When the Groundhog forecasts six more weeks of winter, what do we do but hop a snowcat to the Overlook Hotel.
On the next “Roy’s Tie-Dye Sci-Fi Corner,” join us for a telepathic discussion of “The Shining” (1980). Stanley Kubrick builds his house on a foundation of sand – or an Indian burial ground, as the case may be (revealed in the first ten minutes of the film, so I’m not spoiling anything) – and ups the ante by casting an over-the-top Jack Nicholson, who’s obviously bananas from the start. Clearly, this is a director who savors a challenge.
Stephen King, upon whose book the film was based, has had a complicated history with this adaptation. Still, somehow, in spite of itself, “The Shining” has managed to achieve iconic status, routinely ranked toward the top of lists of the greatest horror films ever made and selected for preservation by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”
All praise and no criticism makes Jack a dull boy. We’ll be gazing through the mirror at our REDRUM, on the next Roy’s Tie-Dye Sci-Fi Corner. Tear around the corridors on your Big Wheel in the comments section, when we livestream on Facebook, this Friday evening at 7:00 EST!
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