I
remember the first time I saw The Shining. It was October of 2002 and I was in the eighth grade. Halloween was near and my friends and I
were at the local Hollywood Video browsing through the horror section, looking
for something scary. We decided on
The Shining. None of us had seen
it before and the sight of Jack Nicholson’s menacing grin on the cover of the
display case had already gotten me nervous. That night, we watched the DVD in a dark, empty house,
illuminated only by the glow of the television set. I didn’t blink once.
I’m not entirely sure how my friends felt about the movie. Not much was said about it when it was
over. But I do know how I
felt. I remember it vividly. Feelings of utter shock and terror put
aside, I felt enlightened.
Being
fourteen years old, I had a very primitive understanding on the concept of
art. I learned from social studies
class that art could be found in paintings, classical music, and
literature. But after that first
viewing of The Shining, I had discovered, first hand, that art exists in
film. I was born in the 80’s, so
inevitably movies have always been a big part of my life. Needless to say, this realization was a
big deal for me. From that point
on, I raised my standards for cinema significantly. In essence, The Shining made me into the pretentious movie
snob that I am today and for that, I hold it in the upmost regard.
Adapted
from Stephen King’s novel of the same name, The Shining tells the story of Jack
Torrance (played by Jack Nicholson), a writer who struggles with anger
management issues. Jack has been
given a job as caretaker for the Overlook Hotel, an isolated lodge in the
mountains that is inaccessible during the winter. Jack, his wife, and his son (Wendy and Danny, respectively)
are to occupy the empty hotel for the duration of the winter. However, unbeknownst to Jack, the
Overlook has a dark past.
This becomes evident to Danny almost immediately, thanks to the
telepathic gifts he possesses.
Director
Stanley Kubrick is completely unforgiving in his effort to terrorize his
audience with this movie. In The
Shining he creates a completely dehumanizing experience that grabs a hold of
you immediately and refuses to let go, even after the credits roll. Love interests and comic relief are
nowhere to be found here. As a
cinematographer, Kubrick is unmatched in his ability to create visual tension. Long, low-angle steadicam shots give the
audience the uneasy impression that the characters are not alone as we follow
them through the empty, maze-like halls of the hotel. Recurring patterns in the wallpaper and carpet further lend
us to the feeling that we’re falling down the rabbit hole. Kubrick places his subjects in the dead
center of the frame giving us perfectly symmetrical images, illuminated with
practical lighting, leaving noting to the imagination. Not once does Kubrick suggest that
something could be lurking in the shadows. Nor does he resort to cheap, loud jump-scares. All of his disturbing imagery is
right in front of you, starring you in the face, forcing you to accept what is
happening. Doubt and disbelief are
luxuries that Kubrick leaves no room for.
Instead he offers only fear and shock in broad daylight.
From
a visual standpoint, The Shining is a complete success. But if we continue to dig deeper into
this film, we find more terror hidden below the surface narrative. From the beginning of Stephen King’s
novel, it is made very clear that The Shining is a supernatural ghost story
taking place in a haunted hotel.
Yet for the film adaptation, Kubrick decides to tiptoe around this
approach and aims for something much darker. Jack, the film’s protagonist, is a recovering alcoholic
whose past is just as dark as that of the Overlook. His inner demons have possessed him longer than any
lingering spirits in the hotel have.
While on the surface, Kubrick’s film appears to retain many supernatural
elements, it can be argued that the terrors haunting the Torrance family are
all psychologically based and result from their extreme isolation and
inabilities to deal with their own dark family secrets. The further Jack falls into madness, the
harder I find it to believe that any external forces are influencing him. It is worth noting that every time a
ghost appears to Jack, he is in the presence of a mirror. I believe that Kubrick found the
premise of spirits tormenting an innocent family in a haunted hotel to be
juvenile. I also believe that he
found a way to brilliantly sidestep this idea so subtly that he could manage to
frighten people in a new way that would impact them even if they didn’t pick up
on any subliminal cues.
Well,
there you have it. I could write
volumes on this movie, but I’ll restrain myself and leave you with this very
bold statement: The Shining is the greatest horror movie ever made. Disagree with me. I don’t care. You’re not going to change my mind. That’s my position and I stand beside
it unashamed. If you haven’t seen
The Shining I recommend you do so as soon as humanly possible. I’m signing off now. Happy Halloween, folks.
-Jonah
Poster by Micah Moseby.
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