Heres Johnny!

Adapted from the book of the same title written by stephen king, this is a classic film directed by Stanley Kubrick (Eyes Wide Shut). This is the first adaptation of the Shining, as it was adapted as a tv mini-series in the 1990s. I got this from my local shop for around $8 in their discount box and remembered watching it years ago and decided to get it to see if it was as good as I remembered. I was not disappointed!

Cast
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Jack Torrance - Jack Nicholson
Wendy Torrance - Shelley Duvall
Danny Torrance - Danny Lloyd
Dick Hallorahan - Scatman Crothers

Screenplay by - Stanley Kubrick & Diane Johnson
Produced/Directed by Stanley Kubrick

The Film
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Jack Torrance (Nicholson), is a recovering alcoholic and writer who accepts a job as caretaker in the Overlook Hotel for the winter. The hotel itself is completely closed for the winter but still requires a caretaker to look after the general bits and bobs and the heating system etc. Jack goes there with his wife Wendy and son Danny (also known as Doc). The hotel itself is a very grand building, retaining a lot of olde worlde charm from the 1930s. But it holds a dark secret.

Here they meet Dick, who shows Wendy the kitchens, and the radio room, where they can converse with the outside world via CB radio. Dick senses that young Danny has a gift. This is a gift that he too has - his mother called it the Shining (hence the title). Telepathically, he converses with Danny and tells him not to believe everything he sees within the hotel and to stay away from a certain room in the hotel. Why? Well you have to find that one out for yourselves.

Things are going fine for a while, until Jack starts drinking again. The word 'REDRUM' pops up with alarming frequency and all becomes apparent - the hotel wants Danny's Shining for itself. Jack turns into an axe-wielding maniac in his attempt to get Danny for the hotel. Danny then calls on the one person he knows will hear him - Dick.

But will Dick get to the hotel in time? What will happen to Danny and Wendy? What happens to Jack? Sorry, I'm not giving that away, it's up to you to find that one out! What I will say is that there is a classic scene in this film where Jack Nicholson takes an axe to a wooden door, manages to stick his head in the hole he has made and shouts " Heres Johnny!".

DVD Extras
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I did not expect this DVD to have any extras as it is quite an old film but to my surprise there are some and these are:

* Vivian Kubrick's Behind the Scenes Documentary "The Making of the Shining" - this is about 45 minutes long and like it says is a documentary about how the film came to be made. You can have the optional commentary from Vivian Kubrick herself.

* Interactive Menus

* Scene Access

* Trailer

My Opinion
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In my opinion this is a classic horror film from an exceptionally talented writer (King) and an equally talented director (Kubrick). Both must have such sick and twisted minds to produce such a haunting film between them. But I loved it! I remember watching it when I was much younger (too young to watch it really) and I had nightmares for about a week!

Re-watching it now, it did not have the same effect, but still made me jump and cringe just the same. I loved the film then and I still love it now. In my mind this has to be Nicholson's finest performance outside his role in One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest. He manages to switch his character from nice happy family man, to complete psycho with the minimum of effort and makes the part of Jack Torrance so believeable that you actually feel sorry for him at times.

I was completely glued to the screen when this film was on. That's a rarity for me as it takes a great film to make me sit down and watch for a couple of hours, although now I do tend to watch whole films for the sake of a comprehensive review!.

The special effects are minimal as this film was originally made in 1980 when effects were not half as good as they are now. But even with that, the effects are fantastic when combined with the performances from Nicholson and Duvall. Duvall's portrayal of Wendy Torrance is completely believable, as she gives the impression of being a bit of a wimp who finally gets some courage in the end. Little Danny Lloyd is fantastic as Danny Torrance, such a cute little boy who gives a wonderful performance in my mind.

I can fully and wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good thriller/horror movie. It gets the five star treatment from me. I have watched this on a regular basis since I bought it a year ago and it never fails to have me on the edge of my seat. I only paid about $8 for this DVD as it was in the discount box at my local shop but if you shop around, I'm sure you can get it for an equally good price online.

Thanks for reading! XX