The Shining (1980)

A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where an evil and spiritual presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from the past and of the future.

Director:

Stanley Kubrick

Writers:

Stephen King (novel), Stanley Kubrick (screenplay),

Stars:

Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd

Top 250 #47 | 2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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 the Bartender
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

Storyline

A man, his son and wife become the winter caretakers of an isolated hotel where Danny, the son, sees disturbing visions of the hotel's past using a telepathic gift known as "The Shining". The father, Jack Torrance, is underway in a writing project when he slowly slips into insanity as a result of cabin fever and former guests of the hotel's ghosts. After being convinced by a waiter's ghost to "correct" the family, Jack goes completely insane. The only thing that can save Danny and his mother is "The Shining".

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Plot Keywords:

hotel | caretaker | winter | ghost | insanity | 

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Taglines:

The Horror is driving him crazy

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Genres:

Horror | Mystery

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 May 1980 (USA)

Also Known As:

Stanley Kubrick's 'The Shining'

Filming Locations:

Colorado, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$19,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

SEK 6,140,088 (Sweden)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Hawk Films, Peregrine

Technical Specs

Runtime:

146 min 142 min (cut) 119 min (cut) (European) 146 min (original)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Stanley Kubrick:  [zoom]  when Halloran is on his bed watching TV.

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Goofs

Dick Hallorann opens the freezer door with his left hand and the door's handle is on the right. When the scene switches to inside the freezer, he is opening the door with his right hand and the door handle switches to the left.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Jack Torrance: Hi, I've got an appointment with Mr. Ullman. My name is Jack Torrance.

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Crazy Credits

After the 146 minute version of the film was met with poor reviews and weak box office in the US, Stanley Kubrick re-edited the film for European release, removing 24 minutes of footage. Included in the removed footage were the entire performances of Anne Jackson as the Doctor and Tony Burton as Larry. However, both Jackson and Burton's names were still listed in the opening credits despite them no longer appearing in the film.

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Connections

Referenced in Killjoy 2: Deliverance from Evil (2002)

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Soundtracks

"Lontano"
(uncredited)
Written by György Ligeti
Performed by Sinfonie-Orchester des Südwestfunks
Conducted by Ernest Bour

User Reviews

timeless terror

Even though The Shining is over a quarter of a century old, I challenge anyone to not get freaked out by Jack Nicholson's descent into madness. This is a rare example of something so unique that no one has been able to rip it off; instead it has been referenced time and again in pop culture. The twins, the elevator of blood, RedRum, the crazy nonsense "writing"... this should be seen, if for nothing else, to understand all the allusions to it in daily life. The film is simultaneously scary, suspenseful, beautiful, and psychologically intriguing. It has the classic mystery of Hitchcock and the terror of a modern thriller. And it has what horror movies usually lack: a great script.