", Doctor: "Does Tony ever ask you to do things? Jack is a recovering alcoholic and relapses at the hotel. Jack is left in the snow and freezes to death, and its implied that the Overlook Hotel continued with its cycle of murder by bringing in more reincarnations of past workers. "I love it so much, but I was afraid that once we brought him back, it evokes all the images from the original down to the open butt flap of the costume. Its not much of a marriage. He also informs Jack about Danny involving an outside party (Halloran) in the situation and stresses on words like will, to upset Jack. In the book, the man dressed in a suit is actually Horace Derwent, the mysterious owner of the Overlook Hotel, and the man in the costume (which is a dog in the book) is Roger, a one-time lover of his. Lets compare the two characters in more detail. Kubrick replaced the hedge animals in the book with a hedge maze, which like the movie offers endless possibilities but barely any solution. In the lobby Danny and Wendy watch a film called Summer of 42, which is about a young man who has an affair with an older woman. At the beginning of the movie, Wendy mentions that Jack once injured Danny's arm, and it's later implied that Danny's imaginary friend, Tony, is . The hotel makes one last attempt to possess Hallorann but he successfully manages to avoid it. On its own, this again seems more like a tiny error rather than an intentional clue. Jack calls Danny and makes him sit on his lap while asking him about the Overlook and if he liked it, saying I want you to like it with a weak smile while rubbing Dannys shoulder, emphasizing the control he is inflicting. Wendy Torrance, (played by Shelly Duvall) frantically roams the halls of the Overlook Hotel looking for her son Danny while her husband, Jack Torrence ( played by Jack Nicholson) goes on an axe rampage. Based on the book of the same name by Stephen King, The Shining follows Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson), an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic who takes a job as the off-season caretaker of the Overlook Hotel. I love Joe Turkels mesmerizing performance as Lloyd, his calmness giving a helping hand to Jacks boiling conscious. This scene is during the most climatic part of the movie. It seems ridiculous on the surface, but Ager's in-depth analysis points to some very compelling evidence of sexual abuse. Danny cleverly retraces back his footsteps and makes a false trail to confuse an already transfixed Jack and audience (the high pitched score literally tears you apart with anxiety and the fact that Kubrick changed the whole story in favor of a more pessimistic theme leaves you wondering about the outcome), who follows the footprints to get nowhere. He also made a brief appearance in one of the bizarre " WTF ?" scenes in the 1980 adaptation of The Shining by director Stanley Kubrick. Buy a book on film making from any part of the world, either Russia or Japan or Sweden, and youll find this name mentioned not once but in every chapter, ranging from minutely monumental details like breaking the 180 degree rule to establishing genres like science fiction and satirical comedy. Prior to Screen Rant, she wrote for Pop Wrapped, 4 Your Excitement (4YE), and D20Crit, where she was also a regular guest at Netfreaks podcast. A previous caretaker Charles Grady had killed his family, including his two daughters and himself after a claustrophobic breakdown. Both the usage of pre-existing music and the original score composed for The Shining are standouts of the genre. The meaning and topics addressed in the novel are very different than those in The Shining movie Stephen King hates so much, given Kubricks many changes to the story in order to fit his vision. Were in a golden age of TV writing and development. Beyond being one of the most incredible and beloved horror movies ever made, it's also a project . The core of this theory suggests thatThe Shiningis secretly about CIA mind control experiments. Privacy Policy. Another interesting point, Wendy later holds Danny in the same way as Jack holds the old lady, and also has Jacks blue robe on (the same robe he had while he abused Danny). Tony disapproves of the Torrances decision to move to The Overlook and in a very intriguing scene, Danny is shown visions of the consequences ranging from a flood of red liquid gushing out from elevators, two identical young girls and a totaled image of himself. Being one of the best 80s horror movies, the flick is so much more than just cheap jump scares. Some of the interpretations expressed in Room 237 are interesting and hold water. Of course, the ghost of Grady freeing Jack from the freezer remains hard to explain away, although that doesn't stop some from trying. Jack later speaks to a disappointed Grady through the door, who believes Jack doesnt have the stomach to carry out the task. The fact that his films like 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Shining require detailed explanations says a lot about his craft. Jack, Ullman, Bill Watson, Lloyd the bartender not one wedding ring, and Gradys hands are gloved so we cant see whether he is wearing a ring or not. He then follows that up by complaining about his wife and son, and you can sense the contempt for Wendy in his voice through the suppressed grins that indicate madness instead of anger. But also the sexual abuse is shown in a scene between Jack and his father in the bizarre scene with the man in the bear costume and older gentleman. Wendy and Danny reunite and leave the hotel in a snowcat, and Jack freezes to death. Directed by modern horror master Mike Flanagan, Doctor Sleep offered an unexpected treat in the form of an extended cameo by none other than Jack Torrance himself, now played by Henry Thomas. I believe this prominently takes place in the scene where Jack makes Danny sit on his lap. The famously paused bear suit scene in The Shining, a horror film directed by Stanley Kubrick and released in 1980, has become one of the most iconic and memorable moments in cinematic history in . Related: The Shining Has An Alternate Ending You Will NEVER See. it is impossible not to mention the documentary Room 237. Contrary to the novel, Danny is not super intelligent and watches The Roadrunner Show (foreshadowing). And what is the meaning? Related: IT Chapter Two's Shining Reference Hints At Stephen King's Shared Universe. The Shining is a film about cyclical violence, and about how we can't escape the dark specter of history. In 2019, famed horror director Mike Flanagan brought the story to the big screen, starring Ewan McGregor in the titular role. When she's not writing, you can find her trying to learn a new language, watching hockey (go Avs! We see an overly terrified Wendy screaming in agony at the sight, but slashes Jacks hand when he tries to turn the knob open. Look carefully at this teddy pillow. The bear man appears to be giving felatio to the man on the bed, just as the dog man in the book was carrying out a sexual submission role with his partner. Realizing that he is leaving footprints in the snow, Danny carefully maneuvers backwards over his own . Coming back to The Overlook, Jack then starts hacking through the main door of their quarters with an axe, while Wendy and Danny run into the bathroom. Either way, The Shining is not so much a ghost story in a literal sense, but a story about the ghosts (or demons, in some cases) of violence and abuse, and how these can come back to continue with the cycle. How did these pictures get there if Wendy does all the menial chores. comments sorted by Best Top New Controversial Q&A Add a Comment [deleted] The elevator blood scene first appears as a vision to Danny, and materializes near the end of the film when Wendy is looking for him. The Shining Is About Sexual Abuse. It is less of a stretch to consider this interpretation as a distillation of clear subtext on child abuse that some viewers might miss. The Shiningmoon landing connection is the one theory that extends film and into the life and work of Stanley Kubrick in general. Your email address will not be published. One newspaper article is called Illness as metaphor and was written by Susan Sontag. The Bear Man. Danny on the other hand after the physical trauma goes into a semi-conscious state, Tony taking hold of the reigns and keeps on repeating the word redrum in a very mechanical trance. He even sought to create an alternate adaptation of his novel in the form of a television mini-series in the '90s. Before we get into The Shining fan theories, its important to acknowledge the source material. This documentary is an exhaustive cataloguing of allThe Shining fan theories big and small. Keen-eyed viewers have pointed out before that the issue of Playgirl magazine Jack Torrance is reading in one scene has an article titled "Incest: Why Parents Sleep With Their Children" featured on the cover. Wednesday, and Danny finds the Room 237 ajar and we see him walking towards it because a red ball rolls upto him out of nowhere from that direction. Its actually quite simple. Yet, this isn't Jack, rather, it's Lloyd the bartender, albeit not the same Lloyd Jack himself encountered. Super Dark The Shining Theory Reveals The Story Is All In Wendy's Head. Meta Quest 2 - Advanced All-In-One Virtual Reality Headset - 128 GB (Renewed Premium). Danny laying on the bear pillow with his pants removed and hands over his genitals. The film Stanley Kubrick called "the best film I think I have ever seen" Shrouded in strange mystery, puzzling cinephiles for decades, one of the film's darkest secrets is the curious meaning behind the bear who appears to Shelley Duvall's Wendy as she is desperately escaping Jack's grasp. Kubrick failed in adapting Stephen Kings book, but he succeeded in making a film full of metaphors and symbolism that have made way for countless interpretations of its true meaning. ", Related: What Jack Nicholson Was Really Like Filming The Shining. We see Jack at a table and the camera zooms in from behind, like an entity of its own very similar to most of the movie where the camera has a quite latching presence. Danny has visions about the hotel right after Jack gets the job and during his time at the hotel, and has a traumatizing experience when drawn into the forbidden room 237. Wendy defends herself with a knife and slashes Jacks arm, causing him to retreat. In Stephen Kings original novel, which the film was adapted from, the scene was given more context. Ullman shows the Torrances their apartment and Jack, not Wendy, steps forward and peaks into the childs room. That being said, The Shining bear didn't appear in the sequel. 'The Shining:' Who is the Man in the Bear Costume? One of the most memorable scenes from The Shining is the blood coming out from the elevator. . Please contact the developer of this form processor to improve this message. Kubrick decided to direct a comparatively crowd appealing film, maybe as a result of the financially poor performance of Barry Lyndon, which by many revered critics and filmmakers is considered to be his best film. But that hasnt stopped people all over the world from trying. Coincidence much? Meanwhile, Wendy runs through the hotel looking for her son. Some details supporting the latter is that Jack leers at other women several times in the film. As for Jack, he does die but not in the snow: a malfunctioning boiler explodes and kills Jack while also destroying the hotel. Played with quiet confidence and wounded reservation by "Charm City Kings" star Winston, Kevin starts "We Have a Ghost . But that hasnt stopped people all over the world from trying. The hallucination ends when an hysteric Wendy comes running in and informs Jack about a woman in Room 237 who tried to strangle Danny. Theres barely any ambiguity about the end, since it only exists if we are certain of any one explanation, but there isnt one in this case. Both of them keep their personal writings hidden from their wives. Guillermo del Toro said hi to her once. Instead of being inside, the young boy is out in the hedge maze being pursued by his father. In one of the most beautiful 5 minutes on the big screen (the heavenly use of colors and symmetry and such calm destruction of the imaginary axis), we see Grady convince Jack to correct his family and reminds him that he has always been the caretaker, which was then shown in the B/W picture at the end. While Danny's barbs do eventually seem to wake up part of Jack's consciousness from inside his Lloyd identity, whatever good he had left in him was clearly erased once Jack was fully taken over. The Shining. One strong and memorable element of The Shining that didnt directly factor into any of these theories was the soundtrack. The poster in question depicts a skier, despite Jack being told there is no skiing in the area. Kubrick deliberately left many things unexplained, including many details from the third act he did, however, explain why Jack Torrance appears in The Shining picture at the end. The novel provides Roger and Horace's story as an example of atrocities that have happened in the hotel; in a cruel act of domination, Horace instructed Roger to attend one of the hotel's balls in the costume and behave like a dog for the other guests. Simply put, this The Shining analysis posits that the film is just as much about the genocide of Native Americans as it is about ghosts haunting the hotel. Another tracking shot, where Danny finds Room 237 and is about to open it before changing his mind and quickly wheeling away. The particular scene from Summer of 42 that we see on the lobby television shows the older woman telling the young man to sit down while she makes lunch for him. Vitali became a close career-long collaborator of Kubricks and on the set of The Shining he was assigned to work closely with the young actor Danny Lloyd (there are several parallels in The Shining between actors first names and the first names of characters two Jacks, two Dannys and two Lloyds). Theres no doubt regarding his undisputed title of the greatest film maker in the history of cinema, and though people may point out Tarkovsky or Kurosawa or Bergman, none of them has influenced the art to such an extent. Those who believe The Shining moon landing theory point to Danny's wardrobe. Jack hadnt slida single drop of liquor for the past 5 months, a vow out of guilt. The Shining novel, however, has a very different ending, and one that even made way for a sequel: Doctor Sleep. In attempting to answer "what is The Shining about?" Please contact the developer of this form processor to improve this message. Jack gets annoyed by Wendy coming in while he was working and tries hard not to completely lose it. Talking about The Overlook, the epicenter, Ullmans room is very strange. Lets take a look from the beginning. Directly above Dannys bed is a framed picture of two bears, one standing and one sitting. The Shining Caretaker Explained. This is one of the more straightforward and most believableThe Shiningtheories in circulation. This led to him intentionally reversing a lot of features from the book, changing them, experimenting with them and using disrupted continuity. This theory posits that the Overlook Hotel represents hell (or another form of afterlife for the ghosts such as purgatory). The sequel to The Shining, 2019's Doctor Sleep movie managed to walk a delicate tightrope between adapting King's Shining sequel book and being a follow-up to Kubrick's Shining movie. Jack has clearly gone haywire and absent-mindedly proceeds to the Gold Room. Along with a painting on the wall of the Overlook that could be interpreted as the head of a bull atop the body of a man, though not in a literal sense. The one on the left would be overlapped by the stretched size of 237, seen in the bathroom scene and the one on the right shows a stairway going downstairs where Room 237 is. Even though the server responded OK, it is possible the submission was not processed. Theseus was a king of Athens and one of the legendary heroes of old. Dwarfed by the towering presence of the building, however, Jack soon becomes engulfed by an evil, violent presence, influencing his temper toward his wife and psychic son. Last update on 2023-02-28 / Source: Amazon Affiliates. Theres something inherently wrong with the human personality. While it may not work for Stephen King, Stanley Kubrick's ending perfectly fits the film he created. Now I wont beat around the bush by building up to my interpretation of this theme. Flanagan purposefully decided to leave the ghost out, despite Doctor Sleep containing many ghosts from The Shining. This chapter will cover the first of those themes. Jack takes his wife, Wendy (Shelley Duvall), and their son, Danny (Danny Lloyd), with him, but little do they know, the Overlook has some dark secrets of its own. In this interview, Stephen King supports the notion that the Overlook Hotel could represent hell. This next theory also suggests that the continuity errors are actually intentional and represent something different entirely. Stanley Kubricks The Shining is regarded by many as one of the greatest films ever made, and one that to this day continues to be the subject of many debates and discussions. The Shining's Room 237 is known for having a female specter, as referenced when Jack encounters a woman in the bath. In the scene, Wendy Torrance (Shelley Duvall) is roaming through the halls of The Overlook Hotel with a knife when she approaches a door at the end of a long hallway. A popular theory, and one that has gone very deep into the symbolism of The Shining, says that the film also addresses sexual abuse. Netflix. Coming to Grady, who I think like Lloyd was a fragment of representation of the hotel that would explain his statement I have always been here and look how throughout the scene Jack looks right in the direction of the mirror, almost like envisioning himself. Stanley Kubrick's iconic Stephen King adaptation is intentionally dense and even nonsensical at times. Further evidence includes the cases of Tang in the Overlooks pantry and the otherwise innocuous change from Room 217 in the novel to Room 237 in the film. Unlike the film, Hallorann in the book doesnt die and helps Wendy and Danny escape. The Bear in The Shining has a lasting legacy though an especially unsettling moment in an already unsettling film. The Shining's Overlook Hotel itself also has a history of cyclical violence: it was built over an Indian burial ground, and by its existence is a testament to the violence of colonization. Stephen King's Doctor Sleep follows an adult Danny Torrance after the events at The Overlook Hotel and his endeavor to find closure. Note how the scene opens with a close-up shot of the beige typewriter and slowly zooms out. He goes upto the bar and meets Lloyd who fixes him another drink and says the expense is on the house, indicating the effort of the Overlook to carry Jack down the hill of madness. The open patch on the bear mans behind in the film simply adds to the sexual emphasis. The second half brings out the worst in Jack, his actions replicating that of Gradys and also notice the scrapbook placed beside the typewriter. Jack goes to check out the room and finds a naked lady who seduces and begins to kiss him and Jack gives in, only to be taken aback by seeing a decaying old lady with him in the mirror. There are emotional passages and images and spaces in his films that have an inexplicable power, with a magnetic force that draws you in slowly, mysteriously: the boys rides on his Big Wheel through the endless corridors of the hotel in The Shining; the monumental silence of outer space in 2001: A Space Odyssey; the inhuman pace of the first half of Full Metal Jacket, building up to its logical, murderous conclusion; the grandeur of the war room in Dr. It & # x27 ; the Shining moon landing theory point to Danny 's wardrobe Odyssey and the original composed... A close-up shot of the genre completely lose it an exhaustive cataloguing of Shining... You Will NEVER See herself with a close-up shot of the genre Wendy running., rather, it 's Lloyd the bartender, albeit not the same Jack! 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