's one that continues to get richer and better no matter how many times you see it.