Engagingly horrifying

Rating: 8/10 (27 March 2020)

Watching this as a 20 year old last October had me going in with 40 years worth of hype and discussion racing through my mind. This film is iconic in every sense and I was eager to see if it lived up to the image I'd made of it in my mind.
I'm thankful to say, it lived up to my expectations and even shattered them. The Shining is a horror masterpiece and it's all down to the fantastic directing and performances. Every shot takes its time, creeping through the hallways of the Overlook hotel or following the family in their car from overhead during the opening credits, as if something is watching them from above. This tone is felt throughout the entire film, the hotel feels like a living entity in and of itself. You always feel like there's something watching the characters, or there'll be something waiting for them the next time they go around a corner just from how the camera tracks them. Most of the time, there never is, so when we finally run into a paranormal entity we're left floored as now all of our fears built up throughout the film have finally come true.
I think the best example of this feeling of the hotel being alive is when Wendy Torrance is running from Jack through the hotel. She runs into a few haunting figures, but finally we see her run into the iconic bloody elevators. This just happens; no figures step out of the elevator or are seen calling it. The hotel knew she was there and let loose to terrify her. By semi-confirming the feelings of the hotel being alive, the audience is left with nothing but a sense of dread at the thought of this sinister presence intentionally tormenting this family.
There are few things to dislike about the Shining other than nitpicks that come down to personal taste. It's not the most conventional horror film, but from a standpoint of what the film and the director is trying to convey and set up within its own universe, it's a terrifying horror masterpiece that has earned its spot as one of the greatest horror films ever made.