Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3989 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-09-10
• Rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Dubbed, Full Screen, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Arabic, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish
• Dubbed in: French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 114 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is less an adaptation of Stephen King's best-selling horror novel than a complete re-imagining of it from the inside out. In King's book, the Overlook Hotel is a haunted place that takes possession of its off-season caretaker and provokes him to murderous rage against his wife and young son. Kubrick's film is an existential Road Runner cartoon (his steadicam scurrying through the hotel's labyrinthine hallways), in which the cavernously empty spaces inside the Overlook Hotel mirror the emptiness in the soul of the blocked writer settled in for a long winter's hibernation. As many have pointed out, King's protagonist goes mad, but Kubrick's Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) is Looney Tunes from the moment we meet him--all arching eyebrows and mischievous grin. (Both Nicholson and Shelley Duvall reach new levels of hysteria in their performances, driven to extremes by the director's fanatical demand s for take after take after take.) The Shining is terrifying--but not in the way fans of the novel might expect. When it was redone as a TV mini-series (reportedly because of King's dissatisfaction with the Kubrick film), the famous topiary-animal attack (which was deemed impossible to film in 1980) was there--but the deeper horror was lost. Kubrick's The Shining gets under your skin and chills your bones; it stays with you, inhabits you, haunts you. And there's no place to hide... --Jim Emerson, Amazon.com

Special Features
1.33 Full Screen
DVD 9
French
English
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 5.1 English French
Dolby Digital 5.1
Vivian Kubricks Behind The Scenes Documentary The Making Of The Shining With Optional Commentary By Vivian Kubrick
Interactive Menus
Scene Access
Trailer
Arabic\Dutch\English\French\German\Italian\Spanish

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

all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy...
Though not Kubrick's best, "The Shining" is a true horror classic: full of atmosphere, haunting backdrops, chilling soundtrack, masterful camerawork (especially low-angle tracking shots are excellent), and Jack Nicholson's razor-sharp acting are combined with Kubrick's perfectionism and his keen eye for detail. The result is an awesome experience, you'll never forget.

Even at the very beginning you expect something sinister will happen. A creepy music on the background, a yellow Volkswagen meanders along road at threatening Colorado Rockies. Mesmerizing aerial shots and overall atmosphere here are beyond all description. Really, really perfect. Kubrick begins to display his unique skill and vision at the very first scene.

Actually the story is quite simple: a recovering alcoholic Jack finds an off-season caretaker job at an isolated, mountain-locked hotel in the middle of nowhere in Colorado Rockies so that he can make some money as well as write in peace. Because the hotel is inaccessible during winter, he takes his family to the hotel too. Once the family is alone in the hotel, Jack begins suffering from writer's block and cabin fever. Also, the hotel seems to be replete with all sorts of evil vibes and horrible legacies. Under these circumstances he slowly disintegrates, descends into insanity and inflicts an unbearable terror on his skinny wife and psychic son, Danny.

Although it seems so plain and simple, actually this is not the case. The fact is that all Kubrick films are open to many different interpretations, because they contain lots of symbolism and cryptic meanings hidden deep in the plot and visuals. This is true here. My theory is that the film is about alcoholism and its devastating effects on family. The hotel symbolizes how unbearable a home can be for those who have to live there.

It enjoys some of the most unforgettable shots in motion picture history, such as the amazing chase scene in snowbound topiary maze, Jack's shattering of door with ax, blood pouring out of elevators, looming details of hotel interior as Danny rides his Big Wheel through empty hallways, and haunting look of Grady twins. There are plenty of them, all neatly distributed and absolutely wicked.

Essential Viewing
'The Shining' on DVD is essential viewing, not only because the film itself is one of the most beautifully shot horror classics of all time, but also because it comes accompanied by a wonderful documentary. 'The Making of The Shining' provides a rare insight into director Stanley Kubrick ('A Clockwork Orange') and also features actors Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall at work on set, both in and out of character. From this invaluable footage, you will learn to admire those who do the business behind the scenes and gain a good appreciation for what it takes to create a masterpiece.

As a movie, The Shining is thoroughly watchable from start to finish. Jack Nicholson steals the show as the ex-alcoholic, ex-teacher who is looking for solitude for a 'writing project', and the Overlook Hotel appears to be just what he is looking for as he pitches in as caretaker during the snowbound winter months. Joining him at the Overlook are his wife Wendy (Duvall) and his talented son Danny (Lloyd), whose special ability to 'shine' causes him to fear (and rightly so) the dark secrets of the hotels past.

With The Shining, director Stanley Kubrick has thankfully created an intellectual horror movie rather than merely played it for shocks. His superb pacing builds the tension up gradually, and with so many memorable scenes here, there is enough to make you return time and again, where you will always find something new.

I cannot recommend this film enough; if you haven't seen it, what are you waiting for?

Redrum, REDRUM!
This film had me on the edge of my seat, my legs hunched up in front of me so that I could not see the screen. It was very well edited and how the cameraman managed to film Danny on the tricycle with steadicam was amazing.
Apart from the excellent technical effects, it is a very well written film. It is full of images which will stay with you for days, from the dead girls (WHO ARE NOT TWINS IF YOU LISTEN) in the corridors, the rotting woman in room 237 (you won't go near a bathroom for a long time), and the many shots of 250 gallons of blood coming out of the elevator. Jack Nicholson portrays Torrance marvellously (Heeere's Johnny!) and Danny Lloyd plays Danny Torrance very well (it seems that in every horror film there has to be a creepy kid - 6th sense, the others, the ring)
However, it does not follow the original story by Stephen King very well, so if you are looking for his story, get the remake made in the 90s. But this is the better film as many people will know. Get this now, OR I WON'T HURT YOU, I'LL JUST BASH YOUR BRAINS IN! (don't take literally)