Greatest Horror Movie of the Century

Rating: 9/10 (9 April 2020)

The Shining is easily one of my all-time favorite horror films, mainly because it doesn't rely on cheap jump-scares or gore/violence; the antagonist never physically hurts the characters on screen, only providing the mere (and very real) threat of violence toward the end. The film also does well by avoiding typical cinematographic tools of the genre: dark lighting, close-up shots, and fast jump cuts, all of which would play on the viewer's fear of the unknown, claustrophobia and anxiety. However, The Shining manages to provide all of these unnerving sensations in scores, despite doing the exact opposite of the typical horror genre, by portraying the Overlook Hotel as brightly as possible, using wide angle shots throughout the film, and by using long, lingering shots of the environment of the Hotel. Director Stanley Kubrick did a marvelous job of putting the viewers at unease by showing the vast expanses of the Hotel in full lighting, assuring the audience that our protagonists are truly alone in the Hotel - until they are not. He also puts sharp, jarring noises (usually reserved for scenes where the killer is lurking in the dark, or when the monster moves past outside the window) throughout the Shining, even when nothing of significance is happening, further playing on the audience's anxiety and keeping them engaged thinking something could happen at any time - although mostly it doesn't, but it still worked in getting my palms perspiring. The Shining is unique in this sense, that it provides some of the most unnerving cinematic experiences in history, and leaves the viewer absolutely terrified and not able to answer why. For these reasons, The Shining gets a 9/10 from me.