Superior in every way to Kubrick's As there are two very different versions of the film, there seem to be two different types of viewer: One loves Kubrick's film, for the way he made it. The other loves the source material more, and considers it more important than any adaptation made from it. I am of the latter group.
Kubrick's version is not a bad film, and I think Danny Lloyd played the role better than Courtney Mead. However, in almost every other aspect, Kubrick's film is inferior to the official King version, and while you can argue about the scripting or screenplay, the fact of the matter is that Stanley Kubrick took a novel, made a movie, and, it seems to me, willfully changed much of it just because he could. And I can't say a single one of those changes was for the better. He omitted a lot (which is understandable), but so many familiar elements of the book that are present only bear passing resemblance to what was found in the book. Not forgivable.
Like myself and many fans, King was very disappointed, and wanted to make his own vision come to life on the screen. I won't call it a perfect adaptation (even King changed a few things, for reasons I can't figure), but the book that inspired it is simply one of the greatest ever, and this miniseries is so faithful to it, that I can very easily overlook it's numerous flaws and realize that I'm watching one of my all-time favorite books on TV. I think Steve Weber and Rebecca DeMornay portray the Torrances infinitely better than Nicholson and Duvall, not only because they actually look and act like the characters, but because they were written correctly. I like the settings, the scenarios, everything better. I'm a purist, and if you're going to be a purist about a book like this, the end result makes you happy. If you've only seen Kubrick's version and you never read the book, you may like it for being longer and more in-depth, if you can get over the fact that it's a totally different movie. If you love the book, and it irks you how Kubrick chopped it up into a two-hour mess, this will bring a little joy to your life!
9 out of 10.