Simply Remarkable!!!

Rating: 9/10 (5 April 2017)

It's rather difficult to see where to start with 'The Shining', because every single thing about it is a spectacle. From the terrifying 'Hereeee's Johnny', to the beautiful Steadicam cinematography. This film can only be described as an all time great.
Let me start with the story. Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) is a recovering alcoholic writer who gets a job as a caretaker at the Overlook Hotel. He decides to bring his wife Wendy (Shelley Duvall) and son Danny (Danny Lloyd) along for the winter. Danny has special psychic abilities that allows him to see into the future and see ghosts. Danny is plagued by visions of two young girls, an elevator filled with blood and REDRUM. From there, Jack Torrance slowly spirals into madness and it is only a matter of time before he will cause harm to his wife and son.
Jack Nicholson's performance is both fantastic and haunting, it's a performance that was very under-appreciated by reviewers when the film was first released in 1980. Surely a nod for a Golden Globe or Oscar would be deserving for Nicholson's performance. Shelley Duvall's performance is middle-of-the-road, it's not terrible, but yet it's not sensational, however when it comes to the scenes where Wendy is terrified of Jack, she really, really does let it all out. Lastly, Danny LLoyd gives a very good performance for his age. Also, it is incredible to think that Danny Lloyd was only 6-7 at the time of the release of the film, and he had been told he was working on a drama, not a horror film. He found out that he was acting in a horror film when he was 17!!
Finally the last thing to mention is the cinematography. The filming gives 'The Shining' an extra sense of terror as the camera motions are very controlled. How this film did not receive an Oscar win or nomination for Best Cinematography is an absolute crime.
So that is 'The Shining'. I remember when I first watched this film several years ago, I knew instantly from the second it started that it would become one of my all time favourite films, and I was correct. If you are a horror film and have not seen 'The Shining', I highly recommend it.