The Shining

Devil's Advocates #21

by Laura Mee

Taking a fresh look at The Shining (1980), this book situates the film within the history of the horror genre and examines its rightful status as one of the greatest horror movies ever made. It explores how Stanley Kubrick's filmmaking style, use of dark humor, and ambiguous approach to supernatural storytelling complements generic conventions, and it analyzes the effective choices made in adapting King's book for the screen-stripping the novel's backstory, rejecting its clear explanations of the Overlook Hotel's hauntings, and emphasizing the strained relationships of the Torrance family. The fractured family unit and patriarchal terror of Kubrick's film, alongside its allusions to issues of gender, race, and class, connect it to themes prevalent in horror cinema by the end of the 1970s, and are shown to offer a critique of American society that chimed with the era's political climate as well as its genre trends. The film's impact on horror cinema and broader pop culture is ever
apparent, with homages in everything from Toy Story to American Horror Story. The Shining showed that popular, commercial horror films could be smart, artistic, and original.

112 pages, Paperback

Published September 28, 2017

Reviews

[Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good overview of the film and the various critical attitudes over the years. Sometimes feels like it's fellating Kubrick a little too much.

[Jonathan Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent discussion of The Shining as a horror film: i.e., not a failed horror film or a film that transcends genre, but a successful horror film. The best of the Devil's Advocates series I have read so far.

[Aysia · Rating 3 out of 5]

its about the shining so u gotta deal with kubricks absolutely rancid vibes but a good overview of the movie, its reception, and its place in horror

[Ryan Splenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's hard to believe that The Shining was originally panned by critics, the media, and audiences when it was first released. I say this because by the time I watched it for the first time, it was universally regarded as one of the greatest horror movies ever made and also considered a permanent member of the horror movie canon. Laura Mee spends considerable time and effort explaining the transformation of The Shining from horror movie bust to horror movie icon by breaking down traditional horror genre conventions and arguing that Kubrick "played within these rules" while also elevating the genre to a new level with his style, vision, and touch.

[Kev Bickerdike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fine addition to the Devil's Advocate series, Laura Mee's book is incredibly insightful, covering pretty much all aspects of The Shining; from academic analyses of narrative themes, to the technicalities of Kubrick's style.
The writing is engaging throughout, academic enough without being overly dry. Essentially, it kept myself (an academic reader with a short attention span) reading.

[Ben - the Amateur Exegete · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kubrick’s version of ‘The Shining’ is a decent horror movie, even if it is a terrible adaptation of King’s novel. The author here does a good job of giving us the story of the movie’s reception as well as its director’s foray into the horror genre.

[Spanishinquisition · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poco interessante e ripetitivo