Almost a masterpiece

Rating: 8/10 (4 April 2014)

For you aficionados who are gasping at my claim that it's "almost a masterpiece", I really only have one complaint about this film...but it's a big one: Shelly Duvall. For me, one of the worst actresses of all time. And as I watched this film...again, in every scene of hers all I could think of was Olive Oyl...although I had TOTALLY FORGOTTEN at the time that she had actually played Olive Oyl in the Robin Williams film. Throughout the film, her expressions of horror were akin to scenes in comedies where a character shows their acting ability by aping various facial expressions (fear, love, affection, etc.). The only more horrific aspect of her performance here was when she was "acting" normal...not an easy thing to do when you have zero personality.
Aside from that, this film has elements of brilliance. Chief among them being the iconic performance of Jack Nicholson. By the time I first saw this film, I had already seen Nicholson in "Five Easy Pieces", "Carnal Knowledge", "Chinatown", and "One Flew Over The Cuckoos Nest", but it was this film that said to me that Jack Nicholson is something special. An admiration that ultimately grew into my belief that he was the finest actor of his generation. I am aware of the criticisms that Nicholson overacted here, but I think not. I think it was a conscious decision that imprinted Jack Nicholson's acting ability on the consciousness of America. So for Jack Nicholson here, A+.
Danny Lloyd, the child actor who left the profession soon after this film, is excellent as the little boy haunted by spirits. And what a joy Scatman Crothers is here as the hotel chef that attempts to save Danny. Not much of a part, but it was nice seeing Barry Nelson as the hotel manager. Similar situation with Anne Jackson as the doctor.
The other thing I find iconic about this film are certain visuals that you almost can't forget -- the blood gushing out of the elevator, the "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy" scene, and of course, "Here's Johnny!".
So, I would probably have given this film a rare "9" were it not for Duvall. Ah well. So be it.