Shining

Pros: Good thriller. Nicholson.
Cons: Duvall was annoying at times. Pace could be too slow for some.

I love movies and watch a lot of them. There are many movies that are considered to be very good or even classics that I haven't seen yet for whatever reason. Every so often, I get the chance to see one of them. That is how I came to see The ...

Pros: Classier than many other King adaptations, scary in places
Cons: Purists hate the changes, Duvall looks mousy

One of the most common gripes readers have when one of their favorite novels is adapted into a screenplay for a major motion picture and they notice all the changes, large and small, made by the screenwriter/director in making the leap from the printed ...

Pros: great visuals, lots of suspense, cool performances
Cons: plodding pacing that leads to a climax that's not climactic enough

There's a hair-thin line between genius and idiot - and Stanley Kubrick walked it like a balance beam. The Shining, Kubrick's 1980 adaptation of the Stephen King classic, is definitely exhibit #1. Nobody but Kubrick could so exquisitely shoot it and ...

Pros: Intense, atmospheric film, fabulous direction, great performance from Nicholson
Cons: Shelly Duval's performance is pretty weak

The Shining: Warner Bros.
Rating: USA: R/ UK: 18/ Germany: 16/ Australia: M

Horror author Stephen King has had more than a few of his novels and short stories adapted to film—normally with disastrous results (Maximum...

Pros: Of the best classic horror movies ever now looks better than ever on Blu-Ray
Cons: The limitations of the original mono audio gets little improvement in 5.1.

The Shining is one of the first true horror movies I had seen. My dad took me to the movies to see it when I was about 13 years old. There were many images on the screen that frightened me very much, and even now they still appear eerie – ...

Pros: Atmosphere of foreboding; great visuals; splendid sets; outstanding soundtrack; camp performances
Cons: Script problems: lack of foundation for some horror elements; too little initial normality

If little Danny Torrance and the Overlook Hotel's chef Dick Hallorann can converse via mental telepathy and thought broadcasting, I ought to be able to transmit this review to your eyes without actually typing or putting pen to paper. Let's give it a ...

Pros: Jack Nicholson's stunning performance, Shelley Duvall's "unique" acting, the scenery, Kubrick is amazing!
Cons: A little overwhelming for some

It took until just a few years ago before I had my first viewing of The Shining, and I was in shock at what I had been missing out on for all these years. I have always been a horror movie fan ever since I saw my first one (A Nightmare On Elm...

Pros: Jack Nicholson's truly terrifying performance.
Cons: Shelley Duvall, takes a LOT of liberties with the Stephen King book.

There are two schools of thought when it comes to Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. One school of thought finds it to be a cheap version of Stephen King's classic novel, while the other thinks it is excellent and in some cases better than the book. A way ...

Pros: A great Symbolic premise. Brilliant, brightly lit suspense-horror scenes. Some memorable set pieces.
Cons: Too many loose ends. Off-tempo editing robs the film of emotional urgency. The present ending.

About the act of "Passing the Buck" -- personally, historically and cosmically -- Stanley Kubrick's ...

Pros: Kubrick's overall direction in establishing unsettled tension; Nicholson's nearly perfect performance.
Cons: The occasional overlong scene, especially if it also has Shelly Duvall in it...

Oh, sure, the picturesque mountain scenery from within your Volkswagen Beetle is majestic to say the least, Mr. Torrance. What pleasant visual candy to compensate for the long drive to your long awaited interview that will determine if you are chosen to ...

Pros: Classic horror movie with psychodramatic undertones.
Cons: Can be too lengthy for some viewers, slow to develop

I first came across the movie "The Shining" when I was 9 years old. Tragically, my best friends home had burnt to the ground and her family was staying in a local hotel. There was a freak snow storm and while visiting her there, I got snowed in. During...

Pros: Nicholson, Kubrick's direction, script, everything
Cons: None

Stanley Kubrick's most famous film also happens synonymous with one of the most popular American Horror films of the past thirty years: The Shining. Directed in 1980, it brought together two of cinema's icons-Kubrick, of course, and Jack Nicholson ...

Pros: Cold. Detached. Demanding. Infuriating. Terrifying. Genius.
Cons: Maybe too cryptic for some.

It is fair to say that horror movies attach themselves to an unfortunate yet unavoidable law of diminishing returns.

Plainly put, they are never as scary as the first time you watched them and even revisiting a generic masterpiece such as...

Pros: Duvall
Cons: the talking finger & cast speech patterns

Although The Shining is considered one of the classic horror movies and there is much to love about the film, there are also some glaring negatives as well.  That certainly doesn't mean I don't like it because I've seen it a bazillion times, ...

Pros: Studious direction. Nicholson. Crothers. Imagery.
Cons: Duvall. Occasionally tedious direction.

Many a frightening film has been released since The Shining, but Kubrick's 1980 psychological-horror is still notable for its attempt to climb inside the protagonist's head. There are ample opportunities for the writer-director to spook us with ...