The Shining
Stanley Kubrick’sThe Shiningis seen as a horror classic and a masterpiece of film , but it ’s not loved by everyone . In fact , the novel ’s author is one of its boastful critics .
Stephen King attacked Kubrick ’s vision for lacking the underlying someone of his film and that Jack Nicholson ’s portrayal of Jack Torrance is already exaggerated before he even make to the Overlook . King ’s disdain forKubrick’sShiningadaptation pass such heights that he eventually went about putting his own interpretation together as a miniseries for ABC that would delay faithful to his beloved root stuff . However , when King had to acquireThe Shining’sfilm rights from Kubrick , it came with the contingency that King would quit slandering Kubrick ’s movie .
Related : Why Stephen King Really hat The Shining Movie
Stephen King’sThe Shiningis one of the generator ’s most popular novels and had realize the author plenty of acclaim before anyone had turn it into a flick . King tell a melancholy , dread tarradiddle as the Torrance family gets deplumate apart . While the broad stroke of King ’s novel and Kubrick ’s film are the same , there are many dispute that make it promiscuous to get confused . King ’s 1997 miniseries , steer by Mick Garris , shoot for to definitively set the record book unbent onThe Shiningcanon .
Stephen King’s Miniseries Is Accurate To The Book
One of the most considerable and of import changes in King’sShiningminiseries is that Jack ’s battle with alcoholism are front and center . Kubrick ’s novel is a story about addiction and that is very clear in this miniseries version , where Steven Weber ’s version ofJack Torrancebecomes immersed in AA methodology . That being said , King ’s other alteration are n’t as constructive . Famously , Kubrick alter the view in King ’s novel where the animal - mold topiary in the Overlook ’s garden come to life-time into a claustrophobic hedging tangle . It ’s one of the motion picture ’s most iconic scenes , but when King tries to reform its glory in the miniseries , the results are laughable and more a reflection of the CGI limitations of the ' 90s .
The other most egregious alteration is thatStephen Kingrestores the original ending of his novel where the Overlook ’s kettle explodes , taking the hotel with it , however King ca n’t help himself and he also adds a cringe - worthy epilog . Not only does this rag show that there are plan in motion to rebuild the haunted hotel , but there ’s a flashforward to Danny ’s high school graduation that confirms that " Tony " was in reality a future version of Danny psychologically helping himself in the yesteryear . Jack Torrance also shows up as a Force Ghost , which is a portion .
The Shining Miniseries Was Bad
The Shiningminiseries is three 90 - minute installments , which is substantially retentive than Kubrick ’s two - and - a - half 60 minutes film . King use that extended runtime to meticulously fill in the gaps that go overlooked in Kubrick ’s film , but he also goes overboard in the direction and create an expository , languid pile . It may technically be a more precise adaptation , but it ’s also unquestionably less shuddery . Any real sense of danger does n’t sink in until the second episode and Jack ’s not full - on crazy until the terminal one . The intact cast of characters does okay body of work here , but none of these feel like especially iconic performance .
Why The Shining Movie Is Still Better (Despite Being Inaccurate)
Whether it ’s the persistent score , stunning cinematography , or the unforgettable performance delivered by Jack Nicholson and Shelly Duvall , there ’s plenty from Kubrick ’s film that still resonate powerfully even today . It ’s the only characteristic photographic film adaption of Stephen King that has had comprehensive infotainment made about it . There ’s a reason that films likeDoctor SleeporReady Player Onewere so activated to retort to the creation that specifically Kubrick had created : it ’s still hard to end the doors on .
More : Kubrick Made A Shorter Version Of The Shining ( & It ’s Better )
