Spoiler: Review shining

Rating: 10/10 (9 December 2019)

Film Review
Stanley Kubrick, the director of The Shining, truly leaves his audience in shock and awe with his films. Going into this film, as the viewer and never had seen any of Kubrick's work before, I really had no idea what to expect. The film falls into the category of horror films, which brings us to the opening scene of the movie in which I personally think is one of the best shots of the film. I absolutely loved the shots from above of the petite yellow car that is driving on the curvy mountain road, already leaving the viewers in suspense while the daunting music begins to reel you in for the excitement of the movie's beginning. This scene and camera shot really set the whole film for me as a viewer. Another film shot that I loved is the iconic tricycle as it wheels around each corner captivating the audience about what they will find around the corner. The film shots are really what made the setting a literary element I loved in this film. For a horror film, setting is everything. The snowy, winter weather surrounding the Overlook hotel sets the film and creates an eerie vibe. As they get further and further away from reality and travel into the midst of the eerie mountain resort this creates a setting that drew me in and made me want to see more. The setting plays a perfect role into Jack losing his mind and all sanity. Although this movie had many great things, however there were some details that I was annoyed by. Something that bothered me was how the movie began and had a very slow build up to arrive at the true climax. Having heard from my parents about the film they said that when it came out they were astonished and the movie set the bar high for the horror film industry. From my point of view, a millenial, despite the detailed dialogue, the film did not satisfy the idea of what horror should be today. The movie seemed to be more suspenseful film than a horror film. The movie, being filmed in the 70's, is evidence that the idea of a horror movie has evolved over time and became less elementary. This movie was quite overplayed and theatrical for my liking. For example, when the wife of the previous caretaker is laughing as an old corpse, arising from the bathtub, it seemed extremely theatrical and childish. Also, another example is when the blood rushes through the hallway sweeping away all the chairs and furniture, it seemed to be something that wasn't very scary for a horror film, instead making the movie even more theatrical. The one thing that I disliked the most was how the film concluded with the mother and child getting away in the snowplow, and the mental image of the father being the killer all along. The ending really did not make sense or give us as viewers any clarification of why it ended the way it did. The film The Shining came off as more suspense than horror for me as a viewer.