review

Rating: 10/10 (18 October 1998)

I first saw "The Shining" at a film students' screening at UCLA shortly after it was released. Most of the LA reviewers had panned it, but being a fan of Kubrick, I wanted to judge for myself.
At first, I agreed with the pundits, this thing was over the top and off the mark. As the plot developed, though, I noticed that the audience was laughing at all the "wrong" places.
"What the hell," I thought, "I may as well enjoy this." I joined with the students in looking for the humor. And, finally, it dawned on me: this is a satire of horror films . . . duh!
To all those King fans who complained that he changed too much of the plot - you all missed the point. Stanley was lampooning a genre with style, as only he can.
Not until "Scream" has anyone done it better. Kudos to Kubrick.