- written January 2004
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Jack Torrance has agreed to be caretaker of the Overlook Hotel during the winter months as the hotel has closed down for the season. Jack moves his wife and son in and with that much space and so few people to occupy it, things get weird. Seems there are a few spirits and ghosts in this hotel and when their son isn’t having visions with his special powers to see weird stuff, Jack is slowly going insane. All work and no play make Jack a dull boy.
Overall: One of the quintessential in horror films and truly a masterpiece way ahead of its time. Sorry but the book isn’t this good and Jack Nicholson puts in maybe his best performance of his career. What a shame he didn’t get recognized for his performance but the fact is, his slow descent into madness is simply brilliant. It doesn’t amaze me that the Oscar winner was Robert De Niro in “Raging Bull” but that Nicholson got beat in nominations by: Robert Duvall in “The Great Santini,” Jack Lemmon in Tribute” and Peter O’Toole in “The Stunt Man”…I agree with John Hurt for his performance in “The Elephant Man” though. The 5 nominees are clearly great actors but these weren’t their best roles. Nicholson’s may have been his best ever. Scatman Crothers was very good, the twin girls were very creepy. I wasn’t and still am not a big fan of Shelley Duvall nor of her performance. She’s just annoying in general and her waifish/eating-disorder figure always disturb me. There is just great dialogue in this film and this movie is a treat to watch. If you haven’t seen it, you have missed the best in horror. Comparison: Scanners meets Poltergeist |
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