This week I had the pleasure of attending a screening of Room 237 and The Shining at the Carolina Theater.
Room 237 Recommendation - RENT
Room 237 is a documentary that allows five people to share their theories of hidden messages and themes in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining. Their ideas are pretty far out there. The most plausible of the bunch being The Shining offers irrefutable proof that Kubrick was a key player in faking the moon landing footage. Yeah - the most plausible. I wouldn't say it is terrible, it certainly generates conversation and some of the ideas are interesting and amusing. I will say I wish it was a different movie. I think I would have liked it far better if had spent a little more time on the nuts. As it is, we never see the speakers faces and have to draw all of their enthusiasm and passion from their recorded voices, that at times, seem to be attempting to convince themselves more than me.
Maybe Kubrick is a genius that has managed to hide all sorts of deep and meaningful secret messages that a select few have been able decode. Then again - maybe it is a film with some continuity errors. Either way - I give Room 237 a MEH. I'm glad I checked it out, but I don't find it groundbreaking, overly interesting or unique.
The Shining Recommendation - SEE IT AGAIN!
Wow, The Shining. It has to be one of the most terrifying movies ever made. Stephen King has been vocal about his displeasure with Kubrick's adaptation of his film. One of his issues is that Kubrick does not play up the supernatural aspect affecting Jack and thus doesn't make Jack a sympathetic character. Mr. King, I love you, but I respectfully disagree. Sure, your dad being possessed and chasing you down with an ax is scary; however, your dad chasing you down with an ax because he WANTS TO is absolutely horrifying to the core!
Maybe the Room 237 nuts are right, maybe there is some subtext to the movie us "normal people" can't see. Well - call me normal then. I like the film as a horror/suspense that uses all the horror/suspense tricks we love in a different way. I had not seen it in several years and I forgot just how good it was. If you're local, it is playing all week at Carolina, go! go! go! If you're not - rent it and watch it again!
So tell me - what going on in your geekery??
I saw The Shining years (and years) ago. It was the scariest movie I've ever seen. I was watching it on tape (that dates it) that I recorded from TV. It would get so intense and I'd want to pause the VCR, just to calm down a little! I didn't though. It is still the scariest movie I've seen.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was about 15 I watched "Night of the Living Dead" by myself late at night on that old show USA UP all night. It quite literally scared me awake. I didn't sleep most of the night and it lingered with me for a few days. I've watched the movie since and it isn't *as* scary as I remember. Must have just been a timing thing! :)
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