"Quietly Going Insane Together"
I watched The Shining for the first time when I was a kid, and have watched it several times since, as
well as the Steven King TV mini series made about 20 years later because King didn’t like Stanley
Kubrick’s adaptation. I still haven’t read the book though (it is on my to-do list), so everything I say about
the plot here will only be based off of the Kubrick version. One of my favorite things about this story
(apart from the music, which I think is genius) is its ambiguity. The story is open to so many different
interpretations because of how open ended it is, and it has been suggested that maybe the hotel isn’t
really alive outside of Danny’s head, and that everything out of the ordinary is just Danny’s way of
processing his abusive father. However one chooses to interpret this ambiguity, however, their
dysfunctional family dynamic is really integral to the story.
well as the Steven King TV mini series made about 20 years later because King didn’t like Stanley
Kubrick’s adaptation. I still haven’t read the book though (it is on my to-do list), so everything I say about
the plot here will only be based off of the Kubrick version. One of my favorite things about this story
(apart from the music, which I think is genius) is its ambiguity. The story is open to so many different
interpretations because of how open ended it is, and it has been suggested that maybe the hotel isn’t
really alive outside of Danny’s head, and that everything out of the ordinary is just Danny’s way of
processing his abusive father. However one chooses to interpret this ambiguity, however, their
dysfunctional family dynamic is really integral to the story.
The way the hotel is personified is another one of my favorite parts of the movie as well. Things are
happening all the time in the background of the shots that aren’t even noticeable at first watch, but
collectively add to an overwhelming feeling of uncanniness. For example, a scene will start with the
chairs all orderly but will have been rearranged slightly by the end of the scene, or the setup of the rooms
will change slightly from scene to scene. Furniture will go missing, things will change color (like Jack’s
typewriter), and the camera will cut to parts of the hotel showing signs of life, like the ballroom with smoke
in the air and streamers. The hotel is familiar to us, but each shot is increasingly off-- the hotel is alive
and it is evident in every scene. I also really love the fluidity of the camera when it is moving down the
halls, because it moves like a snake would, and the music mimics this kind of serpentine monstrous
energy. Rather than being from the perspective of a character (none of whom are present in these shots)
it is from the perspective of the hotel itself. As well as this, as Jack is more and more possessed by the
hotel, more and more often are there crossfades of his face overlaid onto the hotel and vice versa.
happening all the time in the background of the shots that aren’t even noticeable at first watch, but
collectively add to an overwhelming feeling of uncanniness. For example, a scene will start with the
chairs all orderly but will have been rearranged slightly by the end of the scene, or the setup of the rooms
will change slightly from scene to scene. Furniture will go missing, things will change color (like Jack’s
typewriter), and the camera will cut to parts of the hotel showing signs of life, like the ballroom with smoke
in the air and streamers. The hotel is familiar to us, but each shot is increasingly off-- the hotel is alive
and it is evident in every scene. I also really love the fluidity of the camera when it is moving down the
halls, because it moves like a snake would, and the music mimics this kind of serpentine monstrous
energy. Rather than being from the perspective of a character (none of whom are present in these shots)
it is from the perspective of the hotel itself. As well as this, as Jack is more and more possessed by the
hotel, more and more often are there crossfades of his face overlaid onto the hotel and vice versa.
One more thing I thought was interesting was a theory I hadn’t heard of before reading more about the
Kubrick version of The Shining, which is that Kubrick wrote the history of Native American genocide at
the hands of English settlers into the subtext of the movie. I’m not going to explain the whole theory here
because it is very elaborate, but an extremely thorough breakdown of the theory that I was reading can
be found here, and a Washington Post article that I read as well can be found here. Some of the evidence
he cites is the the juxtaposition of Halloran, one of the film’s only actors of color, as well as Native
American imagery subjected to abuse by Jack or overlaid by violent and bloody imagery (as well as the
blatant racism Halloran faces throughout and that he is the only one actually murdered in the film), the
fact that the Overlook hotel (which the name itself lends itself to this theory) was built on top of a Native
American burial ground (this line is not present in the novel), and the river of blood coming out the
elevator with Native American motifs engraved into the wood. I was skeptical of this theory when I first
heard it, since I have seen this movie so many times and didn’t pick up on that at all, but I think after doing
more reading about it it is starting to sound more plausible. I still don’t know if I believe it, but I think it was
very interesting to consider.
Kubrick version of The Shining, which is that Kubrick wrote the history of Native American genocide at
the hands of English settlers into the subtext of the movie. I’m not going to explain the whole theory here
because it is very elaborate, but an extremely thorough breakdown of the theory that I was reading can
be found here, and a Washington Post article that I read as well can be found here. Some of the evidence
he cites is the the juxtaposition of Halloran, one of the film’s only actors of color, as well as Native
American imagery subjected to abuse by Jack or overlaid by violent and bloody imagery (as well as the
blatant racism Halloran faces throughout and that he is the only one actually murdered in the film), the
fact that the Overlook hotel (which the name itself lends itself to this theory) was built on top of a Native
American burial ground (this line is not present in the novel), and the river of blood coming out the
elevator with Native American motifs engraved into the wood. I was skeptical of this theory when I first
heard it, since I have seen this movie so many times and didn’t pick up on that at all, but I think after doing
more reading about it it is starting to sound more plausible. I still don’t know if I believe it, but I think it was
very interesting to consider.
Loved the post! I didn't even know they made a mini series for the shining ill have to check it out!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great post and after reading it I feel like I need to watch the film again for like the 10th time and catch some of what you pointed out!
ReplyDeleteThis is succhhhhh a good post, Karin! I just watched the video about the Native American Genocide theory, and I honestly, I think I could be convinced of it. Because the thing about that theory that I like is it actually gives more depth to the film than it just being about possession/ghosts/whatever else King put in the novel (which I didn't read, and probably never will, because I've heard from so many people that it's boring and also I just like the movie and am fine with what the movie tells me even if it leaves stuff out from the novel). The Genocide theory makes the film more complex and critical, almost like a Get Out type of thing, in which horror is used as a metaphor for racism/the horrors of humanity, etc. I wrote a whole essay last year about Get Out, and it gave me an opportunity to learn more about the symbolism Peele was constantly inserting into the film, sometimes slyly, sometimes blatantly. That's just to say that I think that often times the shit that is seemingly just coincidentally there in a film is rarely coincidental, when you're dealing with a talented filmmaker. I'm not here to kiss Kubrick's ass, but we all know that he's one of those "auteurs," and those guys, pretentious or not, tend to be absurdly detail-oriented in their work. The chance that all that Native American imagery appeared out of nowhere is slim to none.
ReplyDeleteKarin! soooooo glad you said something about the increasingly off details of the hotel, cause as a viewer, I honestly thought I was going crazy when I noticed that shit haha. After reading a bit of Clover's occult theories, I wonder how we could this film in as a possession and what role gender plays into it (I'm not even going to speculate because I know that is a rabbit hole that cannot be gone down in a single comment). But also, the freaking hallway shots. I couldn't get over them the entire film. They made me dizzy. I think there honestly is something going on with this whole film and circles/mazes. might say something in my blog if I can get myself to finish it... stay tuned.
ReplyDeleteThe river of blood coming out of the elevator seen as significant to the theory you write about is really coherent with the theme of the film, which I think focuses a lot of the past and repetition of it (with a lot of the same shots being shown over and over). I didn't even notice so many of the different inconsistencies with the set but that contributes to the sensation of slowly losing it tbh.
ReplyDeleteAH there as so many good theories about this film. Though I often find that sitting around trying to sort out an answer to these films questions is what takes away from the horror. The sense of the unknown is what makes horror so scary, but humans are naturally curious creatures so I have found myself reading all manner of theory around this film as well. My personal favorite is the Kubrick's Confession theory about how this film served as a confession to his part in faking the moon landing. Trying to view The Shining through this train of thought though has done a number to dappen the actual horror of the film for me.
ReplyDeleteI am also intrigued by how many of theories there are out there about this film. I think Hannah is right that it is our desire to make sense of the unknown that drives our interest in horror and I find it interesting that something so familiar such as familial abuse gets rendered into the unknown along side of Native American genocide, which we could know alot about as Americans but we generally choose not look.
ReplyDelete