A stunning example of atmosphere, horror, and filmmaking

Rating: 10/10 (15 February 2016)

Some films are able to create a world separate from ours, create a place that has its very own feel, it can be wonderful, awe-inspiring, adventurous, etc. Studio Ghibli are masters of this, as nearly all there films (even the ones grounded in reality) feel fresh and they always make you want to enter there special place, except for maybe Grave of the Fireflies. Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is one of those very special films, but while Studio Ghibli's films were magical and fun, The Shining is terrifying and disturbing.
Stanley Kubrick is one of the greatest directors of all time, he was a perfectionist in every sense of the word. In one scene a tennis ball is rolled down a hall, Stanley Kubrick shot this scene over fifty times, and The Shining also holds the record for the most times a single shot in a film has been re-shot. (but some of the crew members say the number was exaggerated) Stanley Kubrick was also vicious on his actors, even sometimes mistreating them to get the performance he wanted.
The Shining is an adaptation of a Stephen King novel, and is about Jack Torrance a struggling writer, who is also a recovering alcoholic, who is hired as a winter caretaker of the summer hotel "The Overlook" in Colorado. (the manger says its to difficult to keep the hotel open with the heavy snow fall in the winter.) So Jack Torrance spends the winter alone with his family in The Overlook, but as can be expected of all horror movies, strange things begin to happen, and Jack Torrance slowly loses his mind. Jack Nicholson plays Jack Torrance, and many contemporary audiences have criticized Kubrick for this choice, saying that Jack Nicolson was a bad choice for the role, because he always plays crazy people so the transformation of his character would be non existent, this criticism is incredibly out of context. When The Shining was released Jack Nicholson would have been known for playing "free spirit" characters, like in One Flew Over The Cuckoos nest, or Easy Riders, sure nowadays he is known for psychopathic roles, but he wasn't known for them back in 1980.
Another thing these critics seem to forget is that there isn't even the slightest hint of Jack losing his mind until 40 minutes into the film, and by that point we have already been exposed to several other horrors, that audiences that haven't ever been exposed to anything about the film wouldn't even expect him to go crazy, but there will never probably be an audience who hasn't been exposed to film in some sort of way, so many of the films scariest and most unnerving scenes, have been referenced and parodied so many times, that it causes them to lose their impact. This is probably The Shining's biggest flaw, and it's not even the films fault. I will not mention any of theses scenes here, so if you haven't seen the film yet, don't look up anything more about the it and watch it as soon as possible.
But enough about how other people have ruined the film, let's talk about what makes it so great. I've already talked about Jack Nicholson's performance, but all of the performances in the film are prefect for the characters, Danny Lloyd deserves a special mention, because he was only 6 at the time and was under the impression that he was shooting a drama, not a horror film. You'd never be able to tell if you watched it. The soundtrack is also one of the best in any horror film ever, from the very first shot of the opening credits we are completely immersed in it, it's slow, creeping, subtle, and can match things like the Halloween score or the Vertigo score. The cinematography (done by John Alcott, who did many of Kubrick's other films) is also some of the best that you will ever find in a horror movie.
The Shining is also often criticized today for being boring, much in the same way Alien is, and just like Alien these criticisms are completely unwarranted and make no sense. Some may have expected The Shining to jump right into the action, but it takes its time and slowly buries us in the vicious, creepy atmosphere of The Overlook Hotel, and there are several eerie scenes at the very beginning. So I don't really understand why people would think The Shining is "boring."
One final thing, if you're an avid Stephen King fan, you will probably be disappointed, as Stanley Kubrick takes several "artistic liberties," while adapting Stephen Kings work. But please look at the film on its own, because it really is one of the greatest films ever made.
10/10