A movie in a class by itself. A great horror film... but so much more.

Rating: 10/10 (15 February 1999)

What a great work this is. How frightening! As a horror film this was extremely successful. But this of course is a much deeper film. This is a film about alcoholism; about child abuse; about domestic violence; and about "the shining". One feels strange about thinking of Jack as the victim in this film.
Jack was not obviously a great writer. All he could come up with was, "All work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy". He continued to type it on hundreds of pages, so that his wife would think that he was making progress with his book.
Jack was subject to "the shining" of the negro caretaker? That most proper, level headed negro, with the picture of the hot mamma in his room. Jack continuously hallucinated. Jack's son also hallucinated talking apparently to himself constantly. He thought he was talking to a little "imaginary" friend. Jack had probably been involved with the child protection state agency before, when he hurt the boy's arm while drinking. Wendy may have called them herself.
Truly a great film. Jack Nicholson's nonsensical movies are often quite meaty for the thinking person.