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TPE project:
Fear
in movies
The Shining
Contents
I) About the movie
1) General information
- Directed by : Stanley Kubrick
- Release date : October 16th 1980
- Duration : 120min
2) Synopsis
A family heads to an isolated hotel for the winter where an evil and spiritual presence influences the father into violence, while his psychic son sees horrific forebodings from the past and of the future.
II) Analysis of the movie
1) Atmosphere
a) Soundscape
In Shining, the film directed by Stanley Kubrick, we can notice the presence of many sound effects. These sounds can give us a feeling of fear and unease. All along the film, music is present.
Music is pervasive throughout some chapters: in Chapter 4 (0h 8min and 32sec) when the boy has a vision for the first time in the film. When Danny's eyes open wide, the music literally "swells".
In Chapter 10 (0h 31min and 50sec), the music that accompanies the shots (the snowstorm) continues in the next chapter, to change as the characters. When Jack appears, the notes are sharp and shrill, as when Wendy arrives, the intensity drops and the notes are in the medium.
In others, the soundscape is composed only of sounds: What makes the scene more serene and healthy.in Chapter 2, the soundscape is composed only of the sounds of footsteps, ringtones, people who speak, typewriters, children playing, birds, dogs barking then later in the scene, chewing sounds.
b) Setting and time
The film is set in a hotel, the Overlook, during the winter closure. One of the main characters, Jack Torrance, is hired to be a custodian of the hotel and he takes his wife and son. Their place of residence is giant, the hotel is huge and the garden is vast. But all that space eventually isolate them. This isolation will be dangerous.
In the first scene, we can see a car wind up a road, heading for the mountains. The film will take place in a mountainous environment and therefore a hostile one. Some of these mountains are covered with snow and trees have leaves which show that we are in the fall. Winter will be felt at their facility in the Overlook Hotel and the snow and cold will be important in the story (since the elements isolate them and prevent them from escaping, and then eventually kill the father).
2) Characters
Jack Torrance is the main character. He became custodian of the hotel Overlook and he takes his family for the winter. During his discussion with Lloyd, the bartender, we learned that some years ago, he beat his son Danny. His wife accused him of hitting him (Chapter 15).In Chapter 17 (0 hours 49 minutes and 36 seconds), it does not seem to be questioning and he gives the impression to prepare his revenge. We also see he drinks a lot. Alcohol helping in this task and Lloyd is ready to serve him again (the bottle is not in order). He is very violent, insomniac and very nervous. We feel he has a very fragile mental. In chapter 24, he surprised his wife at his office. She knows that her husband might hurt her.
Wendy Torrance, Jack's wife is often seen as a short-sighted woman and submissive to her husband.
Danny Torrance, the son of Jack and Wendy, has the power of the Shining. He has an imaginary friend who lives in him, Tony. He can communicate with other people who have this power. Despite his knowledge and his visions on the Overlook Hotel, he did not really seem to be afraid of going live in. But after going in the room 237, he is shocked and his visions are multiplying.
Dick Hallorann is the cook of the Overlook Hotel, which also owns The Shining. In Chapter 7, during his discussion with Danny, he learns to control his powers and so, to control Tony. From that moment on, Danny is talking alone (to stage 27). He will try to save Wendy and Danny Jack, after receiving telepathic messages from the child.
Outside these few main characters, secondary characters are:
Mr. Ullman, the manager of the Overlook Hotel. He confesses to Jack the incident happened in 1970.
Bill Watson, nobody knows his identity. He is surely Ullman's assistant or his associate. He does not utter a word of the movie.
Lloyd, the bartender. He is the demon of Jack, he make him drinking and never doubt what he says.
Members of the Grady family: father Delbert who killed his wife and two daughters.
3) Plans
In the first chapter, the camera is high, it seems to observe the action. We see that the scene has been shot from a helicopter (which can be seen on a section of a cliff).This view comes in Chapter 5 when we see the progression of the family car Torrance full, always high. In this same chapter, we see a plan that will return regularly in this film: the overview of the Overlook Hotel.
When we see Danny in full "Shining" in the bathroom, the close plan is not consistent with the scene, since it is seen in a dark place on a black background, while a few minutes before he was in the lighted room. Presumably the black or the lack of light conveys fear (as for children at night). In Chapter 6, a plan zooming to Danny and the same type of plan is made on Dick (a cook with the same power of telepathy), which informs the spectator that a communication Shining will take place.
