New "The Shining" DVD (abc mini-series) (1 Viewer)

[Vickie_M]

Many many eons ago, I read an interview with King and he said that the main difference between him and Kubrick, which colored the viewpoint of the movie versus the book, is that King believes in God, and Kubrick didn't. What he meant, I think, is that you can't truly convey any kind of "afterlife" (which would include ghosts) if you don't actually *believe* in an afterlife.

It made sense to me. The main difference between the book and the movie is that there's no doubt whatsoever in the book that Jack Torrance is being slowly driven crazy by the hotel and the ghosts. He's being possessed. The movie seems to give lip service to that, but really, Torrance is just going crazy and not necessarily with the help of ghosts. In several ways, the movie is the closest adaptation of a King novel, but because it differs in that one VERY important respect, it's the least faithful.

The Shining is my 2nd favorite King book (after The Stand) and I hated hated hated HATED the movie when it came out. Which is odd, because Kubrick is my favorite director along with Terry Gilliam. As the years passed, I always wished a movie would be made from the actual book. For me, the mini-series wasn't it. I didn't care much for the actors (except for De Mornay), and commercials just ruined any sort of build up of tension. The mini-series actually made me appreciate things about Kubrick's version more, such as the sets, and the casting of Danny. I can now appreciate Kubrick's movie, because I've learned to completely divorce it from anything to do with the book. I don't think I can ever love it, simply because I still hate Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall in those roles.

I'm sure I'll watch the mini-series DVD to see if it holds up better watching it straight through without interruptions.

The definitive filmed version of the BOOK has yet to be made.

I've generally found, with exceptions, of course, that those who read and loved the book first aren't as impressed with Kubrick's version as those who hadn't read the book before seeing the movie. I think it's the age-old case where what's shown on a movie (or TV) screen can never live up to what your imagination conjures up while you're reading.

And Jack, The Shining book is NOT "pulp." It may irk you to hear King fans diss Kubrick's version, but that doesn't make the original book pulp.

 

[GlenH]

I've never understood why SK had a problem with Kubrick's film. The Shining is a masterpeice. However, having not read the book, I'm sure it differs greatly from the original. Kubrick was not one to be strictly faithful to source material.

Although I liked Kubrick's film version of The Shining, it truly is very different from the book. I thought the book had a much better story and that is why I liked the mini series alot - because it is very faithful to the book. Kubrick's version was more of a slasher flick and did not contain any of the messages and themes from the book.

SPOILERS TO FOLLOW>>>>>>





IMO the main themes in the book is about the father's love for his son and his battle against alcoholism. Going to the inn is the father's last chance to redeem himself and salvage what's left of his family. Because of his love for his son, he is willing to do anything for him.

At first, he does well and the ghosts do not really make the father insane. The one final thing that pushes the father over the edge is when he is offered a drink by one of the ghosts. He succumbs yet again to alcohol and that is when he starts to get murderously crazy.

But, as others have pointed out, even during his murderous rampage, he is able to fight against himself and resist his urge to kill his son just enough to let them escape.

Thus, while it is a sad story in that the father was unable to conquer his addiction, the ending is positive in the sense that the father's love for his son was strong enough to save his boy.

None of these themes were captured in Kubrick's movie which came across as a slasher/ghost story - albeit a very effective slasher/ghost story.

While Stephen King has a huge book audience, I think that it is sad that even more people know him from the movie adaptations of his books which basically are, for the most part, absolutely horrible. The movie going public who watch Stephen King movies, but do not read his books simply do not get the pleasure of knowing what an excellent writer and story teller King is.

If you have not read any Stephen King books, the 2 movies adapted from Stephen King's books that most closely follow his stories and would give you the best sense of how his novel are, are The Shawshank Redemption (adapted from Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption) and Stand By Me (adapted from The Body). I highly recommend the Four Seasons collection of stories which includes these 2 stories along with Apt Pupil which was recently made into a movie. Many people regard these movies very highly. The truth of the matter is, most of Stephen King's horror novels are every bit as poignant, thoughtful and deep as these non-horror stories. It's really sad that the majority of people think a movie like Pet Semetary (SIC) is representative of Stephen King's books.


Glen

 

[Travis Olson]

I watched the first half on Sunday, but only caught about a half hour of the second part Monday. I wish I would have been able to watch it all as it seems the juice of the movie is in the second half. Anyway, to make it short and sweet, I will take Kubrick's version any day. I'm still going to pick it up when it comes out though.

 

[Greg_S_H]

Pet Semetary was one of the few King books to actually scare me (though I enjoy almost all of them), but the movie was pretty lousy. I'd like to see the Mist, as I usually enjoy the Birds/Night of the Living Dead/etc. apocalyptic movies. Too bad Trucks, an effective King short story along those lines, was not done justice with Maximum Overdrive. I never saw the version called Trucks, but I haven't heard anything good about it.

 

[TheoGB]

GlenH: I've never read the Green Mile but I've been told this is also a very faithful adaptation of the book.

 

[Jordan_E]

What I would love to see is an animated mini series of THE SHINING. Or at least a Dark Horse-type comic.

 

[TonyD]

i have a hard time watching this mini because of the boy.
is the boy supposed to have a speach impediment or the inability to close his mouth.

i cant look at this and be scared or spooked out because the boy is just awful.


i love knig books and hope to have some time to read the ones i havent read yet, soon.

 

[Robert Ringwald]

Everyone complains about the kid, but I thought he was pretty good for the part. I think he was a good actor, the way his mouth looked can't hurt his acting ability...

 

[Jack Johnson]

Vickie:

There is one detail which makes a definitive case for the authenticity of the ghostly apparitions in Kubrick's version of The Shining. People often miss this. Who, after all, let Jack Torrence out of that freezer? It wasn't Danny, it wasn't Wendy. It would've been cheating to have it be an un-introduced character that was lurking about the Overlook, so that leaves Grady and his phantom ilk.


Your anecdote about King and Kubrick and belief in god is interesting; I'd heard the bit about Kubrick calling King at 2 in the morning to ask him where he stood...but never heard any mention of why Kurbrick bothered to inquire.

But King's notion of an atheist being unable to write convincingly or passionately about hauntings, ghostly phenomena with allusions to an afterlife is absurd. Where does this man with such a boundless imagination fail to understand that these very concepts spring from the imagination, believer or not? Since an afterlife and the existence of god cannot be proven scientifically--with a complete lack of supporting, empirical data to evidence them--what exactly are these notions composed of, generated from...if not the imagination? (at least, that's my take on it. So please, no offense meant to be given...and I hope none taken)

For me, what with Kubrick's sensibility being grounded in a strong aesthetic of realism...he did a better job than any other director I can think of with regard to making the unreal and ghostly seem quite completely actual. I guess Friedkin also did a decent job with The Exorcist, which, ironically, Kubrick was an admirer of.



But think about that freezer scene...


--Jack

 

[Bingo]

From Stephenking.com

"The Shining"

DVD release 1/7/03

English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin, Bahasa, Thai and Korean subtitles, commentary by Stephen King, Steven Weber, Mick Garris, Cynthia Garris, Mark Carliner, Bill Corso, Boyd Shermis, Patrick McMahon and Shelly Johnson and additional/deleted scenes with optional director's commentary.


Sounds cool!

 

[MikeEckman]

And MAN, that kid was just AWFUL!!!!!!!!! Wincingly awful.

I agree 100%...although the ABC miniseries definitely has its pluses, the kid was enough to make me not able to sit all the way through it. I MIGHT check this out on DVD if/when it comes out, but it'll be hard, cause that kid is the single worst part of the whole movie.

 

[Dave Mack]

Ok, HUGE tangent, I know. But in the beginning of the Kubrick version, Ullman refers to Grady as "Charles Grady".
Later on when Jack meets Grady he introduces himself as "Delbert Grady". This has bugged me for years. Continuity error? A different Grady? A relation? I have never heard a satisfactory explanation.
Anybody know?
D

 

[JasenP]

RE: The two Gradys

From IMDB:

The former caretaker of the Overlook Hotel has two different names (Charles Grady and Delbert Grady) because he's supposed to be two different people. Charles is the caretaker who murdered his wife and daughters in the winter of 1970, and Delbert is the butler of the Overlook Hotel at the 4th of July party in 1921(which Jack was also at). This is a reference to the original book (the former caretaker's name didn't change like it did in the movie, but he was at the hotel in two different time periods- once at a masquerade ball in 1945 and again as the caretaker in 1970.). The use of two different names in the movie is simply to show that Grady has been at the Overlook Hotel twice, just like Jack.

 

[Jamie Cole]

Thought you might want to get a look at the packaging for the DVD of the mini-series (he said, resurrecting a month-old thread):

As is now common on his books, Mr. King's name is bigger than the title of the film. I think that's the first time I've seen that in the design of a Stephen King DVD package.
I really liked the design used in the original campaign for the mini, with "the shining" in all lower case in kid's "chicken-scratch" handwriting. This actually looks something like the official Warner Bros. VCD release, only the face in the background on the VCD wasn't Steven Weber, it was some gruesome make-up job from Part 3 of the mini.

 

[Brett_B]

I wish I would have been able to watch it all as it seems the juice of the movie is in the second half.

I used to have these problems as well until I decided to record the entire miniseries before watching it. That way I don't have to sit through commercials (even the clips that they show as to what is coming up) and I can watch it from start to finish without any delays.

I have done this with the past few miniseries by Stephen King. The only thing that I do have to watch out for is co-workers who want to talk about the miniseries while it is in progress. I just ask them politely to not talk about it in my presence, and if they are going to do so just let me know and I will excuse myself so they can discuss it.

 

[Kevin M]

I think you might be reading a novelization of the 1997 telefilm.
If I'm wrong then I'm wrong but I am certain that the book I read back in 1985 (or so) did not have that school ending.

 

[Joseph Young]

he did a better job than any other director I can think of with regard to making the unreal and ghostly seem quite completely actual.

The way Kubrick begins 'The Shining' is eerily effective. Apart from the gorgeous helicoptor shots, the scene in the manager's office is played out so methodically and matter of factly, giving the viewer all the information they need to know (and allowing them to fill in the blanks later). Everything is played with a measure of reality, and the horror of a flawed but generally good man slowly losing his mind is far more terrifying than a bunch of ghosts running around possessing people. But as Jack pointed out, when you hear that 'click' of the refrigerator door, a chill runs down your spine because up until that moment there has been no solid physical evidence of preternatural activity (other than hallucinations).

The 'I love you Danny' high school epilogue was horrible, something ripped right out of an afterschool special. If King's "The Shining" (which I read long before seeing Kubrick's version) is indeed not 'pulp' then the miniseries didn't do much to clarify the situation.

But since this is a thread about the miniseries DVD, I just noticed something: they gave him Nicholson eyebrows on the cover! Check it out!

~j

 

[TheoGB]

Kevin M - I'm pretty sure in the book there was at least one point where Jack comes 'back' and tells Danny he loves him and to get the hell out, or somesuch.

There was no 'school' ending though.

 

[Christian Preischl]

Hi,

I'm pretty sure in the book there was at least one point where Jack comes 'back'

Yup, indeed there is. Page 428 of my mid-eighties paperback edition.

As for the high school ending, I'm curious what they'll say about it in the audio commentary.

Chris

 

[Joshua_Y]

I finally got the series today...cant wait to watch it...but what I cant get is why the first disc is double sided...it really bugs me...because I have a 5-Disc Changer and I still have to get up and change it...argh...why could they just make it a 3 disc set....