Reclusive perfectionist Stanley Kubrick may not have been prolific (he directed only three films between 1975 and 1999), but his movies have a way of penetrating the public consciousness. In the case of 1980's The Shining, it's obvious that Kubrick's movie has achieved greater cultural resonance than the Stephen King bestseller it's based on. The image of Jack Nicholson axing through a splintered door and snarling "Heeeeere's Johnny!" is an all-time highlight of cinematic horror.
It's a grandiose haunted-house tale in which Nicholson takes his wife (Shelley Duvall) and young son to the secluded Overlook Hotel to serve as off-season caretaker, and proceeds to suffer a psychological breakdown that can't be attributed to cabin fever alone. The Overlook has a violent past that echoes throughout the building, and while young Danny (Danny Lloyd) senses this frightening legacy through the prescient gift of "the shining," his father deteriorates into a state of homicidal psychosis.
Kubrick chooses to emphasize a study of mental decay and the timeless homicidal impulse; the film's technical innovation (through astonishing set design and pioneering use of the Steadicam) serves an increasingly unsettling collision of past and present horrors. It's more of an intellectual horror film than a conventional fright-fest, but it's still effectively creepy, and as he turns into a sneering killer, smilin' Jack makes a fine addition to Kubrick's rogue's gallery of memorable movie psychos.
Directed by: Stanley Kubrick Written by: Diane Johnson & Stanley Kubrick Produced by: Jan Harlan & Stanley Kubrick Original music by: Wendy Carlos & Rachel Elkind
Cast: Jack Nicholson .... Jack Torrance Shelley Duvall .... Wendy Torrance Danny Lloyd .... Danny Torrance Scatman Crothers .... Dick Hallorann Barry Nelson .... Stuart Ullman Philip Stone .... Delbert Grady Joe Turkel .... Lloyd Anne Jackson .... Doctor Tony Burton .... Larry Durkin Lia Beldam .... Young Woman in Bath Billie Gibson .... Old Woman in Bath Barry Dennen .... Bill Watson David Baxt .... Forest Ranger 1 Manning Redwood .... Forest Ranger 2 Lisa Burns .... Grady Daughter Louise Burns .... Grady Daughter Robin Pappas .... Nurse Alison Coleridge .... Ullman's Secretary Burnell Tucker .... Policeman Jana Sheldon .... Stewardess Kate Phelps .... Receptionist Norman Gay .... Injured Guest with Head Wound
