The House That Stanley Built

Rating: 10/10 (15 November 2010)

(contains spoilers)
The Shining's reputation has only grown over these almost 30 years since its initial release, something true of all Kubrick films I believe. And though I would venture to say that nothing Kubrick ever made could be safely classified as a genre picture, The Shining is almost always, and rightfully so, listed among the top horror films of all time. But Kubrick always found a way to transcend these genres he chose to immerse himself in, whether they were noir, gladiator, (anti-)war, sci-fi, period drama, contemporary satire, etc. And out of his entire oeuvre, The Shining is perhaps the most perfect example of said transcendence, shattering most clichés of the horror genre: the main character is the monster; there's only one murder in the entire film; and lastly, it's never a question of "who" or "when" in The Shining, but "why" (did Jack do it?) and "how" (was he also in the past?), which themselves are questions left arguably ambiguous at the end. Its this very ambiguity, one of the most non- genre devices there is, that elevates The Shining to not just the top of the best horror movie lists, but perhaps on to the best films ever lists. For me, ambiguous conclusions make for great psycho-logical film, and The Shining is just that.
Released in 1980, The Shining was Kubrick's next film after 1975's Barry Lyndon (his best?). Based on the Stephen King novel of the same name, Kubrick rejected King's own adaptation and instead enlisted the aid of novelist Diane Johnson to help write the screenplay. Many King-lovers decry the script's strong differences with the actual source material, but who cares? Considering King's own at-best-mediocre screenplays, and his disastrous attempt at film directing – the mind-numbing Maximum Overdrive – I have no problem trusting that Kubrick knew how to make a film better than Mr. King.
The Shining is, on its surface, a ghost story. A failed, alcoholic, and abusive husband and father, one Jack Torrance, decides to take a winter-season caretaker position at the Overlook Hotel, in hopes that the seclusion will help him to rebuild his life, and also assist in revitalizing his creative juices as a writer. Despite the warnings of cabin fever, and the story of a past murder/suicide by a previous caretaker of his entire family, Jack takes the position and travels to the Overlook, with his mousy, chain-smoking, battered-wife syndrome poster- girl spouse, Wendy. They also have a son, the often bruised yet powerfully clairvoyant, Danny, who foresees the evil, but is powerless to understand or prevent it. Of course we, and the entire Torrance family, soon learn that the hotel is named Overlook because, one: it's what you should do if you ever come across it, and two: because it affords glorious views of Hell.
Whether it's a simple case of one man going mad, a genuine haunting/possession, multiple hauntings, or if the hotel itself is an evil and sentient being, we never really know. The majestic and horrifying images Kubrick creates, his nail-biting pacing, the revolutionary steadicam work of John Alcott, and the performances of all three major characters, make The Shining one of the most atmospheric nightmares on celluloid.
And something else about The Shining not often said, is that it's the only film starring Jack Nicholson that isn't overpowered by Nicholson himself.