Brilliant movie, but the ending was a big let down! 7/10 Review:
When I heard that they were making a sequel to the Shining, I knew that it wouldn't be in the same class as Kubrick's classic, especially when I found out that Jack Nicholson wasn't involved in the project. The only saving grace was that it was based on the novel by Stephen King, so I thought that I should give it a chance. I opted to see the directors cut, which was 3 hours long, so I knew that I might be falling asleep at some point. Right from the beginning, I found the plot intriguing, and the different storylines were written to perfection. The 3 main characters, Dan Torrance (Ewan McGregor), Rose the Hat (Rebecca Ferguson) and Abra Stone (Kyliegh Curran) was excellent, and I loved the way that their individual storylines intertwine, even though they came from completely different backgrounds. The intensity throughout the film was also brilliant, matched together with a great soundtrack that made the thrilling moments pretty scary. The only problem that I had with the film was the ending. As soon as the hotel came into play, the whole film went downhill, which was a shame because I couldn't wait for Dan & Abra to face Rose. Like the Joker, they could have easily made this a standalone movie, with nothing to do with the Shining, which would have made this a 10/10 in my eyes. Getting Henry Thomas (Elliott in E.T.) to play Jack Nicholson was a bad idea, but they did make the hotel look the same as the original, which did send chills down my spine. Although the Shining was an all-time classic, Stephen King wasn't happy with some of Kubrick's adaptations from the novel, like the ending being set in snow, which is why he worked closely with the director to get this movie right. There are a lot of questionable moments that happened in the hotel, which really let the movie down, but if you put the hotel out of your mind, the rest of the film is amazing. Personally, I think they promoted the film wrong, by calling it a sequel to the Shining because a majority of the film has nothing to do with it. Don't get me wrong, the concept is all based on the original, but you could easily watch all of the scenes before they reach the hotel, without seeing it. Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed this cleverly written thriller/horror, but the ending could do with a rewrite. Enjoyable!
Round-Up:
This movie was directed by Mike Flanagan, who also brought you Makebelieve in 2000, Still Life, Ghosts of Hamilton Street, Absentia, Oculus, Hush, Before I Wake, Ouija: Origin of Evil and Gerald's Game. It has been reported that the underperformance of this film was due to the fact that the younger audience wasn't bothered about the Kubrick classic, and the elder audience didn't have high hopes for the film. Most of the people that saw the Shining, didn't leave the film thinking about what happened to the little boy on the bike. He was one of the film's least engaging characters, ranking somewhere between the ghostly twins and the withered hag in the bathtub. Another problem was the length of the movie, but if you watch the director's cut, it really doesn't seem that long while you're watching it. As the Shining was written while Stephen King was an alcoholic, he chose to portray his real-life feelings through Dan's character, of how he redeemed himself and became a better person. Anyway, I hope that more people will give this movie a chance, later on down the line because it's definitely worth a watch, even if you haven't seen the Shining.
Budget: $45million
Worldwide Gross: $72million
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller
Cast: Ewan McGregor, Rebecca Ferguson, Kyliegh Curran, Cliff Curtis, Zahn McClarnon, Emily Alyn Lind, Selena Anduze, Robert Longstreet, Carel Struycken, Catherine Parker, James Flanagan, Met Clark, Zackary Momoh, Jocelin Donahue, Carl Lumbly, Henry Thomas, Bruce Greenwood and Sallye Hooks. 7/10