The Shining on blu-ray: Revisiting the Overlook Hotel (1 Viewer)

[Winston T. Boogie]

I hated the movie when I saw it on its opening day (complete with the hospital ending).

On the hospital ending, do you recall, Bruce, if one of the characters told Wendy that Jack Torrance's body was never found?

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

One of the interesting things about The Shining is that it’s the only Kubrick film to have two different director-approved versions in circulation simulaneously.

The UK version runs about 20 minutes shorter and was trimmed by Kubrick after the initial US release. I prefer the longer version myself but the shorter one is not without merit. It’s also available on DVD and BD from the UK.

For anyone interested, here is the link to the region-free UK edition which runs about 119 minutes:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Shining-Bl...id=1550528953&sr=8-1&keywords=the+shining+blu

The label on the disc itself cites the longer running time, but I've watched it and can verify that it's actually the shorter version.

It's an interesting comparison to see two different versions of this same story which both carry the director's approval. The shorter version is less atmospheric but still creepy, and the narrative feels more propulsive.

Are there just cuts or are there additions as well. Josh? Meaning, are there perhaps other scenes inserted or alternative takes used to justify/make the cuts flow better?

 

[haineshisway]

On the hospital ending, do you recall, Bruce, if one of the characters told Wendy that Jack Torrance's body was never found?

I think the script for the scene is online - http://www.theoverlookhotel.com/post/41259062113/screenplay-for-the-deleted-original-ending-of-the

I don't think the scene played quite this long in the edited version, but I only saw it that one time - it was gone by the next time I saw it.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Are there just cuts or are there additions as well. Josh? Meaning, are there perhaps other scenes inserted or alternative takes used to justify/make the cuts flow better?

I believe it's just cuts; I don't think there's any alternate or additional material.

Most people in the UK didn't have a chance to see the longer version until it was released on Blu-ray there about five years ago. Can you imagine going through life thinking that the shorter version of The Shining was all there was to see, and then discovering an extra twenty minutes of a Kubrick movie? That must be pretty awesome.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Here are a couple images from the hospital scene.

 

[jauritt]

I believe it's just cuts; I don't think there's any alternate or additional material.

Most people in the UK didn't have a chance to see the longer version until it was released on Blu-ray there about five years ago. Can you imagine going through life thinking that the shorter version of The Shining was all there was to see, and then discovering an extra twenty minutes of a Kubrick movie? That must be pretty awesome.

There is no alternate or additional material in the "European Cut" or, what was endorsed by Kubrick as, the "official version". But, this brings up something that has always bugged me. I have both cuts on blu-ray, and the opening and closing credits on the truncated version includes the names of Anne Jackson and Tony Burton, both of whom did NOT appear in that version. I could understand that, perhaps, if it was a version made specifically just for home video, but I would think it would have caused some confusion in the theaters for those paying attention.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

So, another thing I wondered about are the images hanging in Scatman Crother's room in The Shining...

This one I believe may have been chosen for the name of the image, it's called Supernatural Dream.

 

[Matt Hough]

I watched the Blu-ray again tonight, for the first time on my OLED/4K upconversion. It holds up very well indeed for a Blu-ray release this old. Yes, there were a couple of black level inconsistency issues, but sharpness and color were impressive.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

 

[Alan Tully]

I'm with Hainshisway on this one. I was a bit disappointed when I first saw it at the cinema, a bit underwhelmed, esp. with that thick slice of ham that Jack Nicholson served up, but seeing it a few times over the years, I now quite like it (& the same thing with Barry Lyndon). The Red Rum thing is a bit of a bore (I've never read the book), & the whole Hallorann thing of him driving back to the hotel & then getting killed as soon as he gets there, I'm thinking, what's all that about. And damn it...I want to see that hospital scene!

I suppose it'll get the "special release" treatment before too long.

The funny thing is, the Kubrick films I really liked at the time (& saw many times), 2001 & A Clockwork Orange, I'm not so keen on them now.

I haven't changed my mind about Full Metal Jacket, it just seem to be a succession of war movie clichés.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I'm with Hainshisway on this one. I was a bit disappointed when I first saw it at the cinema, a bit underwhelmed, esp. with that thick slice of ham that Jack Nicholson served up, but seeing it a few times over the years, I now quite like it (& the same thing with Barry Lyndon). The Red Rum thing is a bit of a bore (I've never read the book), & the whole Hallorann thing of him driving back to the hotel & then getting killed as soon as he gets there, I'm thinking, what's all that about. And damn it...I want to see that hospital scene!

I suppose it'll get the "special release" treatment before too long.

The funny thing is, the Kubrick films I really liked at the time (& saw many times), 2001 & A Clockwork Orange, I'm not so keen on them now.

I haven't changed my mind about Full Metal Jacket, it just seem to be a succession of war movie clichés.

I think how you feel about a film can change over time. I started loving Nicholson in this when I saw it in a cinema. Then at some point when watching it when it had been released on DVD I began to wonder what exactly he was doing in the film and what he was trying to achieve.

On the most recent watch I swore that Nicholson thought he was in a comedy. His reaction shots are so goofy I wondered how I ever found what he was doing frightening. All the other actors are clearly in a horror film. Duvall being central to making things appear terrifying.

Jack is mugging up a storm. It did not dull my love for the film but I was semi baffled wondering what Kubrick thought of some of Jack's more goofy moments.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

I think what they should do with the 4K release is include both versions of the film.

 

[Jeffrey D]

I think how you feel about a film can change over time. I started loving Nicholson in this when I saw it in a cinema. Then at some point when watching it when it had been released on DVD I began to wonder what exactly he was doing in the film and what he was trying to achieve.

On the most recent watch I swore that Nicholson thought he was in a comedy. His reaction shots are so goofy I wondered how I ever found what he was doing frightening. All the other actors are clearly in a horror film. Duvall being central to making things appear terrifying.

Jack is mugging up a storm. It did not dull my love for the film but I was semi baffled wondering what Kubrick thought of some of Jack's more goofy moments.

After listening to McDowell’s commentary for A Clockwork Orange (many times), I’m going to assume that Stanley encouraged Jack to really play up his performance- Kubrick has the reputation of being like Fincher- shoot as many takes as needed until he gets what he wants in the can.

 

[Alan Tully]

Because I wasn't that interested in this film for many years, I was unaware that the American cut was a lot longer. I've never seen it, but I want to now, I may have to buy the US Blu-ray. I'm sure the 4K release will have both versions.

 

[Winston T. Boogie]

Because I wasn't that interested in this film for many years, I was unaware that the American cut was a lot longer. I've never seen it, but I want to now, I may have to buy the US Blu-ray. I'm sure the 4K release will have both versions.

I am fairly certain I have never seen the short European version. I feel like I should track it down and watch it for comparison purposes. I am curious what he cut from it and how it plays in the shorter version. I have read some people saying they think the shorter version is a better more effective film...as if Stanley refined it to it's most polished form.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

The Shining is the only Kubrick film to have two different director-approved versions in print simultaneously.

While I’d love to have both versions available in the same SKU, I think that’s extremely unlikely. There is no historical precedent for Warner doing so with this title. It’s always been the UK version is available in the UK, and the longer one is available everywhere else. The longer one was finally released on disc in the UK several years ago, but there was no corresponding release to bring the shorter cut to the rest of the world.

 

[Alan Tully]

Yes, a shorter cut of anything is a hard sell, a lot of people on sites like this one always want the longest version available. I don't know, but if Kubrick finally achieve the cut he thought worked the best, it was too late for America, as it had already been released there. I'd think American Kubrick fans would want to see the shorter version, & UK fans (including me) would certainly like to see the longer version. I wouldn't be surprised if Warner released the same comprehensive on both sides of the Atlantic, but that's all a long ways off right now.

 

[Alan Tully]

I had a look at my Blu-ray this evening, the UK version. I haven't seen it for over twenty years. I enjoyed it a lot, but after a stately beginning, Jack Nicholson went mad & it raced to a conclusion, & I think I'd prefer it slightly slower, I'm going to have to track down the American cut.