One Of The Greatest Horror Films Ever Made. An Excellent,Scary,Frightening,Terrifying,Unforgettable Horror Masterpiece From Stanley Kubrick.

Rating: 10/10 (24 May 2013)

Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is one of the greatest Horror films ever made,a scary,terrifying,frightening and unforgettable Masterpiece of Horror and cinema in general. Filled with masterful direction,brilliant acting and haunting images,The Shining is one of the greatest films ever made and Kubrick at his best.
Based on Stephen King's novel of the same name,The Shining tells the story of Jack Torrance(Jack Nicholson),a writer and former teacher who is also a recovering alcoholic who has been asked to be the caretaker of The Overlook Hotel in Colorado from the Winter until May the 1st. Bringing along his wife Wendy(Shelley Duvall)and his psychic son Danny(Danny Lloyd),the Torrance family discover that they are not alone in the hotel and are being stalked by ghosts who are making Jack go insane and possessing him to kill his family. Will Wendy and Danny make it out alive or face Jack and the hotel ghosts wrath?
The Shining is without a doubt one of the greatest Horror films ever made that from the moment you watch it is an instant Masterpiece and Classic right from the opening credits. The Shining is not only a Masterpiece of modern Horror,but also a Masterpiece of timeless Horror. Kubrick has given viewers a big,bold and epic Horror film that right from the start of the film you watching a living nightmare that is scary and unsettling,dark and horrific,disturbing and unforgettable with haunting imagery that will unnerve viewers. One of the main reasons The Shining is scary and Horrific is the creepy atmosphere that the film conveys. The cold and snowy atmosphere gives the film a sense of dread and fear and makes not only the characters but the viewers feel alone,isolated and trapped and there is no way out. The snow and cold gives the film a unsettling feeling where you think that anything can happen at anytime. This film and John Carpenter's The Thing both use cold and snow atmosphere to great effect and will make viewers never stay alone in the snow and cold ever again. When Kubrick shows the inside of The Overlook Hotel,the Hotel is big and wide and given a lot of space feeling like The Hotel is a character in itself and as the film goes on the Hotel becomes more of a character and Jack,Wendy and Danny become claustrophobic and alone. The lighting and sound is what makes The Shining stand out from other ghost films because the lighting makes The Shining look beautiful and frightening in it's darkness. The use of sound in the film is effective whether it's the wood on the floor,music or the sound of doors. The sound effects throughout the film give viewers a sense of fear and terror and put you in a scary place. The imagery and visuals in the film are creepy and will stick with you because of it's power and intensity because what Kubrick is giving us is a visceral experience of trying frighten us not only physically but mentally as well. The Shining transcends the Ghost and Haunted house genre by making the film ambiguous because as you watch the film you wonder why are the ghosts there? Are the ghosts there because of the Hotel or are they there because of Jack going crazy or is it because Jack,Wendy and Danny have Cabin Fever? The movie makes you ask a lot of questions that are not answered and is one of the reasons The Shining is a great movie. With the characters Jack,Wendy and Danny we are sorry for them but also scared for them before anything really starts to happen because we as the viewers can tell that the Torrance family has problems but still love each other. When scary starts to happen you are with the Torrance family as if though you are experiencing the terror yourself and that is the power that this film has. As loved as The Shining is now,the film is still controversial among Kubrick fans and Stephen King fans. As a Kubrick film The Shining is seen as a brilliant masterpiece and one of his best,but as a King adaptation King fans hate the film and consider the film to be a bad version of the novel. As someone who is a fan of both Kubrick and King I think both the novel and film are both brilliant but on different levels. The ending of the film is masterful and will leave you with a lot of questions and will have you discussing what happened. A great ending.
The whole cast does great jobs in their roles. Jack Nicholson is excellent,terrifying,funny and over the top as Jack Torrence,with Nicholson bringing intensity to the role. Shelley DuVall is brilliant as Wendy,Jack's wife,with Duvall bringing sympathy and depth to the role. Danny Lloyd(in his only film role)is wonderful as Danny,Jack and Wendy's son who has great psychic abilities. Scatman Crothers is great in his small role as Dick Hollorann,the hotel cook who knows about Danny's power. Phillip Stone is creepy and memorable as Delbert Grady,one of the ghosts Jack meets. Barry Nelson(Stuart Ullman),Joe Turkel(Lloyd The Bartender),Anne Jackson(Doctor),Tony Burton(Larry Durkin)and Barry Dennen(Bill Watson)give good performances as well.
The direction by Stanley Kubrick is excellent and masterful,with Kubrick using tracking shots,over the head camera angles,zooms and close-ups giving a frightening and scary atmosphere. Powerful direction by Kubrick.
The score by Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elind is brilliant,scary and terrifying and fits with the scary tone of the film. Great score. There is also a great use of the song Midnight,The Stars And You by Ray Noble Orchestra with Al Bowally.
In final word,if you love Stanley Kubrick,Jack Nicholson,Horror Films,Ghost Films,Supernatural films or films in general,I highly suggest you see The Shining,a brilliant Horror Masterpiece and one of the greatest films ever made that you can watch again and again and belongs in every movie fans collection. Highly Recommended. 10/10.