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Ragtime
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07 Feb 2009, 10:41 pm

pakled wrote:
I actually liked 'Dark city', although I put my higher brain functions on hold to watch it...


Ya. Nice visuals.


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slowmutant
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07 Feb 2009, 11:08 pm

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I actually liked 'Dark city', although I put my higher brain functions on hold to watch it...


Really? That movie isn't exactly a no-brainer. It does provide some intellectual challenge. In other words, the plot is more involved than your average porn flick. My higher brain functions were definitely not on hold for Dark City ...



NextFact
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07 Feb 2009, 11:42 pm

slowmutant wrote:
I read somewhere that Stephen King hated the movie.


i dont blame him! stephen king only writes horror novels doesnt he? the director of the shining should have focused more on scares other than irrelevant dialogue, i mean this is supposed to be a horror movie RIGHT? thats what genre netflix had it under, and yet 3/4 of the movie was dialogue with no action/scares, and the intended scary parts werent scary at all, some naked old lady? a room full of skeletons? a room full of blood coming out an elevator(i think?)? pathetic, NOT SCARY!



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08 Feb 2009, 1:58 am

If you're trying to compare The Shinning to SAW you're desensitized.


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08 Feb 2009, 3:48 am

The Shining..so far from being the worst movie ever


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Fluffybunnyfeet
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08 Feb 2009, 3:38 pm

NextFact wrote:
slowmutant wrote:
I read somewhere that Stephen King hated the movie.


i dont blame him! stephen king only writes horror novels doesnt he? the director of the shining should have focused more on scares other than irrelevant dialogue, i mean this is supposed to be a horror movie RIGHT? thats what genre netflix had it under, and yet 3/4 of the movie was dialogue with no action/scares, and the intended scary parts werent scary at all, some naked old lady? a room full of skeletons? a room full of blood coming out an elevator(i think?)? pathetic, NOT SCARY!


One of the most popular movies of all time was effectively written by Stephen King, and contained only the usual horror elements one gets in a prison - The Shawshank Redemption.

Stephen King rightly hated The Shining, as the spirit of the story had been lost. The scary aspect in the book was a male authority figure with a history of hurting himself and hurting his family trapped with them in a huge building, with the weather and the location making it impossible to leave. Most of the supernatural aspects work in the book but seem silly in the movie. In the book, the spirit of the house is fairly mysterious throughout (though obviously it is malevolent). There was massive buildup in the book for the 'redrum' thing, which when spoken out loud in the movie seems silly or annoying. There's plenty more to mention, but its all the same sort of thing. The movie fails to celebrate the book's best aspects.

The reason that I like The Shining movie is that it is minimalist. You only get to see what the director wants you to see and nothing is out of place or untidy. The effects shots are all real, no CGI. The shots at the start from a helicopter following a car winding along a road, and the steadycam shots following the child on the tricycle around the hotel were revolutionary, when the film was made. These days you can create any scene that you can imagine with CGI, so those bits have lost a lot of their magic.

Once you understand the difference between modern horror and psychological horror, you stand a chance of appreciating it. Modern horror is based only on instinct - Eyes and teeth suddenly zooming at the viewer, or exploiting fears of disfigurement (damaged faces, or physical gore), whereas this genre requires that your brain be intact, and that you relate to characters and feel for them. Admittedly, the greatest flaw in the The Shining, and indeed in most Stanley Kubrick movies is that its hard to relate to the characters. So maybe thats my whole argument shot down :)



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08 Feb 2009, 4:01 pm

Never actually seen the Shining. Stephen King movies all seem to be that way...plodding and then the action starts. Everyone in the family (including the 2-year-old granddaughter) love horror movies, it's all they watch.

I tend to see them as stupid people dying because they had sex, in stupid ways in dark rooms...;) To each their own...;)



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21 Feb 2009, 5:02 pm

Its difficult in and of itself to translate Stephen King's books to the screen. There is a quality of experience in them that is incredibly hard to capture, I think. Although, his tales are so masterfully written, I think that's a lot of the reason why his work is so frequently made into movies.

I remember reading Misery, and then seeing the movie. Everyone just ranted and raved about how scary it was. And certainly Kathy Bates was amazing. But when I compare watching it to reading it, there was no comparison for me. The book elicited far more of the sense of doom and terror that King intended.

Just be glad you didn't check out the 4-5 hour long version of The Shining made later on (I think that's how long it was - - seemed longer :) ). It rounded out the story due to its length, but gosh! I felt like I could have read along while watching it.



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21 Feb 2009, 5:30 pm

Not sure if this fits BUT I have a 'Bates Motel' keychain - way cool. There are Bates Motel shower curtains on the market now too, complete with the shadow and drippy knife Psycho in silhoutte. Psycho classic. Haute couture. Tres chic.


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Ragtime
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23 Feb 2009, 2:23 pm

I just watched some Youtube clips of The Shining, and wow, do you think they could squeeze in any more stagnant pauses? Geez, what a boring movie. I'm at work, and this bored me to where I was getting sleepy. I had to stop watching it and get back to my boring job so I wouldn't completely konk out!



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23 Feb 2009, 8:45 pm

slowmutant wrote:
I read somewhere that Stephen King hated the movie.


Oh he did. That's why he made his own version of The Shining which was a mini TV series in 1997. The mini TV series is pretty much unknown apparently but it was made the way he wanted it to be.



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23 Feb 2009, 8:50 pm

Manos hands of fate...worst movie ever


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Brandon_M
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24 Feb 2009, 4:15 pm

Meh it's not one of Kubrick's best works, but from what I remember it's pretty good not as a horror, but a psychological thriller. One families descent into insanity.



Ragtime
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24 Feb 2009, 9:06 pm

Funny, I didn't remember the writing being this juvenile. :?


[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3zzgX6UUNQ[/youtube]



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24 Feb 2009, 10:13 pm

The main difference that Stephen King had with Stanley Kubrick was that Kubrick didn't believe in the supernatural and decided to make the entire thing "inside people's heads" while Stephen King's take was that the Overlook hotel was posessed and was trying to get Danny (but via his father?).



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24 Feb 2009, 11:35 pm

Stephen King did hate the movie, but that's because it wasn't how he originally wrote the book. Kubrick is considered one of the best directors ever, but as has been pointed out, The Shining was not one of his best. In fact besides Eyes Wide Shut it was probably his worst. Stanley Kubrick was freaking insane though, every single shot had to be perfect in his mind, or he'd keep re-shooting until it was.

this scene always make me laugh though because of Shelley Duvall's horrible acting:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVZBf4ae4l0&feature=related[/youtube]


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