MAJOR Disappointment

Rating: 5/10 (23 February 2004)

"The Shining" is easily the biggest disappointment in the great career of Stanley Kubrick. It's a shock that this film isn't better since they combined a great director with a terrific novel by Stephen King. "The Shining" is not a bad film but not what it should have been.
The problems, and there are many, began with the casting. Anyone who read and loved the book will know what I mean. Jack Nicholson, great as he is, is totally wrong in the lead. One of the great things about the book was seeing this fairly normal family man disintegrate into madness. You take one look at Nicholson and he comes off as a nut. There's no tension at all. Nicholson does what he can and isn't bad but someone a little more straight laced was needed. Shelly Duvall is completely wrong for the role of Wendy. In the book she was described as a beautiful blonde. What was Kubrick thinking?
Kubrick also unwisely took liberties with the book which was a real mistake. There is no sign of the hedges shaped as animals that seemed to move on their own. Kubrick has added a giant maze that added nothing to the film. The ending of the book was frightening and effective. The ending of the movie is quite bland. And flaws that most novice directors would have picked up on are overlooked. The most blatant involves a character who has the gift of the shining and can sense from hundreds of miles away that the family is in trouble. Yet when he arrives to help he cannot sense danger only a few feet away from him.
On the positive side Kubrick did create some unforgettable moments. Little Danny encountering the ghosts while riding his tricycle is a moment of shock and fright that is terrific.
I imagine if you haven't read the book the film plays much better. That might explain the very high rating the film has gotten here. But diehard fans of the book and diehard fans of Kubrick certainly see this as a step down considering all the talent involved. This is the only Kubrick film I would not highly recommend and that's a shame. What often looks more like a 50's B horror movie by Corman or Castle should have been a horror classic.