Product Description

Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman CrothersDirector: Stanley Kubrick

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3541 in DVD
• Brand: Blu-ray Horror
• Released on: 2008-03-03
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Format: PAL
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .26 pounds
• Running time: 114 minutes

Synopsis
Opening with spectacular aerial shots of a beautiful, mountainous landscape, Stanley Kubrick's horror classic THE SHINING, based on Stephen King's best-selling novel, sucks the viewer into his frightening tale with quiet, relaxing visuals - but the ominous soundtrack warns that all is not right at the gorgeous Overlook Hotel. Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson at his eyebrow-raising best), a Vermont schoolteacher, accepts a job as the winter caretaker of the glorious early-20th-century resort that operates only in warm weather because the snowy roads deny access in the colder months. Jack brings his wife, Wendy (Shelley Duvall), with him, as well as his young son, Danny (Danny Lloyd)--who brings with him a little boy named Tony who lives in his mouth. As the Torrances settle in for the long, lonely months ahead, strange, unexplainable things start occurring in the hotel--and in every scene Jack seems to be growing a little more evil and dangerous...
With superb camerawork (the Steadicam follows the evil through narrow hallways and ornate rooms), extraordinary sound detail (the scene in which Danny rides his Big Wheel across the Overlook's hardwood and carpeted floors is an aural classic), and a terrifying score (based on the work of Bela Bartok), THE SHINING is an unforgettable masterpiece, a psychological supernatural thriller featuring outstanding performances from Nicholson and Duvall--and a cast of dead twin girls and suicidal ax-murdering ghosts, among other bloodcurdling figures.

Customer Reviews

NOT CROPPED !!! please don't listen to reviews above !!
1 - the UK cut is Kubrick's preferred cut, the longer US cut contained scenes SK inserted to make the story more understandable for the US audience - although any fan would own both.

2- this blu ray has not been reframed, in-fact this the first time that we are receiving it in its correct ratio. SK composed this film in 1.85:1, within the compositions there is a safety net protected 1.33:1 area which was intended for TV broadcasts this is the version that was on the previous DVD - so that is actually the cropped butchered print.

Great Film, Great Blu Ray Conversion
We all know it's a great film so instead of me going on about that or how average the cover looks(!), I'll talk about what you're spending the extra £'s on, the Blu Ray conversion.... There have been a number of older films that have been put on to Blu Ray which, simply, have been very poor (see my review on Bullitt (another Warner title FYI)). The point of Blu Ray should be to showcase the very best in picture and audio quality that is currently available. Thankfully, this title has converted very well. The picture quality is exceptional, it makes a 28yr old film look very recent. Jack has never looked so maniacal! And again, the audio quality just brings a whole new experience to the film, adding an even darker edge than you were previously aware of.

I'd fully recommend the Blu Ray version of the film, top marks.

The best it can look...
Assuming people are familiar with this classic film, this Blu ray transfer looks amazingly clean and fresh. Great to see older films look as good as if they were released yesterday.I much prefer this shorter directors cut (which was the original theatrical cut actually) rather than the much longer USA version that comes in at 144 minutes. I have owned the longer version but found it bloated and slow, with much reduced tension and momentum. The additional scenes would be interesting as bonus features but do not help the film at all.

This UK release of The Shining on Blu ray is the one to get.... and this shorter version was the director Stanley Kubrick's prefered version. If you've got an old dvd of this I think you'd be pleasently surprised at the difference on Blu ray. The bonus features are excellent too.